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NFL postpones 3 games scheduled for this weekend over COVID-19 outbreaks

Browns Raiders
Posted at 3:19 PM, Dec 17, 2021
and last updated 2021-12-17 15:30:10-05

CLEVELAND — The NFL has postponed three games scheduled for this weekend due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

The Browns and Raiders, originally scheduled to play in a nationally televised game on Saturday, will now play Monday evening at 5 p.m. ET in Cleveland. Two other games originally scheduled for Sunday — Seahawks-Rams and Washington-Eagles — will now be played Tuesday evening at 7 p.m.

The Browns, Rams and Washington Football Team are all experiencing major outbreaks of COVID-19. All three clubs have at least 20 players on their COVID-19 reserve lists.

The NFL made it clear that postponing games would not be something they'd like to do. The 2021 season marks the league's first with a 17 game regular season, so the league said it did not anticipate adding another week to the schedule to play postponed games.

But postponements, while not a "right" for clubs, can happen this season, and the league made the call to do so Friday.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said this summer that while unlikely, postponements can occur if "required by government authorities, medical experts, or at the Commissioner's discretion."

This story is breaking and will be updated.

This story was originally published by Camryn Justice on Scripps station WEWS in Cleveland.