The Titans got some good news this afternoon as they were able to activate defensive lineman DaQuan Jones and long snapper Beau Brinkley from the reserve/COVID list.
Jones and Brinkley were two of the three players included in the initial wave of positive tests last week. The third, practice squad tight end Tommy Hudson, was suspended for six games due to a positive PED test so he will not be activated any time soon.
The return of Brinkley continues a streak of 131 consecutive games of snapping to Brett Kern stretching all the way back to 2012. It also relieves the Titans of the concerns that come along with breaking in a new snapper on a short week.
Jones’ presence in the middle of the Tennessee defense is huge as well. The drop off from Jones and Jeffery Simmons to the depth pieces on the defensive line has been noticeable through three games. The Titans may still be without Simmons — a breakout star in the making — but being without both their big anchors in the middle would have been very concerning for an already struggling run defense.
It will be interesting to see if any other members of the team’s reserve/COVID list are able to get cleared for the Bills game. If you look at positive test dates, you can see that backup outside linebacker Kamalei Correa and rookie corner Kristian Fulton are the next two players on the timeline, but it’s unlikely that the time frames for returning from this list are consistent from player to player.
Below is the number of days since initial positive test for the remaining players on the Titans reserve/COVID list:
- Kamalei Correa: 12 days
- Kristian Fulton: 11 days
- Adam Humphries: 10 days
- Cam Batson: 10 days
- Jeffery Simmons: 9 days
- Khari Blasingame: 7 days
- Corey Davis: 5 days
- MyCole Pruitt: 5 days
- Breon Borders: 4 days
Both Jones and Brinkley were activated 13 days after their initial positive test and Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell was activated 12 days after his initial positive test. If some of the players above were asymptomatic, that could allow them to come back quicker than the 12-to-13 day time frame that we’ve seen. On the other hand, 13 days is not a magical cut off that guarantees return as all individuals will have different experiences with this virus, including the time it takes to clear their system.
The return of these two are a huge help for the Titans heading into a battle between two of the final three unbeaten AFC teams.
Look at that man’s beard! Don’t no body wanna mess with him!