Rams' Brian Allen is first NFL player known to test positive for coronavirus
Los Angeles Rams center Brian Allen plays against the New Orleans Saints during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 15, 2019, in Los Angeles. Credit: AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez
Rams third-year center Brian Allen tested positive for the coronavirus, Jay Glazer reported on his Fox on Football show Wednesday night. Allen is the first publicly identified NFL player to test positive for the illness.
Rams coach Sean McVay then appeared on Glazer's show and confirmed that Allen has tested positive and that he is “healthy and on the road to recovery.”
Glazer said Allen, a fourth-round pick from Michigan State in 2018, tested positive about three weeks ago and suffered symptoms including a loss of taste and smell, sore throat, headaches and fatigue. The symptoms have since subsided, but Glazer said Allen again tested positive a few days ago. Glazer added that the 24-year-old center expects to be fully recovered within a short period of time.
Players rehabbing injuries have been able to undergo physical therapy at teams' training facilities, but McVay said the Rams closed their facility when the team learned of Allen’s positive test. “We’ll open up next week where guys on rehab programs can get treatment,” McVay said.
The coach said the team will continue to use social-distancing measures to prevent others from getting the virus.
Last month, Saints coach Sean Payton became the first member of the NFL community known to test positive for coronavirus.
The league has indicated it expects to open as scheduled for the 2020 season but acknowledged that adequate testing procedures for the virus must be in place for the sport to resume normal operations. Beginning next week, offseason programs will be conducted virtually until further notice. The NFL Draft, which begins next Thursday, also will be a virtual event.
Bob Glauber retired in 2022 after covering the NFL for nearly 40 years. He was selected in 2021 for the Bill Nunn Career Achievement Award by the Pro Football Writers of America, and is a three-time winner of the New York State Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. President of the PFWA for the 2018-20 seasons, he is the author of “The Forgotten First” and “Guts and Genius.”
