Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is back with the team after a 10-day absence due to a positive test for COVID-19.
The team announced Aug. 2 that Pederson had tested positive, though the coach was initially asymptomatic. NFL rules require people who test positive and are asymptomatic to quarantine for 10 days or to test negative twice in a five-day span.
“I was ready to be back here and on the grass with the players,” Pederson said Wednesday.
Assistant coach Duce Staley acted as head coach during Pederson’s absence. Pederson said he later had minor symptoms, but he was able to run team meetings remotely, while Staley directed things at the team’s facility.
Pederson said he has no catch-up period given the team hasn’t been on the field besides the allowed “acclimation period.”
He viewed workouts from home and was able to guide the team remotely. He said the entire offense and defense was installed in the past two weeks thanks to time with players virtually.
“(Thursday) would have been our first preseason game. We’ve got everything that we need in if we were to play a game tomorrow,” Pederson said.
With Week 1 about one month away, Pederson said getting players in pads next week and learning about his new players will be critical over the next four weeks.
Pederson is one of three NFL head coaches known to have tested positive. New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton revealed his diagnosis in March, while HBO’s “Hard Knocks” showed Los Angeles Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn telling his players recently that he had tested positive earlier this summer.
Pederson is entering his fifth season as head coach in Philadelphia. He is 38-26 through four seasons, making the playoffs the past three years, including a Super Bowl victory in the 2017 season.
–Field Level Media
