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Titans, Vikings suspend football activities due to COVID-19 cases

The Tennessee Titans had three players and five personnel members test positive for COVID-19 after their Week 3 game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in Minneapolis. File Photo by Kyle Rivas/UPI
The Tennessee Titans had three players and five personnel members test positive for COVID-19 after their Week 3 game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in Minneapolis. File Photo by Kyle Rivas/UPI | License Photo

Sept. 29 (UPI) -- The Tennessee Titans and Minnesota Vikings suspended in-person football activities on Tuesday after eight positive COVID-19 test results emerged out of a group of Titans players and personnel members.

The Titans -- based in Nashville -- beat the Vikings 31-30 on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. Sources told ESPN, the Tennessean and Pro Football Talk that the Titans facilities are closed until at least Saturday.

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The NFL and players union said the results returned "three new player positives and five new personnel positives" from the Titans. The Vikings said they have "not received any positive results" among personnel or players tested for COVID-19 after Sunday's game.

"Both clubs are working closely with the NFL and the NFLPA [players union], including our infectious disease experts, to evaluate close contacts, perform additional testing and monitor developments," the league and players union said.

"All decisions will be made with health and safety as our primary consideration. We will continue to share updates as more information becomes available."

The Titans are scheduled to host the Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 p.m. EDT Sunday in Nashville. The Vikings are scheduled to face the Houston Texans at 1 p.m. EDT Sunday in Houston.

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"Out of the abundance of caution, the organization has decided to work remotely today as we follow NFL protocols related to the COVID-19 virus," the Titans said. "Several tests have come back positive and are working through the process of confirming them."

Tennessee battled the Denver Broncos on Sept. 14 in Denver and hosted the Jacksonville Jaguars Sept. 20 in Nashville. The Vikings hosted the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 13 in Minneapolis and played the Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 20 in Indianapolis.

"Per the NFL protocol, we will suspend in-person club activities and close TCO Performance Center immediately," the Vikings said of its practice center.

"We will work closely with the NFL and [players union] to monitor the situation, perform additional testing and determine when the facility can reopen. We will provide further updates regarding this week's football schedule when appropriate."

The Titans said they also will provide additional information about the status of the team on Wednesday. Titans linebackers coach Shane Bowen was not with the team Sunday in Minneapolis after he went into COVID-19 quarantine on Saturday. Titans offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson also was placed on the COVID-19 reserve list in early September.

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Before Tuesday's news, the NFL reported zero players had tested positive after Week 1 games, when the most recent test results were announced.

The NFL has yet to announce any changes to the status of Week 4 games based on the latest COVID-19 results. League protocols state that players who test positive for COVID-19 and remain asymptomatic can return to their teams 10 days after the test or after five days with consecutive negative tests in a five-day period.

Players who show symptoms can return to their teams 10 days after the symptoms first appeared and 72 hours after they last experienced symptoms.

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