How did 49ers have so many COVID-19 issues during Bye week?

The 49ers managed to get through the first 10 weeks of the NFL season with only one COVID-19 issue that caused four players to miss their Week 9 game against the Packers. Then their Week 11 Bye came and a total of nine players wound up on the Reserve/COVID-19 list during the week off. So how did that happen when the team wasn’t practicing?

Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Tuesday in a video conference with reporters divulged how their COVID-19 issue came to pass when answering a question about the team’s bonding opportunities while they call Arizona home for at least three weeks.

“We’re not allowed to bond in those spots. That’s what guys did for 30 minutes after dinner after the New Orleans game and that’s what got us a couple positive tests during our bye week,” Shanahan said. “We don’t have tables out where they can eat, so people don’t hang out. The place that we bond is really on the field or in Zoom meetings.”

That’s been the nature of the pandemic. One instance of not following protocols can lead to nine players going on the COVID-19 list with three missing the game after the Bye. The Denver Broncos had an issue where they wound up playing a game without a quarterback. San Francisco got lucky their fallout from a 30-minute hangout after a dinner didn’t lead to more dire consequences.

Shanahan said that while the team is staying in a hotel in Arizona for the next few weeks with Santa Clara County shutting down all contact sports as part of a stringent new set of COVID-19 guidelines, they won’t be changing their protocols.

“Just because we’re in a hotel together, doesn’t mean we’re together,” Shanahan said. “We’re quarantined, just like we’re self-quarantined, to me, like all businesses are right now. I’m watching all you guys work from your home. That’s really what we do and when we go to work. The guys are sitting in their hotel rooms and everything, we just meet out on the practice field. I don’t think you’re going to get any extra bonding.”

The 49ers will host the Bills at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. for Week 13, and host the Washington Football team there the following week. They travel to Dallas for Week 14, and the Santa Clara County COVID-19 restrictions are set to be lifted at 5:00 AM the following morning.

Getting through that stretch without any more COVID-19 problems could be key in whether the 49ers can go on a run to the postseason.