KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Three more Kansas City Chiefs players are being added to the NFL reserve/COVID-19 list, according to a person with knowledge of the situation, bringing the tally of Chiefs out of action due to positive tests or close contact with someone known to have contracted the coronavirus to nine.
Receiver Tyreek Hill, tight end Blake Bell and cornerback Rashad Fenton are all being placed on the league's COVID-19 list, the source with knowledge of the situation said.
They join tight end Travis Kelce, cornerback Charvarius Ward and kicker Harrison Butker, who were placed on the list Monday, and defensive end Chris Jones, linebacker Willie Gay Jr. and receiver Josh Gordon, who landed there last week.
ESPN was first to report the news about the additions of Hill, Bell and Fenton.
The AFC-leading Chiefs (10-4), who are scheduled to play host to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday at 3:25 p.m. Central Time, did not have media access Tuesday.
How long the nine players might be out, while obviously secondary to the state of their general health, if they are ill, is an unknown. The league recently revised its COVID-19 return-to-play protocols, and those guidelines vary based on whether or not a player is vaccinated.
In the past week, games elsewhere have been rescheduled. Testing frequency has increased. But as the Omicron variant of COVID-19 continues to spread across the country, the NFL is feeling the pinch.
The Rams, Browns, Cowboys, Vikings and Titans are among the list of teams that have been dealing with COVID-19 cases and/or schedule alterations in just the past couple of weeks. Now the Chiefs are being rocked by coronavirus absences, though their game against Pittsburgh was still on as scheduled as of mid-afternoon Tuesday.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Monday that he was "hopeful" the team might get Jones, Gay and Gordon back in time for kickoff Sunday.
