Carson Wentz is off the COVID-19 list. Now it's time to see whether he'll be ready to go for Week 1.
Wentz, center Ryan Kelly and receiver Zach Pascal were activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday, the Colts announced. Indianapolis announced Wentz's placement on the list on Monday, and NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported all three Colts were considered high-risk close contacts after coming into contact with a staff member who tested positive for the virus.
Players who are not fully vaccinated are subject to a five-day quarantine after being determined to be a high-risk close contact, per the NFL-NFLPA protocol, and can return to the team at the end of the five-day period if they test negative and remain asymptomatic. Wentz, Kelly and Pascal being removed from the COVID list Thursday means their date of close contact preceded the announcement of their inclusion.
All of this explaining leads us to one very important conclusion for Wentz and the Colts: He still has a chance to get full-participation reps in practice in the next week to test out the status of his recovered foot before determining whether he can take the field for Indianapolis' season opener.
Colts coach Frank Reich told reporters that Wentz took the majority of team reps Thursday, but was still limited to some extent. The plan is for Wentz to do be full-go next Wednesday and, if there are no setbacks, start Week 1 against Seattle.
If Wentz isn't able to go next weekend, it'll be backup Jacob Eason's job to fill. Fellow backup Sam Ehlinger was placed on injured reserve on Thursday, along with receivers T.Y. Hilton and Dezmon Patmon.
The next 72 hours or so will inform the Colts on how to proceed. They'll hope it's with their new starting QB.
