KC Chiefs reportedly get COVID scare from barber hire
By Matt Conner
On Monday night, the Kansas City Chiefs explained that two players were being quarantined for a close contact with COVID-19, when both wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and offensive lineman Daniel Kilgore were placed on the NFL’s COVID/reserve list. By Monday night, an odd rumor from San Francisco 49ers reporter Cam Inman had surfaced blaming a barber of all things. What sounded silly at first is looking like the actual truth.
Itis now being reported by multiple NFL insiders that a barber hired by the Chiefs to come in and help provide haircuts to the roster was to blame for the spread of COVID-19—or at least the potential of it.
What’s even weirder about this entire report is that the Chiefs had created an even greater internal bubble leading up to the Super Bowl in order to make sure this did not happen. Wide receiver Tyreek Hill explained to reporters earlier this week that he had to miss his own son’s basketball game because, in his words, “We can’t even do nothing.”
In order to help with the shutdown of such external activities, the Chiefs had provided the team with services like this barber who had been tested, yet still made it through. NFL reporter Tom Pelissero has the complete breakdown here, but suffice it to say that he was tested for five days before gaining entrance at Arrowhead Stadium and was even rapid tested that very day and was still allowed in.
For now, the damage is limited to high-contact quarantine, which means both Kilgore and Robinson could still be active for Sunday’s Super Bowl if they are still testing negative all week long. Kilgore is a backup center for the Chiefs who would sub in if something happens to Austin Reiter. Robinson is a moderately utilized receiver who could be dangerous if Tampa concentrates too much on shutting down the team’s major weapons on offense.