Panthers HC Matt Rhule encouraging team to get vaccinated

Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule is not looking to make personal health decisions for his players. He is, however, mindful of the proven benefits of the COVID-19 vaccine as well as its competitive implications for the state of his football team moving forward.

“I don’t tell anybody ‘Do it.’ I’ve told our team this is better for our team if we’re vaccinated,” Rhule said at Wednesday’s practice when asked where his guys currently stand on the treatment. “We’ve certainly given our players a lot of information. We certainly presented it like ‘Hey, this is what we’d like the team to do.’ But at the same time, it’s a personal decision for each guy.”

Teams received a memo this week with updated COVID-19 protocols from the NFL and NFLPA. The guidelines differentiate what activities fully vaccinated and non-vaccinated individuals are permitted to do during training camp and preseason.

Rhule did go on to state that some players have not received the vaccine for various reasons, citing “different” medical histories and some still being in the window from contracting the virus. That bunch likely includes quarterback Sam Darnold, who drew some attention last week after telling the media he has yet to be vaccinated.

The second-year head coach is still, though, hoping to see the group’s vaccination percentage increase as the season nears, as it would be in the best interest of their personnel.

“I encourage our team to get vaccinated,” he said. “There’s clearly going to be a benefit to have vaccinated players and be at a point where you don’t have to have the same regimen that we have otherwise. So, it’s clearly going to be a competitive advantage to have teams that are more vaccinated than less vaccinated.”