ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The fate of the Buffalo Bills' matchup versus the San Francisco 49ers is in limbo after new COVID-19 restrictions in Santa Clara County, California, were announced Saturday.
The restrictions ban all contact sports for three weeks, which means the 49ers won't be allowed to play on their home turf at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.
The Bills-49ers Monday Night Football matchup falls within that three-week period, although the league nor the teams have officially announced what will happen next.
San Francisco, however, did put out a tweet Saturday night that said it is working with the league on operational plans.
Along with the ban on contact sports, there is a mandatory 14-day quarantine for anyone coming to the city from more than 150 miles away. The three-week ban also applies to practices.
County officials said the new directives were issued in response to rising coronavirus cases in the area.
"The decisions that we are making today are extraordinarily difficult ones, far more difficult than they were when we made similar decisions in March. However, we have come to a place where our cases and our hospitalizations are so high that we must do something to settle things down," Santa Clara County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody said.
The rules will go into effect on Monday.
In addition to their December 7 game against Buffalo, the 49ers' December 13 game against Washington at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara could also be impacted.
ESPN reports under the rules, the team would need to find an alternate place to play those games as well as to hold its practices.
The new restrictions also will affect the NHL's San Jose Sharks and college teams at Stanford and San Jose State.