The Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens were slated for a prime time matchup in Week 12 on Thanksgiving night, but due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the Baltimore Ravens’ organization those plans have changed.
The National Football League made the decision on Wednesday to postpone the game to Sunday, time and network still to be determined, and the reason behind this was due to more players testing positive on the Raven’s latest round of testing.
The players who had tested positive prior to Wednesday were:
Pernell McPhee
Trace McSorley
J.K. Dobbins
Mark Ingram
You can now add key members along the offensive line, Matt Skura and Pat Mekari, as the latest position group to get his with positive COVID-19 tests which landed them on the COVID/Reserve List. While not along the offensive line, defensive lineman Calais Campbell is another player who tested positive in the latest round of testing.
This per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network:
The #Ravens had 7 players positive in 3 days, including most recently: Matt Skura, Pat Makari and Calais Campbell, plus several coaches and their top 2 RBs. Commissioner Roger Goodell made the decision with health and safety in mind.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 25, 2020
For those counting at home, those are seven total players to have tested positive. For those individuals, there is no chance they will play this week even with the game being pushed to Sunday. The only players who could potentially play in the game would be anyone who was placed on the COVID/Reserve List due to being a high risk contact. As of now, that would only include defensive lineman Brandon Williams.
As of now, the NFL is confident the game will be played on Sunday. This per Dr. Allen Sills, the NFL’s chief medical advisor:
Dr. Allen Sills says NFL feels Ravens are close to end of transmission period based on what it knows about how the virus has spread through the team. Tomorrow was simply too soon to be sure. pic.twitter.com/bTVVxe1tlu
— Judy Battista (@judybattista) November 25, 2020
Confidence in the game being played on Sunday is great, but it will come down to the next round of tests coming out of Baltimore which will ultimately dictate the game on Sunday in Week 12.
Be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the Ravens Sunday.