Getty Image
- Dallas Cowboys legend Michael Irvin is concerned about the team not meeting the COVID-19 vaccination threshold.
- Irvin says he would fight an unvaccinated teammate due to the risk of them derailing the season.
- Check out more sports coverage at BroBible here.
Thirteen of the 32 teams in the NFL have met the player COVID-19 vaccination threshold rate of 85%, according to the NFL Network.
The Dallas Cowboys aren’t one of those teams, and they aren’t expected to meet that 85% benchmark with training camp starting this week. Cowboys legend Michael Irvin has an issue with that.
Irvin thinks that some players not choosing to get vaccinated means that they don’t have a real desire to win a Super Bowl.
“Dude, you’re not thinking right. I don’t give a damn. Nothing else can be more important,” Irvin told the Star-Telegram. “You’re not going to get this [winning a Super Bowl] easily. And not being one of the [vaccinated teams] says there’s other things to a great number of people on this team that are more important than winning championships and that makes me worried.”
“If you’re not one of the [vaccinated] teams, are you really thinking about winning a championship,” Irving continued.
The NFL has not mandated the vaccine for players and staff, but the league’s policies certainly have major incentives built-in for those that are vaccinated.
Related: Dak Prescott Isn’t Revealing Vaccination Status, Says It’s A Personal Decision For Everyone
Those that decide not to get vaccinated have to abide by the same protocols that were in place last season, which include wearing a mask, undergo daily testing, social distance from teammates, and stay in the team hotel when on the road. Vaccinated players will operate under normal circumstances.
Irvin Would Fight An Unvaccinated Teammate
Irvin thinks that the Cowboys’ low vaccination rate is in relation to poor leadership inside the locker room. He said he would fight an unvaccinated teammate if they derailed the team’s season.
“If I’m on a team in this situation I’m going to make sure to ask, ‘you get vaccinated? You get vaccinated?’,” Irvin said. “Somebody in that damn locker room needs to say, ‘Hey man we’re going to have a chance, are you vaccinated? Let’s go through this because this could be two weeks, a healthy dude missing games.
In this league that could be it for you. The right person misses two weeks, that’s it. Your [butt] is out. I’ll fight a (expletive).”
Fighting a teammate based on a choice they make about receiving a vaccine seems like a bold strategy. Irvin would have his hands full inside that locker room given how many Cowboys haven’t received the vaccine.
A recent memo to teams outlined a situation in which unvaccinated players may not get paid if they test positive for COVID-19 during the season.
A vaccinated player that tests positive even after the regular-season bye week can not be challenged by his team as to whether the positive test resulted from a football-related activity.
On the flip side, teams can challenge a positive test for players who have not been vaccinated. This, in theory, means players who don’t get vaccinated could lose game checks.