JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew spent a little more than one day in quarantine but was back on the active roster on Tuesday morning.
And he was a little miffed that he missed out on the first day of on-field work for veterans.
"It was brutal, dude," Minshew said. "Like, yesterday would have been like the first day of school, you know. Had my outfit picked out and everything, had to stay at home. That sucked, missed out on playing with all my friends.
"But yeah did not contract the virus. Took one look at me and ran the other way. It was probably in its best interests, so here we are, we're back on Tuesday ready to roll, excited to go play some football."
Minshew may have been joking around with that comment but that doesn't mean he isn't serious about the pandemic that has gripped the country and resulted in 4.65 million cases and 154,471 deaths as of Monday evening. Minshew said he was placed in quarantine and on the reserve/COVID-19 list because he was around teammate Michael Walker, who did test positive test for COVID-19 over the weekend.
He also said that he and Walker, who trained together in the offseason in Naples, Florida, both tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, which is an indication that they both were infected with the coronavirus at some point. Both were asymptomatic, he said.
"What happened is I think we both had the antibodies from staying in Naples. We probably got it down there at the same time," Minshew said. "Had no symptoms or whatever and then I think he failed a test but I don't think he has it again, but just since he failed it and I was around him then I had to sit out, too.
"Just shows kind of the fragility of this whole thing and how fickle this thing can be. Just being around somebody, if they touch enough people, you could shut down a whole team really quick."
Minshew, Walker, safety Andrew Wingard, running back Ryquell Armstead and tight end Charles Jones were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Sunday. Minshew and Wingard were removed from the list on Tuesday.
To be placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list a player has to either test positive or have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive. There are various protocols in place for what players must do to come off the list depending on whether they were experiencing symptoms or not, including receiving two negative tests results separated by more than 24 hours.
The Jaguars have had an NFL-high 12 players placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Minnesota and Detroit are second with eight players on the list. There have been 87 players placed on the list across the league as of Monday morning.
The Jaguars have announced Minshew as their starter in 2020 after he threw for 3,271 yards and 21 touchdowns with six interceptions as a rookie in 2019. Minshew, who was a sixth-round pick out of Washington State, led the Jaguars to a 6-6 record.