Jason McCourty: NFL Not Thinking of Players' Best Interests with COVID Protocols

New England Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty said Saturday the NFL and NFL Players Association "don't care" about safety amid the coronavirus pandemic.

McCourty told reporters the league office and the union are only focused on creating a protocol-driven environment that "looks good" so they can push forward with plans to complete the regular season and the playoffs despite positive COVID-19 test results:

The Patriots have placed three players—quarterback Cam Newton, cornerback Stephon Gilmore and practice-squad defensive tackle Bill Murray—on the reserve/COVID-19 list in the past week.

Their Week 4 game against the Kansas City Chiefs was played Monday after a one-day delay because of positive COVID-19 tests on both teams. Their Week 5 clash with the Denver Broncos has also been pushed back to Monday because of coronavirus concerns.

The Tennessee Titans had the league's first outbreak with 23 positive tests between Sept. 24 and Thursday, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. They've gone two straight days without a positive result, putting them on track to play Tuesday against the Buffalo Bills in a rescheduled game.

Since the NFL didn't build additional byes into its standard 17-week schedule, avoiding multiple postponements for a single team will be important in finishing the campaign on time.

Meanwhile, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said Thursday the team would continue to prioritize health over football.

"There's nothing more important than the health of the team," Belichick told reporters. "Without a healthy team, you don't have a team. That's priority No. 1, and I'd say not only to our team but to their families and people that are close to them. That's always our No. 1 concern. We try to do everything we can to make that the best we can make it. That's the way it's always been, and that's not going to change."

After Monday's meeting with the Broncos, the Pats are scheduled to have a bye in Week 6 followed by 11 straight weeks of games to finish the regular season.