Buffalo Bills tight end Tommy Sweeney has been declared out for the remainder of the 2020 NFL season due to a heart condition attributed to COVID-19, the Bills announced Monday in a press release.
A second-year player from Boston College, Sweeney had not appeared in any of the Bills' games this season but did play in six contests during his rookie season out in 2019.
“Tommy Sweeney will be out for remainder of season after a cardiologist discovered he has myocarditis, a condition connected to COVID-19,” the Bills' release stated.
On a day in which the Baltimore Ravens were forced to shut down their facility due to multiple COVID-19 positive tests amongst players and staff, less than 24 hours after they had lost at home to the Tennessee Titans, the Bills in Sweeney now have the NFL's first player to be shelved for the season due to myocarditis, which sometimes is found as a compounding condition from COVID-19.
According to the Myocarditis Foundation, it says the following in regards to COVID-19 and myocarditis:
“Although it is a relatively rare cardiovascular disease, myocarditis has been reported in patients diagnosed with COVID-19, making it important for everyone, especially those diagnosed with COVID-19, to be aware of some of the symptoms of coronavirus that may indicate possible inflammation of the heart.
“Myocarditis, or inflammation of the heart muscle, is a condition caused by the body’s immune response to infection. Viral infections, generally, are one of the most common causes of heart muscle inflammation. In a May 5, 2020 article published in Heart Rhythm, titled Recognizing COVID-19–related myocarditis: The possible pathophysiology and proposed guideline for diagnosis and management, the authors note that COVID-19-related myocarditis may be caused by a combination of direct viral injury and cardiac damage due to the host’s immune response.”