Vance McDonald has tested positive for coronavirus.
Following their overnight return home from Dallas, the Steelers announced Monday afternoon that a player had tested positive for COVID-19, through a statement released by team spokesperson Burt Lauten, and that the player immediately self-quarantined.
Statement from #Steelers Spokesman Burt Lauten: pic.twitter.com/3dfLLzVH6P
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 9, 2020
Less than an hour after the press release was issued it was revealed that McDonald had been placed on the NFL's reserve/COVID-19 list. McDonald, who missed practice Friday due to illness, traveled with the team to Dallas on Saturday and played 24 snaps in the 24-19 victory over the Cowboys on Sunday.
"The health and safety of our players, coaches and staff members remain our highest priority," said Lauten.
The Steelers will now have to go through contact tracing regarding players in close proximity to McDonald. Any players deemed to be in close contact for at least 15 minutes with McDonald could be placed on the reserve/COVID list and would need to be held out of practice this week.
For a team that just flew across the country with McDonald on the plane, that could be an issue.
A week ago, the Steelers were informed that Ravens defensive back Marlon Humphrey tested positive for COVID-19 less than 24 hours after the two teams played in Baltimore. Seven other members of the Ravens ended up being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
This past Saturday, the Steelers had their first positive COVID-19 test since the start of training camp in August. The positive test belonged to a staff member. The same steps were taken for that positive test.
A day before that, the Steelers were fined $250,000 and Mike Tomlin was fined $100,000 due to coaches not wearing their face covering masks during their victory Nov. 1 in Baltimore. The Steelers became just the latest out of a handful of teams to receive a fine due to failing to follow COVID-19 regulations.
Other NFL franchises including the Seahawks, Broncos, 49ers, Saints, Raiders and Titans have also been fined due to similar infractions. The Raiders were also stripped of a sixth round draft pick after being deemed repeat offenders by the league.