On Sunday, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora confirmed that the New England Patriots had registered one new positive COVID-19 test, which made the count four total positive tests over the last eight days. As a result, the Patriots were again forced to shut down their facilities, and the NFL was forced to make some of their most drastic changes to the 2020 schedule. While the league rescheduled the Patriots' matchup with the Denver Broncos to be played next Sunday at 1 p.m. on CBS, that was not the only change they made.
The Kansas City Chiefs' matchup with the Buffalo Bills in Week 6 has been moved from Thursday, October 15 to Monday, October 19 at 5 p.m. ET on FOX/NFL Network/Amazon. The New York Jets at Miami Dolphins game has been moved from Week 10 to Week 6 at 4:05 p.m ET, while the Jets' original Week 6 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers has been moved to Week 11 on Sunday, November 22 at 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS.
The Jacksonville Jaguars at Chargers game has been moved from Week 8 to Week 7 on Sunday, October 25 at 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS. The Chargers at Broncos game moves from Week 11 to Week 8 on Sunday, November 1 at 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS, and the Chargers matchup against the Miami Dolphins has been moved from Week 7 to Week 10 on Sunday, November 15 at 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS. Additionally, the Dolphins at Broncos game in Week 6 has been moved to Week 11 at 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS.
The Broncos' bye week has moved from Week 8 to Week 5, while the Patriots' Week 6 bye has now moved to Week 5. For the Chargers, their bye moves from Week 10 to Week 6 while the Dolphins' Week 11 bye has been moved to Week 7. The Jaguars' Week 7 bye was pushed back a week to Week 8, and the Jets' bye has been moved from Week 11 to Week 10.
It was impressive that the NFL was able to move things around to keep its traditional 17-week season, but it remains to be seen if the league will be able to manage another major reshuffling if another team is forced to deal with a minor COVID-19 outbreak. A major takeaway from this schedule change is that there will be no "Thursday Night Football" matchup in Week 6, but we are scheduled to have both a Monday night matchup (Chargers at Saints) and a Tuesday night matchup (Bills at Titans) to wrap up Week 5.
