An unknown number of swine flu cases among players prompted the St. Louis Rams to cancel practice Thursday, with all players being sent home after being given medication.
Five or six players had flu-like symptoms, Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said, with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporting at least two confirmed swine flu cases and the coach saying some players had been ill for weeks.
"It's really more of a precaution than anything. We're checking everybody. We're just being careful." Spagnuolo said. "There was no panic here. We took our time."
Rams quarterback Kyle Boller and center Jason Brown missed practice Wednesday with undisclosed illnesses. Brown had also been ill on Monday.
A team official said players received swine flu medication after consulting with medical personnel before departing the team's headquarters.
Spagnuolo said he expects the team to conduct a normal practice session on Friday, but said the team acted quickly after becoming aware of the issue.
"It was the right thing to do," Spagnuolo said. "If there was (even) one (swine flu case), we would have to be careful."
The swine flu issue adds more problems in a difficult season for the Rams, who take a 1-12 record - matching Tampa Bay for the NFL's worst mark - into Sunday's National Football League home game against the Houston Texans (6-7).
Texans tight end Anthony Hill was hospitalized in October with swine flu, the first NFL player to have a confirmed case of the illness, also known as the H1N1 virus.
Copyright 2009  AFP American Edition
