New England Patriots season at risk of unraveling due to COVID-19

The New England Patriots’ battle with COVID-19 is threatening to derail their season.

One of the more shocking results of Week 6 was the New England Patriots losing at home to a less than stellar Denver Broncos team. The Broncos were just 1-3 coming in and couldn’t muster up a touchdown on Sunday but thanks to some incredibly sloppy play from the Patriots were able to fly home with a win.

Unfortunately for the Patriots, it was the Broncos that beat them on Sunday but they have been losing to COVID-19 since before the season even began. They lost starters like Patrick Chung, Marcus Cannon, Dont’a Hightower and five other players to opt-outs in July which has clearly impacted their continuity from last season.

This season, they lost starting quarterback Cam Newton for a game due to COVID protocols and he was forced to miss the matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs that they were in a position to win without him.

It is impossible to say if they would have won the game with Newton under center but we can say with certainty that he would have given them a better chance than Brian Hoyer or Jarrett Stidham.

Even with Newton back in the mix their rhythm has been constantly in flux due to other positive tests and coming into the Broncos game the team had only practiced once in two weeks.

Perhaps if this was the Patriots with the decade-plus of continuity under Tom Brady then it may not be as big a factor but there are many new faces on both sides of the ball.

The often better-prepared New England Patriots are dealing with curveballs.

Aside from Netwon and cornerback Stephon Gilmore, the Patriots have had several other positive tests and recently put starting running back Sony Michel and offensive guard Shaq Mason on the reserve/COVID-19 list and they are out for an indefinite period of time.

This was already a team with a lack of weapons and now they have a weakened offensive line as well. The Broncos took advantage of that and sacked Newton four times and shut down the Patriots offense.

Next up for the Patriots is a home matchup with a gutsy San Francisco 49ers team and then a trip to Buffalo to face the current AFC East leaders. If things continue as they have been then the Patriots could quite easily lose five games before November, something they’ve done in an entire season just once in the last decade.

The New England Patriots have been a mark of consistency and perseverance as they’ve overcome the loss of key free agents, top coordinators, and big time players to injuries over the years but they are facing a new type of obstacle that they and the league have not figured out how to tackle.

This will likely be the worst season by a Patriots team in 20 years but, strangely enough, it will be through no fault of their own, but rather due to a virus that has completely upended our world and the NFL as a whole.