After seven consecutive days with no positive COVID-19 tests, the Kansas City Chiefs received some concerning news on Saturday morning.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, an unnamed member of Kansas City’s strength and conditioning staff has reportedly tested positive for the coronavirus, the second positive case on the team after backup QB Jordan Ta’amu was placed on the reserve/COVID list on October 3.
There are no new positives in Tennessee nor New England, but there are now two other positive tests: one for a practice squad player in Chicago, but Bears have been closed since Thursday night, and a strength and conditioning coach in Kansas City, per source. Tracing is ongoing.
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How Will NFL Handle Chiefs-Raiders Game on Sunday?
The name of the individual was not immediately made public, however the Chiefs have at least four strength and conditioning staff members listed on their 2020 coaching roster:
The defending Super Bowl champions are less than 24 hours away from hosting the Las Vegas Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium for a Week 5 AFC West divisional matchup. Contact tracing is underway as the team and league look to determine if the respective coach was in close contact with his fellow staff members or any Chiefs players in recent days.
According to Sports Illustrated senior NFL reporter Albert Breer, those tracing numbers between the anonymous coach and others in the building “are very low,” an encouraging sign for both teams as time ticks closer to kickoff.
Additionally, Mark Maske of The Washington Post reported on Saturday that no “further issues” were expected to arise and force the NFL to reschedule.
The positive tests for a Bears player and a Chiefs staffer were first reported by @AdamSchefter. But again, source says no “further issues” expected at this point.
The Raiders were also hit with a confirmed case earlier in the week, placing DL Maurice Hurst on the reserve/COVID list on Tuesday. No round of testing since then has revealed any additional cases for Las Vegas.
Chiefs’ Week 6 Game vs. Bills Already Affected by COVID
While the Chiefs and Raiders await word of how the league will handle tomorrow’s game, Kansas City’s upcoming scheudule has already been affected as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak with the Tennesse Titans, affecting at least 23 players and staff. On Thursday, Schefter also reported that the NFL has moved Tennessee’s previously scheduled game against Buffalo tomorrow to Tuesday, October 13 at 4 p.m. CT.
In addition, the Chiefs-Bills matchup scheduled for Thursday was tentatively pushed out to next Sunday, October 18.
Titans-Bills game scheduled for Sunday is being moved to Tuesday at 6 pm as long as there are no more positive tests with Tennessee, per sources.
Bills-Chiefs game being switched from next Thursday to Sunday but goes back it more positive tests in Tennessee, per source.
While no official game time has been announced for the rescheduled Week 6 matchup versus Buffalo, the decision may ultimately benefit the defending Super Bowl champions. Kansas City was scheduled to play three games in 10 days between Weeks 4-6 after Monday’s game against the New England Patriots was pushed out from Sunday due to COVID-19 precautions.
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Chiefs Coach Tests Positive For COVID, Week 5 Game Status Updated