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Titans place QB Ryan Tannehill on reserve/COVID-19 list days after Mike Vrabel tests positive

The Tennessee Titans are placing quarterback Ryan Tannehill on the reserve/COVID-19 list, general manager Jon Robinson said Thursday morning.

Robinson said Tannehill is vaccinated and is "feeling OK," per Cameron Wolf of NFL Network. He urged everyone to get vaccinated and said the team is 97-98% vaccinated or have the antibodies.

The COVID-19 vaccines have lowered the chance of death and severe symptoms. It does not prevent people from contracting the virus. Unvaccinated people who contracted the coronavirus are more than 29 times more likely to be hospitalized than a vaccinated individual who contracted it, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study from Los Angeles showed.

Tannehill said he would not have gotten the vaccine if it weren't for the NFL protocols put into place that differed for vaccinated and unvaccinated players. Because he is vaccinated, he can return to the team after two negative tests 24 hours apart rather than a long quarantine period.

The Titans open the regular season Sept. 12.

Titans add 5 players to reserve/COVID-19 list

Ryan Tannehill
Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill is on the reserve/COVID-19 list ahead of the final preseason game. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Head coach Mike Vrabel tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday. He said he woke up that morning with a sore throat and decided to get tested. The Titans held joint training camp practices with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week.

Tannehill, 33, is the fifth Titans player put on the reserve/COVID-19 list since then. Linebacker Nick Dzubnar, running back Jeremy McNichols, defensive lineman Anthony Rush and offensive lineman Harold Landry are all on the list.

The list is for either those who have tested positive or for those deemed a close contact with someone who has tested positive. The NFL's COVID-19 protocols stipulate someone who is vaccinated and tests positive can return if they are asymptomatic and have two negative tests at least 24 hours apart.

Unvaccinated players enter a 10-day quarantine for a positive test, or a five-day quarantine as a close contact.

The Titans experienced an outbreak last year that forced the postponement of games in Weeks 4 and 5.