Chicago Bears Run Into A Major COVID-19 Scare

The Chicago Bears have prepared as well or better than most NFL teams to protect their players from the threat of COVID-19. After a couple initial positive results before training camp, there had been zero encounters with the virus for the past week. So one can imagine their horror when the training staff received the news that nine of their players had tested positive.

Thankfully it was quickly discovered that these tests were proven to be false positives. Apparently the Bears aren't the only team to encounter this incident as several others did as well. The league determined the issue stemmed from a laboratory in New Jersey. Investigations are underway. As a precaution, the Bears' Sunday practice which was schedule for morning was postponed to the afternoon.

This incident is timely for the Chicago Bears

It's a reminder of how touchy this entire process is. The NFL already had an initial encounter with the danger of false positives when Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford had one. It was proof that the testing for the virus is anything but perfect. A reminder that the medical community is still navigating uncharted waters.

Just imagine if this sort of thing had happened during the regular season. The Bears might've had to bench all nine players as a precaution until evidence was received they were clear. That is the sort of thing that determines the outcome of games. Another reason why the NFL must maintain the utmost vigilance moving forward.

Odds are the testing procedures will continue to undergo constant tweaking so as to ensure as few false positives as humanly possible. One thing is for sure. A vaccine can't possibly come soon enough for this entire mess. The Bears know they can't afford to lose anybody if they want to make a run at the playoffs.