It’s four weeks into the season and everything appeared to be smooth sailing as the NFL moved forward with its regular schedule in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. While there have been isolated positive tests, it all hit the fan when the Tennessee Titans announced eight positive tests on Tuesday, September 29th (four players, six team personnel).
Panic immediately set in because the Titans had just returned from their game in Minnesota which made it possible that Vikings team and personnel could also be in jeopardy. As the week unfolded, Minnesota returned negative tests but the Titans continued to have positive tests for consecutive days.
As of Sunday, Tennessee has 20 players and personnel impacted by the coronavirus (10 personnel and 10 players). It’s also worth noting that the first positive test within the organization occurred on September 24th but it took a few days before additional players tested positive.
ESPN Tennessee Titans Reporter Turron Davenport joined Double Takes Sports to provide more details on the situation in Nashville. He discusses the timeline of events, key players affected, the NFL/NFLPA’s visit, and how this setback could impact next week’s Buffalo Bills matchup and the Titans overall momentum. The team was 3-0 before the outbreak.
The NFL’s coronavirus issues continued on Saturday when the New England Patriots announced that a member of their team tested positive. It was later determined that the player is quarterback Cam Newton.
Shortly before the announcement, the Patriots were preparing to travel to Kansas City for their game this past Sunday. However, with the positive test and the Chiefs practice squad quarterback Jordan Ta’amu testing positive, the game has been rescheduled for Monday night.
No other member of the Patriots or the Chiefs has tested positive for COVID-19 since Saturday. Both teams will receive point-of-care and PCR tests on Monday morning to make sure no one is playing with the virus.
Despite these challenges, the NFL season will go on. However, the latest COVID developments are beginning to bring questions to the surface about the reality of finishing.