Former Texas A&M linebacker and current Denver Broncos player Von Miller became the second NFL player to test positive for COVID-19, he announced on Thursday.
The eight-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl 50 MVP, who spent 2007 through 2010 with the Aggies, has been experiencing mild symptoms which prompted him to get tested for the virus on April 14, he said in an interview with the Today Show on Friday.
“It all started with just a simple cough and it got worse,” Miller said. “I also have asthma and my girlfriend was telling me that I wasn’t sounding normal and I should try my nebular. I tried to nebulize, which I do before games and before practice, but this time was different. It really didn’t work like it should.”
He waited another day to see if the cough would go away and when it didn’t, he went to get tested. When the results came back positive, Miller said he was surprised.
“I was shocked,” Miller said. “We’ve been taking this seriously since day one.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread in the United States, Miller was training in San Francisco. The city became one of the first U.S. cities to release a stay-at-home order on March 17, and Miller made the decision to return home to Denver.
In the month since he returned to his home, Miller said he has only left his house four times, though he said he has had workers such as housekeepers and plumbers enter the house.
As cases of COVID-19 continue to increase, there have been discussions over whether the 2020-2021 NFL season will continue as scheduled in the fall. Miller said the priority should be safety over rushing
“Do whatever is safe, whatever we have to do to get things back to normal,” Miller said. “We shouldn’t move too fast.”