Coronavirus: Seahawks QB Drew Lock tests positive for COVID-19

SEATTLE — Drew Lock is the latest NFL star to test positive for COVID-19, KIRO-TV reported Tuesday evening.

In a media release, the Seattle Seahawks said the 25-year-old quarterback, who had been slated to start Thursday against the Chicago Bears, will miss the preseason game.

The @Seahawks announced that QB Drew Lock has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss Thursday’s game vs. the Chicago Bears. https://t.co/jZml1Jnjx1
— Seahawks PR (@seahawksPR) August 17, 2022

Lock, who also contracted COVID-19 in November, has been vaccinated, ESPN reported. He will be required to isolate for a minimum of five days, according to the news outlet.

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The former Denver Broncos quarterback has been competing with Geno Smith to become the Seahawks’ starter. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told reporters earlier Tuesday – less than two hours before the team announced the positive test – that having Lock start the upcoming preseason game “was part of the plan,” according to Seahawks.com.

“Regardless of what happened, we were going to Drew a chance to start a game to see what happens,” Carroll said. “Fortunately, he has played really well, and he deserves a shot to play, just like everybody deserves a shot to play and show what they can do, so we’ve been able to stick to it.”

The 31-year-old Smith, however, remains “the No. 1 guy” and “is holding onto his spot at this point,” Carroll said, according to the team’s website.

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The news came as the rate of new COVID-19 cases appeared to be declining domestically and globally, according to The New York Times. As of Tuesday, the U.S. was averaging 100,747 new cases per day, down 18% from two weeks earlier, the newspaper reported. The worldwide average was 810,634 new cases per day, down 19% from 14 days earlier.

As for fatalities, the U.S. averaged 467 deaths per day – an increase of 4% from two weeks earlier, the newspaper reported. The global average was 2,446 daily deaths, up 1% from 14 days earlier.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last week that 67.3% of the U.S. population is considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19. About 48.3% of fully vaccinated residents have received a booster dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the agency said.

Globally, about 67.4% of people have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, compared with just 20.7% of the population in low-income countries, Oxford University’s Our World in Data project reported Tuesday.

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