Broncos-Patriots Matchup Up in the Air

Categories: News | Published by: Tyler Jackson

07/10/2020

The Denver Broncos are supposed to take on the New England Patriots this weekend, but there is some uncertainty surrounding that game.

Patriots quarterback Cam Newton was forced to miss the team’s Week 4 game after testing positive with COVID-19, and now the team is dealing with another positive case.

Cornerback Stephen Gilmore tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, forcing the Patriots to cancel practice. At this time, it is unclear if any other Patriots players have tested positive for COVID-19, but that will likely play a role in the status of Sunday’s game.

New England took on the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night in a game that had been postponed a day because of Newton’s positive test. The team traveled on two separate planes to Kansas City. The players that had close contact with Newton were on one flight, while the rest of the team was on the other.

Gilmore played every defensive snap against the Chiefs on Monday, but all of the Kansas City tests came back negative on Wednesday. Gilmore is the reigning AFC Defensive Player of the Year, and his absence will leave a huge hole on the Patriots defense.

New England has shut down all team operations at Gillette Stadium, and the team is planning on doing everything virtually on Wednesday. A similar thing happened last week, but the team was able to return to practice after no new positive tests were revealed.

In the meantime, the Broncos will continue to plan for a game on Sunday, but that game might be postponed to a later date. Last week, the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers had their Week 4 matchup pushed back until later in the year.

This will likely be a developing story as the week goes along, but the league is hopeful of keeping the Week 5 schedule intact. Players from both the Broncos and Patriots will continue to get daily COVID-19 tests to ensure that everyone is healthy and safe before this matchup. It wouldn’t be the first time this season games have been postponed.

Titans Still Dealing With Outbreak

The Tennessee Titans were the first NFL team to deal with a significant outbreak of COVID-19, and things don’t seem to be getting any better. According to league sources, two more members of the Tennessee Titans tested positive on Wednesday morning, bringing the total number of cases up to 22.

Tennessee was hoping to resume team activities at the practice facility on Wednesday, but the positive cases did not allow that to happen. The Titans’ upcoming game with the Buffalo Bills is now also up in the air as the league awaits other test results.

The league sent out a memo to all 32 teams on Monday, warning them of possible disciplinary action taken against teams that do not follow proper COVID-19 protocol. The league and the NFLPA have also announced that they are investigating the Titans to determine how this outbreak started.

Sources have indicated that some members of the Titans held a workout last week after the team was forced to shut down all football activity. It’s unclear if that was the case, or what the league will decide to do with the Titans moving forward.