After a week of quarantine due to teammate Trent Brown’s positive COVID-19 test, the Las Vegas Raiders offensive line tested negative Sunday morning meaning the team will have most of its starters for Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay.
Reports indicate the Las Vegas Raiders offensive line tested negative for COVID-19 again Sunday morning, meaning the team’s four starters can rejoin their team and play in today’s game against the Buccaneers at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Gabe Jackson, Kolton Miller, Denzelle Good, and Rodney Hudson are now all able to suit up and play in today’s big game against Tom Brady and Tampa Bay. Trent Brown, who tested positive and has since been accused of removing his contact tracing device which caused his teammates to be quarantined, is out and still on the COVID-19/IR list. The availability of the Raiders offensive line, despite missing a week of practice, is a big development for the 3-2 team looking to stay above .500 against a surging Buccaneers team.
Raiders starting safety Johnathan Abram, who was in close contact with Brown after his positive test, is ineligible for today’s game due to testing protocol. If he tests negative today and tomorrow morning, he can rejoin his teammates in preparation for next week’s game at Cleveland.
The latest spat of COVID-19 issues for the Raiders isn’t their first. The team, and coach John Gruden, has been fined over $350,000 for violating the protocols agreed upon by the league and the NFL Player’s Association.
The Brown incident is under investigation by the NFL and also cost the team a coveted Sunday Night Football appearance. Once the Brown incident had been discovered, the NFL moved the Raiders game up to 1 pm PT and switched the Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals into the prime time slot. The game wasn’t moved later since the Raiders offensive line, nor any other players tested positive. So far, just Brown and rookie defensive back Damon Arnette were deemed positive.
The Raiders vs Buccaneers game went back up on Las Vegas sports book odds boards this morning with Tampa Bay at 4.5-point favorite. When it was taken off the board on Tuesday after the status of the Raiders offensive line was unknown, the Buccaneers were a 3-point favorite.