Patrick Mahomes stood in line for a haircut, not a commercial in real life. And if the timing wasn’t so good, the Chiefs quarterback might have been a question mark for Super Bowl 55.
That’s because the Kansas City barber tested positive for COVID-19 the week before the Super Bowl. He had already cut Demarcus Robinson’s hair and part of Daniel Kilgores, so the backup recipient and offensive lineman were placed on the COVID-19 / reserve list for contact tracking purposes. But no Chiefs tested positive for COVID-19 in the final week of the NFL season, in part due to a coach’s quick thinking.
Here’s how haircuts played such an important role in preparing the Chiefs for a possible Super Bowl replay.
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Chief’s haircut explains COVID-19 problems
Demarcus Robinson, a broad recipient, had his hair cut off the team facility on Saturday by the same barber who would cut about 20 Kansas City player and staff heads the next day, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Kilgore was the first in the chair on Sunday.
The Chiefs had pre-tested the barber, knew it would give those final haircuts and wanted to make sure no one ended up with COVID-19. The barber returned negative tests five days in a row before Sunday, January 31.
Before Sunday’s haircuts, Chiefs trainer Rick Burkholder gave the barber a quick COVID-19 test, according to Fox’s Jay Glazer. It took a while for the results to come in, but they came back positive while Kilgore was still in the chair.
At this point, the Chiefs ruled out the possibility of further haircuts that day. Robinson and Kilgore would have to take five consecutive negative tests before getting back on the team, but everyone in line would be clear.
According to Schefter, Chiefs superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes was in line waiting for a haircut.
Are any Super Bowl 55 chiefs for haircuts?
Daniel Kilgore and Demarcus Robinson are both officially active for Super Bowl 55. They had to quarantine themselves for five days and each test negative after their risky close contact with the hairdresser on Sunday January 31st.
With the Super Bowl on Sunday, February 7, a week later, Robinson and Kilgore rejoined the team before the weekend to fly to Tampa. Kilgore is a backup offensive lineman while Robinson is a situational receiver.
During the week, no other Kansas City players were considered high-risk close ties. All players had COVID-19 tests twice a day during the week leading up to the Super Bowl, and no players were put on the COVID-19 list before Super Bowl 55. Anyone who started their week in good health enough to play is active as if you were for both the Chiefs and the Buccaneers.
