For the second week in a row, the NFL has been forced to move a Sunday matchup to Monday night due to COVID-19 concerns. On Thursday night, the league announced that the Denver Broncos vs. New England Patriots matchup will be moved from Sunday to Monday night. It will be the earlier of the two Monday night games, as the Los Angeles Chargers and New Orleans Saints are scheduled to kick off on Monday as well. The Broncos and Patriots will kick off at 5 p.m. ET while the Chargers and Saints will follow at 8:15 p.m. ET. According to Mike Klis of 9News, it was the NFL‘s chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, who made the call to push the game back a day.
The Patriots’ Week 4 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs was forced to be moved to Monday earlier this week due to Cam Newton and Jordan Ta’amu testing positive for the coronavirus on that Saturday. While the game was played without issue, Patriots All-Pro cornerback Stephon Gilmore tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday, which prompted the team to adjust their practice schedule. To make sure everyone is safe, the league is going to again be moving back New England’s matchup this week.
Last Monday, the Patriots and Chiefs kicked off at around 7:05 p.m. ET while the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers (the originally scheduled “Monday Night Football” game), was moved back to 9 p.m. ET. With this rescheduling and extra time, it could mean that both starting quarterbacks will be able to take the field. Newton has been dealing with COVID-19 while Drew Lock has missed the last two games due to a shoulder injury he suffered against the Pittsburgh Steelers. This week, however, he has returned to the practice field with his teammates.
