The Detroit Lions are going to be without five coaches for Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- including interim head coach Darrell Bevell -- so they're already behind the eight-ball for game planning and preparation.
The Lions and Buccaneers are set to face off Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, the NFL's lone early Saturday start time of the season. If the game was moved to Sunday at the same time, Bevell and all five Lions coaches could have been on the sidelines coaching the team. Instead the game will be played Saturday as scheduled, much to Bevell's chagrin.
"We did push to have things that could help us, and, you know, again, it's between the league and the club on that," Bevell said, via Kyle Meinke of MLive. "I am disappointed.
"If the game were on Sunday, I'd be there because the time frame would be up and really all these coaches would be able to be there. That's the most disappointing part. But, you know, we got to go with what they're telling us."
The league has postponed games this season due to COVID-19, but it hasn't been consistent. The Pittsburgh Steelers' Thanksgiving showdown with the Baltimore Ravens was moved several times as a result of the Ravens COVID issues, with the game eventually being played on a Wednesday (six days later). That same week, the entire Denver Broncos quarterback room had to miss a game against the New Orleans Saints that was not postponed -- as Denver played practice squad wide receiver Kendall Hinton at quarterback (the Week 12 game was not postponed).
Bevell said he won't speculate if the NFL didn't move the game because Detroit is out of the playoffs. The Lions also are playing at home, which could have played a factor in the league's decision. Moving a game to Sunday didn't seem like an impossible request, but the Saturday game is in a national window (unlike Sunday's regional window).
Bevell, defensive coordinator Cory Undlin, defensive line coach Bo Davis, defensive backs coach Steve Gregory and linebackers coach Ty McKenzie will not coach due to COVID-19 protocols. Wide receivers coach Robert Prince will be the team's head coach Saturday.
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-denies-lions-request-to-move-week-16-game-vs-bucs-despite-covid-19-issues-coach-says/
2020-12-24 18:58:00Z
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