Patriots game with Chiefs on hold after COVID positives
The NFL postponed this week’s game between New England and the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs after “positive COVID-19 tests on both teams.” ESPN reported on Saturday that Patriots quarterback Cam Newton was among those testing positive.
The NFL said on Saturday that the game, originally scheduled for 4:25 p.m. EDT on Sunday, will be played on Monday or Tuesday, a move that would be possible only if there is no wider spread of the disease on the rosters.
The Patriots confirmed that a player has tested positive but did not reveal his name. Newton’s agent did not immediately respond to a message from The Associated Press seeking confirmation.
The only known Chiefs player to test positive is quarterback Jordan Ta’amu, a member of the practice squad who has not appeared in a game but would have spent time in meetings with Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes and the team’s other QBs.
It is the second game this weekend that has been affected by COVID-19. After an outbreak on the Titans, the matchup between Pittsburgh and Tennessee was postponed — originally for a day or two, and then until Oct. 25 as the positive tests accumulated.
To fit it in, the Steelers’ game against Baltimore that
day was pushed back to Nov. 1.
The Patriots had been planning to fly to Kansas City on Saturday afternoon. Instead, players left the facility to await further instructions. The team said in a statement that the COVIDpositive player has entered self-quarantine and that players, coaches and staff who were in close contact with him were tested Saturday morning and all were negative.
Earlier this week, Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty said the league might have grown overconfident after making it through training camps and the first two weeks of the season without a major outbreak.
“But at the end of the day, we are in a pandemic,“he said. “So what happened in Tennessee, although it kind of shocks us, it’s not really surprising. I think we all knew at some point we might get some positive tests.
“So it’s like, ‘We got this,’” he said. “I think this is just a little shocker, but it’s also a wakeup call, like ‘Hey, the virus is still here and it will affect any and everybody. It doesn’t care that we’re trying to play football.’”
THE MATCHUP
The Patriots come to Arrowhead Stadium behind new quarterback, himself a threat to run, and a backfield that went roughshod over the Las Vegas Raiders last weekend. Sony Michel needed just nine carries to pile up 117 yards, Rex Burkhead reached the end zone three times and the Patriots totaled 250 yards rushing in the win.
“Cam being in a role there that he’s fully accepted, I think he’s enjoying it,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said during the week, “and we anticipate them being able to run the ball, but don’t be fooled, because Cam can throw the ball very well, too.”
That may be true, but it’s not as if the Chiefs (3-0) are preparing for Tom Brady in his heyday. The first order of business any week may be to stop the run — something the Chiefs did quite well against the Ravens on Monday night — but the challenge is even more important when the Patriots (2-1) have shown such a propensity for grinding out yards on the ground.
They lead the league in rushing through the first three weeks. The Chiefs are 27th at defending the run.
The Patriots also hope their running game allows them to control the clock, shortening the game and thereby keeping recordsetting quarterback Mahomes and the dynamic Chiefs offense off the field.
“Ball control and points. You know that,” Patriots running backs coach Ivan Fears said. “Let’s get the points and let’s control the ball; I don’t care how we do it. Dink-and-dunk, quarterback sneak, I don’t give a (darn). Just get it done.”
They have a lot of guys who can get it done, too. Michel, Burkhead and Newton are a considerable threeheaded monster, but undrafted rookie J.J. Taylor also has gotten into the mix.
James White was back at practice this week after the death of his father in an auto accident, as was Damien Harris, who has been on injured reserve with a finger problem.
“We’re a bunch of competitors,” Taylor said, “but we also want to see each other succeed.”
The Patriots will need them to against the Chiefs.
CAM AND GET IT
Newton would have been the fourth straight quarterback the Chiefs have prepared for that can run. They faced the Texans’ Deshaun Watson in the opener, then prepared for the Chargers’ Tyrod Taylor in Week 2, though he was ruled out shortly before kickoff because of a medical mishap. Then came the Ravens’ Lamar Jackson last week.
But if Newton can’t play, either veteran backup Brian Hoyer or untested secondyear QB Jarrett Stidham will go.
INJURY UPDATE
The Chiefs will be without rookie cornerback L’Jarius Sneed, who has two picks through his first three games, but who had surgery this week on the collarbone he broke Monday night in Baltimore. They also could be without Chris Jones, who came into the week leading the AFC with 3 1⁄ sacks,
2 because of a groin injury. Top cornerback Bashaud Breeland remains out while serving the final game of his four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.