The NFL had its all-time worst day for positive COVID tests on Monday, with nearly 40 different players landing on the reserve/COVID-19 list. A day later, the Browns have added eight players to the pool, announcing Tuesday that veteran wide receiver Jarvis Landry and All-Pro guard Wyatt Teller are among starters who will be sidelined ahead of Saturday’s Week 15 game against the Raiders. All eight players tested positive for COVID-19, per NFL Media, and may or may not be available for this week’s matchup.
Landry and Teller are joined by tight end Austin Hooper, left tackle Jedrick Wills, offensive guard Drew Forbes and defensive end Takkarist McKinley on COVID reserve, along with practice-squad players JoJo Natson and Ross Travis. Landry, Teller, Hooper and Wills make up more than a quarter of the Browns starting offense, which was already battling injuries at its respective positions.
The team announced Tuesday it entered the NFL‘s enhanced COVID-19 protocols, moving all meetings to virtual settings and requiring all personnel to wear masks indoors. Players who test positive for COVID are restricted from returning to work until either testing negative two times 24 hours apart (if vaccinated) or after being asymptomatic after 10 days of isolation. The NFL, meanwhile, has no plans to reschedule or cancel Saturday’s matchup between Cleveland and Las Vegas, per NFL Media.
Landry, who missed time earlier this year due to a knee injury, has been busy as Baker Mayfield’s top target in recent weeks, totaling 11 catches for 152 yards and a touchdown over the Browns’ last two games. Wills and Teller are two of the team’s five starters along the offensive line. Hooper, meanwhile, is fresh off a five-catch performance against the Ravens atop a tight end spot already missing backups David Njoku and Harrison Bryant due to injury.
