It’s possible Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has never heard the saying, “Those who refuse to remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
The NFL star wouldn’t commit this week to getting vaccinated for COVID-19, even though he has already caught the coronavirus twice.
Jackson, 24, returned to the Ravens’ training camp on Monday after being forced to isolate at home while his teammates began workouts without him.
“When I was at home I wasn’t doing too good because I was missing my guys,” Jackson said Monday, according to NFL.com. “It was like, man, I need to get back out there with my guys.”
Jackson admitted his second COVID experience was no walk in the park.
“Just like last time probably — fatigued, if anything. I was sleeping a lot,” he said of his most recent bout of illness. “But I’m glad to be back.”
However, the quarterback refused to publicly commit to getting the vaccine, of which 85% of NFL players have received at least one dose.
“I got to talk to my team about this and see how they feel about it,” he said, according to NFL.com. “Keep learning as much as I can about it. We’ll go from there.”
When pressed further about whether he was considering getting vaccinated, Jackson remained equivocal.
“Talking to the doctors,” he said. “We’ll see.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other prominent health organizations, as well as an overwhelming majority of experts in the medical field, have strongly encouraged vaccination, and have emphasized that the shots are safe and effective in reducing the dangerous effects of the coronavirus.
Jackson first tested positive for COVID-19 last November. The scheduled game at Pittsburgh had to be postponed three times before it finally took place on a Wednesday in December.
Jackson isn’t the only NFL QB who is either noncommittal about the vaccine or has flat-out refused to get it.
Minnesota Vikings QB Kirk Cousins recently said he won’t get the vaccine, though he has considered protecting himself and his teammates by walling himself off behind plexiglass in the team’s quarterback room.
Cousins declined to say why he won’t get the vaccine, saying the decision was personal and private, according to Yahoo! Sports.
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