Getty Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu reacts to a penalty call in Super Bowl LV.
Kansas City Chiefs safety, Tyrann Mathieu, is making headlines Wednesday, but it’s not for something he said. The Chiefs have placed Mathieu on the reserve/COVID-19 list, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. Mathieu tested positive for COVID-19, which resulted in him being placed on the list, per NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.
The Chiefs have placed S Tyrann Mathieu on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
How Long is Mathieu Sidelined?
Players in the NFL are subject to the reserve/COVID-19 list if they test positive for the virus or those identified through contact tracing as having been exposed, per The Washington Post.
According to a memo — which was obtained by Pelissero — that was sent to clubs from the NFL back in July, vaccinated players or staff that test positive for the virus and are asymptomatic are eligible to return to duty if they register two negative tests 24 hours apart. For unvaccinated players, just like in 2020, they must quarantine for 10 days and will be permitted to return to duty if they are asymptomatic.
Mathieu has been fully vaccinated, according to Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star. McDowell later reported that Mathieu is not experiencing any symptoms.
Tyrann Mathieu has been fully vaccinated, a source tells The Star.
At the start of training camp, 90 percent of the Kansas City team was vaccinated, according to head coach Andy Reid. As of August 17, the team was over 95 percent vaccinated, a league spokesperson told KSHB 41’s, Casey Murray. “The spokesperson said that makes them one of seven NFL teams to hit the 95% mark,” Murray wrote.
Mathieu, Fiancee Attended Brittany Matthews’s B-Day Party
Over the weekend, Brittany Matthews — fiancee of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — had a birthday bash for her 26th birthday. Matthews posted pictures on her Instagram of the party, and in the sixth photo, she was seen with Mathieu’s fiancee, Sydni Russell, with Mathieu floating in the background of the photo.
Travis Kelce’s girlfriend, Kayla Nicole, is also seen in the seventh and eighth photos of Mathews’s Instagram post.
There is no telling at this time if any of these people are vaccinated, with the exception of Mathieu. But for contact tracing purposes this is worth mentioning.
Mathieu, Chiefs Extension Talks at Standstill
Mathieu, who is in the last year of his three-year, $42 million deal with Kansas City, has had no luck reaching an agreement on an extension with the organization, which general manager Brett Veach gave an update on during his Wednesday press conference.
“We had a chance to talk during the training camp process and there’s really nothing that I haven’t shared before that’s new or changed,” Veach said. “We’ll certainly, as I mentioned before, work our tail off to get him done and you can’t do absolutes or definites on anything. We’re certainly committed to seeing the process through and again as I mentioned before, can’t express how much we admire him, and he knows that and we certainly know he wants to be here. We’ll just make sure to follow that process through and hopefully get something done.”