NFL pushes back Patriots game against Broncos
By Alex Barth, 985TheSportsHub.com
For the second week in a row, the Patriots scheduled Sunday game is being moved to Monday.
According to Mike Klis of 9News Denver, the NFL has pushed this weekend’s Patriots-Broncos game back to Monday night. It was originally scheduled for Sunday at 4:25.
This movement comes in the wake of Stephon Gilmore testing positive for COVID-19. Gilmore is the third Patriots player to test positive. Thursday’s testing returned all negatives for New England.
An exact time hasn’t been given for Monday night’s kickoff, although Klis indicated it will be the “early game.” That could mean a 7:05 start, just like the Patriots had last week when their game with Kansas City was also pushed to Monday.
![A view of Gillette Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. (Matt Dolloff/WBZ-FM)](https://985thesportshub.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/88/2020/09/Gillette-Stadium-9-27-2020.jpg)
A view of Gillette Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. (Matt Dolloff/WBZ-FM)
This move makes the Patriots the third team in NFL history to play on Monday night in back-to-back weeks. The Chiefs did so the previous two weeks, with a scheduled game against Baltimore in Week 3, then the rescheduled game against the Patriots last week. The Minnesota Vikings are the only other team to do so – they did in 2010 after the roof on the Metrodome collapsed and forced a game late in the season to be relocated and rescheduled.
It’s not just the Patriots being moved. ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting Sunday’s scheduled Week 5 game between the Bills and Titans is being pushed to Tuesday due to the COVID-19 outbreak in Tennessee. The Bills’ Week 6 game against the Chiefs, which was supposed to be two days later on a Thursday night, will now be played the following Sunday.
The Patriots facility was closed again on Thursday, the team has not met yet this week. Currently, the expectation is for virtual prep to continue tomorrow. If conditions permit, the team could meet in person and practice on Saturday to get one session in before playing Denver.