LOS ANGELES _ Mexico City is in jeopardy of losing its marquee "Monday Night Football" game between the Rams and Kansas City Chiefs because of poor field conditions at Azteca Stadium.
The NFL confirmed Tuesday morning that it was looking into the condition of the playing surface after a concert on Saturday, nine days before kickoff, left it in serious disrepair.
"We are working closely with the field manager at Azteca Stadium and others to ensure that we have an NFL quality surface for our game, and we are looking forward to kicking off in Mexico City on Monday night," league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a written statement.
ESPN's Adam Schefter was first to report that the league was considering moving the game, to be aired on that network, which will be the premier matchup of the season, pitting two 9-1 teams.
If the game were to be moved, it would come back to the Coliseum, because the Rams are the home team. Both the Rams and Chiefs have their bye week after the Mexico City game, so it's conceivable that the contest could be played a week later to accommodate logistical requirements such as ticket sales. However, it's unclear how it being a Monday night game would complicate that flexibility.
Game planners were already scheduled to meet Tuesday in Mexico City, and the field condition may be the most pressing topic. There almost certainly will be a decision within the next 48 hours about how to proceed.
The NFL has contingency plans in the event games need to be moved. One of those contingencies is that the home team of an international series game also has to have its home stadium available in the event a game has to be relocated.
It is possible to re-sod a field quickly. In 2014, the Rose Bowl replaced a field in five days, between the Rose Bowl Game and the BCS Championship Game. That was a field-on-top-of-field situation, and the bottom field was in far better condition than the muddy remains in Mexico City. Also, that field-replacement plan was in place well in advance of the re-sodding, whereas this would be an emergency replacement.
