Patriotic footballers and coaches face off with the fact that tests for COVID-19 are positive

New England Patriots captain Matthew Slater said late Monday night he had prayed not to have more coronavirus positive tests but fully understood the reality of the situation.

That fact hit the Patriots heavily after the current NFL Defender of the Year Stephon Gilmore turned positive on Tuesday, a result confirmed on Wednesday.

While patriots try to turn their attention to Sunday’s scheduled home match against the Denver Broncos (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS), this diagnosis sheds light on the human side of the game. Gilmore became the third Patriots player to be included on the COVID-19 / reserve list – joining midfielder Cam Newton and the team’s defensive midfielder Bill Murray – a natural situation involving his teammates. A source confirmed to ESPN, The Patriots did not have any new positive tests from Wednesday’s results.

After passing Monday’s game in Kansas City, Slater said, “I think many of us just want to make sure we’re healthy and don’t leave anything behind for the family. That’s a concern of a lot of guys”.

Gilmore is married and he and his wife, Gabby, have two children, Sebastian and Gisele.

Meanwhile, others in the organization, such as attack coordinator Josh McDaniels, are managing various health issues.

McDaniels said: “I have asthma. I think we are all sensitive to the potential effects that viruses can have on you. We’re trying to do everything in our power to protect yourself and others. I will trust the medical staff about what they tell us and me, regarding going back to the conference room or having closer contact with people who have had the disease. They’ve really done a good job of communicating what they expect from us and our mission is to maintain the end of the deal. Nothing is more important than the health and safety of the people in the building”.

On whether the Patriots should play the match on Monday, as they boarded two planes to Kansas City, coach Bill Belichick said this week on sports radio WEEI: “I think there is a lot. A lot of questions, a lot of uncertainty on some level, and it’s hard to know what the answer is. This is really the medical area, and that’s not my area, so I’ll let That is for medical people”.