Andy Reid Says Chiefs Players Are 90% Vaccinated, Coaching Staff 100%
In his first press conference from training camp ahead of the 2021 season, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid discussed the Chiefs' team vaccination status on Friday following a busy week in NFL vaccination news.
"About 90% of our players have taken the shot," Reid said, adding that 100% of staff has been vaccinated as well.
"There are six teams that are 90% or over, and we're glad to be in that area there," Reid continued. "We're one of the teams where the players have really challenged themselves to get things done and take care of business."
Reid was later asked what his message is to the approximately 10% of Chiefs players who have not yet been vaccinated.
"I don't have anything to say one way or the other with the 10%," Reid said. "They know the guys who have been vaccinated and haven't been vaccinated, they know all the coaches have been. I'm hoping that they all stay safe, that's what I hope, and that they don't get the virus. That's most important in my eyes. However it's done, let's keep people safe. That's where I'm at."
Earlier Friday, NFL CMO Allen Stills discussed the NFL's latest vaccination numbers on a conference call. As reported by Albert Breer of The MMQB, Stills said 80% of all NFL players are vaccinated, with nine teams having more than 90% of players with at least one shot and five teams with a lower-than-70% vaccination rate.
The NFL's latest memo on COVID-19 vaccinations made headlines on Thursday as the league created more incentives for players to get vaccinated and warnings for players and teams who aren't fully vaccinated by the start of the season.
Jenny Vrentas of Sports Illustrated wrote about the NFL's latest move and how the league has made as big of a push as possible in terms of getting the league vaccinated:
The NFL has gone as far as it can to compel players to get vaccinated against COVID-19, without explicitly requiring it. Players or team personnel who are unvaccinated will be subject to different individual protocols for the 2021 season than those who are vaccinated, but the memo the league issued to its member teams Thursday went a step further, delineating steeper consequences for potential outbreaks of the virus among unvaccinated players.
The memo makes clear that the NFL does not intend to add a 19th week to the schedule, and if a game cannot be rescheduled within the 18-week framework and thus must be canceled due to an outbreak of unvaccinated players, that club will forfeit the game. With a cancellation, players on both sides would not be paid their weekly salary.
