Bills' Cole Beasley says he'd rather retire than get COVID vaccine

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley says he'd rather retire than receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

This comes as the National Football League released its new COVID-19 protocols for upcoming training camps and the preseason.

On Friday, Beasley used Twitter to issue a statement on the COVID-19 vaccine and why he's choosing not to receive it.

"Everyone — Hi, I'm Cole Beasley, and I'm not vaccinated!" Beasley tweeted in a post called a public service announcement. "I will be outside doing what I do. I'll be out in the public. If your (sic) scared of me then steer clear, or get vaccinated. Point. Blank. Period. I may die of COVID, but I'd rather die actually living."

Midway through the statement, Beasley compared receiving the vaccine to "[taking] meds for a leg that isn't broken." However, he continued to say that he'd "rather take [his] chances with COVID-19 and build up [his] immunity."

Beasley also cites his tenure in the NFL and where he's at in his career as the reason for being so outspoken on the NFL's new protocols.

"If I'm forced into retirement, so be it," Beasley wrote. "I feel for [other players], and I'm hoping I'm doing my part to represent you guys well."

For NFL teams, the player vaccination threshold for returns to normalcy is 85%.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Broncos, Saints, and Dolphins are the only three teams to have already reached that threshold.

Adam Unger with WKBW first reported this story.