Rams place Bobby Evans and Nick Scott on reserve/COVID-19 list

The Rams have placed offensive lineman Bobby Evans and safety Nick Scott on the reserve/COVID-19 list, the team announced Friday.

Evans and Scott were among five players who were held out of practice on Thursday after an unidentified player tested positive. Offensive lineman Brian Allen and linebackers Obo Okoronkwo and Justin Hollins were the others.

Neither coach Sean McVay nor the Rams identified the player who tested positive, citing NFL rules related to COVID-19 reporting. On Thursday’s injury report, Evans was listed as a nonparticipant because of illness. The other four players were listed as nonparticipants because of noninjury related issues.

Evans and Scott and will not play in Sunday’s game against the New York Jets at SoFi Stadium, McVay said. Allen, Okoronkwo and Hollins were kept away from the team facility Friday as a precautionary measure, but they are expected to be available Sunday if they continue to test negative, he said.

Rams

Five Rams miss practice after player tests positive for COVID-19

Five Rams forced to miss practice after an unidentified player tests positive for COVID-19. Team awaits second test.

Dec. 17, 2020

Scott, a second-year pro, has played an instrumental role on special teams and also as a rotational safety. Rookie JuJu Hughes will play in Scott’s place, McVay said.

Evans provides depth as a swing tackle. Rookie Tremayne Anchrum could fill that role if called upon, McVay said.

Typically, NFL locker rooms are set up with players from the same position groups occupying the same area. But because of COVID-19 — and the fear that an outbreak could affect an entire position group — the Rams rearranged their locker room at their Thousand Oaks facility so that players from various groups are mixed.

“The locker room is the biggest risk area,� McVay said Friday during a videoconference with reporters before practice. “That’s where those interactions occurred, based on the information, the interviews and the … data we compiled. You don’t want to have anybody affected — that’s the ideal situation — but what I think would be a worst-case scenario is when you have all of the same position group in one area and then one of them gets it and you get that whole group wiped out.�

On Friday, the Rams conducted meetings virtually and reconfigured the open-air tent set up at the practice facility so that it could accommodate players as a locker room and training-room space.