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NFL shuffles schedules for Chargers and other teams amid COVID-19 threat

The Chargers huddle during a timeout.
The Chargers will get their week off early to help accommodate the NFL’s reshuffling of the schedule because of coronavirus outbreaks elsewhere in the league.
(Octavio Jones / Associated Press)
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So far this season, the Chargers haven’t had a problem with positive COVID-19 tests.

But when the NFL moved the schedule around Sunday in order to postpone Monday’s game between Denver and New England, no one had a bigger reshuffling than the Chargers.

The NFL was looking to move the minimum amount of games, and the solution it chose essentially was redrawing the Chargers’ schedule.

The changes:

• The Chargers’ week off, originally scheduled for Week 10, has been changed to this week, beginning after they play at New Orleans on Monday night.

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Here are the answers to how the NFL plans to reschedule games that are being postponed because of the coronavirus.

• Jacksonville at the Chargers moves from Week 8 to Week 7.

• Chargers at Denver move from Week 11 to Week 8.

• Chargers at Miami moves from Week 7 to Week 10.

• New York Jets at the Chargers moves from next Sunday to Week 11.

After an additional member of the Patriots tested positive for the virus Sunday — joining quarterback Cam Newton and cornerback Stephon Gilmore — the NFL decided to postpone the game, which already had been moved from Sunday to Monday. Now it will be played next Sunday.

For Alex Smith’s father, Doug, it was emotional and inspiring to see his son play quarterback Sunday for the first time since his gruesome leg injury.

That move involved five other teams and affected six other games.

Tennessee, dealing with the NFL’s biggest COVID outbreak, will play host to Buffalo on Tuesday. That means Buffalo cannot play Kansas City two days later in the Thursday night game. So Chiefs-Bills will be played next Monday at 2 p.m. on Fox, simulcast on NFL Network and streaming on Amazon.

The Jets, who were to play at the Chargers next Sunday, instead will play at Miami.

Miami, which was to play at Denver next Sunday, instead will play the Broncos in Week 11.

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