The Chicago Bears placed rookie running back Artavis Pierce on the newly created reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday.
To be clear, landing on the reserve/COVID list does not mean a player tested positive for coronavirus. The list is for players who test positive for COVID-19 or who are in quarantine after potential exposure. In any case, Pierce needs to test negative three times in a four-day period before being gaining admittance into the training facility.
The Bears signed Pierce after the 2020 NFL Draft, and is one of five running backs currently on the team’s roster. As a senior at Oregon State, Pierce ran for 873 yards and six touchdowns in 12 games in 2019. Fellow undrafted rookie Napoleon Maxwell, as well as third-year undrafted back Ryan Nall join Pierce in being behind David Montgomery and Tarik Cohen on the RB depth chart. The competition between Pierce, Maxwell, and Nall is one to watch for as camp opens.
Pierce is the only Bears rookie on the reserve/COVID-19 list. But a handful of rookies around the league made it over the weekend. And earlier Monday, first-round receiver Justin Jefferson was among four Vikings to land there. So we’ll need keep monitoring situation around the league as they develop.