The COVID-19 protocols that the NFL and NFL players association agreed to for the 2021 season have provided a clear incentive for players to get vaccinated.
Apparently, those rules and restrictions have made at least one player reconsider his stance on getting jabbed.
Linebacker Denzel Perryman addressed the Las Vegas media for the first time since the Raiders acquired him from the Panthers and told reporters that he hasn’t liked how being unvaccinated has made him feel in the team facility.
“For the record, I am thinking about the vaccination now,” Perryman said, via Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “I ain’t gonna lie. Too many restrictions going on. Can’t even eat with my fellow brothers. I don’t like being an outcast.”
As Hill pointed out, Perryman was required to wear a mask at the podium because he hasn’t received a vaccine to this point.
If it takes feeling like an outcast to induce Perryman into getting vaccinated, then in many ways, that’s a victory for public health. But it also helps the Raiders for availability. Having fewer unvaccinated players means there are fewer individuals who must be placed on the COVID-19 list due to a close contact. And as we’ve seen with the Colts this week, missing those days in the regular season would be significant.
