NFL in London

National Football League in London

2021 NFL Tottenham Falcons

Rodgers That!

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The ‘what will he do’ moment is now upon us, as the NFL world waits in anticipation for what Aaron Rodgers will finally do.
Will he succumb to the public pressure and return to the Packers training camp on July 28th, or will he flip a cheesy bird to the team, and pursue retirement?
Or will he just do his own thing?
Rodgers That!

The A-aaron drama took an end of July shift, when major sports books finally gave in to the notion that the reigning MVP might not be driving to Wisconsin for the fall.

Westgate Sportsbook has pulled all NFC North odds for the moment, including win totals, playoff odds, and weekly lines.

Other Las Vegas sports books including Bovada & Bet online have changed their prices and odds for the Packers to repeat.
In fact, Circa Sports has released their own new odds, which favours the Minnesota Vikings winning the NFC North, ahead of the Packers.

So what are Rodgers options really then?

Back at Pack

It’s no secret that Rodgers hates Packers GM Brian Gutekunst, he hates him so much-he could actually be family with him.
Aaron had said in the spring that he ‘wouldn’t be back’ so long as Gutekunst was on the team, and yet he’s still there.
Given that AR has been so vocal about his disdain for the leadership of the team, that he would be willing to forgive and forget over a summer of very little contact.

Rodgers (former) teammates were all quite bullish on the prospect of him slinging up for the Cheeseheads in 2021, but that too has started to fizzle out as July has.

With words that Davante Adams is now opting out of renegotiating a new contract, it would seem that even he knows that Rodgers time in Wisconsin is done.

Even if Rodgers were to return to Green Bay at the end of July, would the fans forgive him?
As the only ‘fan owned’ franchise, the Packers are more like a family than a global corporation.
By ‘playing games’ with his future he’s not just fucking with Jerry Jones, he’s trifling with mom and pop America, and they’ve had a rough couple of years.

Even if he were to retire, how much tension is going to fill that locker room?
Too much to fit a championship in there most likely.

Retire

There’s retirement, and then there is retiring for a bit.
Rodgers has too much competition in him left to whomp out of the league for good, but he could take a little break to show them what they are missing.

Having just announcement his surprise engagement, there are rumours that he wants to use this time to get married and enjoy his honeymoon phase before getting back to work.

Sure, he’ll lose some money on the season, but there are plenty of other ways for Aaron to grab some cash.
From appearances at ‘Game of Thrones’ fan expos, judging on ‘America’s Next A Capella Sensation’, our recreating the movie ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ with puppets, with fiancee Shailene Woodley.

It’s no secret that the kid from Chico, California would also LOVE to be the next host of Jeopardy. Given his lack lustre week of hosting this year, that might be tough. If he thinks Packers fans are emotional, wait til he pisses off the elderly nerd crowd.

Family Counsellor

The Rodgers family are a reality show waiting to happen.
Imagine a series where Aaron returns to the homestead to make peace with his religious family, as well as performing a series of pranks on them.
Hilarity ensues.
This would also provide Aaron with the ability to get back at his brother Jordan, who sullied the family name on ‘The Bachelor”.
For shame.

Of course, we won’t know what is really going to until July 28th, when (and if) he doesn’t appear at training camp.

If he’s not there on Wednesday, make sure to check on your Green Bay Packers fans to make sure that they don’t do something stupid.
Like switch to being Buccaneers fans.

What do you think he will do?

CFXL

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One of the main side effects of COVID-19 is the loss of smell.
This is particularly worrying for football fans, who are unable to smell what ‘The Rock is Cooking.’
In this case, it’s a burnt melange of the XFL and the CFL.
The potential marriage is now dead, after the XFL announced it would not be moving ahead with merger plans.
The CFXL is dead.

Cracks in the Foundation

The coming together of the XFL and CFL was a lofty exercise to begin with.
Firstly there is the obvious lack of a league for the XFL, they went bankrupt, sold all off of their stuff, then the Rock and his VC firms swooped in to grab the bits and bobs left over.
The XFL isn’t really bringing anything to the table except The Rock, who won’t be playing in any games.
The CFL however has an actual league, with stadiums, team names, and a fan base going back over 100 years.
The CFL doesn’t need the XFL.
Canadians have long been pestered by Americans to the south ‘showing us how it’s done’, so negotiations would have stalled on any ‘demands’, as they really had no position to stand on.

1 Down

Even if the CFL and XFL did merge, what rules would they play?
The CFL is a 3 down game, with a wider and longer field than the NFL, would American fans accept such football treachery?
Canadian football has struggled on American TV, and these ‘new rules’ (even though they are older than the NFL) are a bugaboo for US fans.
The whole ‘how do we play’ would have been an obvious issue that pitted America vs Canada.
The XFL wants to be a feeder league for the NFL and tap into its heat, whereas the CFL is like a honey-badger, and they don’t care about nothing.

Teams

The CFL has The Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Winnipeg Bluebombers, and the Hamilton Tiger Cats.
The XFL has teams in Seattle, Houston, St. Louis, New York, LA & Tampa Bay. You know who else has teams in those cities? Everyone!
While the Canadian cities don’t exude a sense of sporting legacy, these teams are older than loads of actual leagues, and boast fans that are willing to come out in even the coldest conditions.
Competing with not only the NFL, but the NBA, MLB, MLS, NHL, and even new sports like e-Gaming and cornhole in major cities is a logistical and scheduling nightmare.
The CFL already has its identity, supporters and Canadian-ness, no American business is going to threaten that.

Finding Identity

The XFL really needs to define what it is, and when it will be played to forge ahead.
Loads of new leagues are lining up to take pot shots at the NFL, but none have ever really threatened the king’s dominance.
Sure, The Rock is the biggest movie star in the world right now, but that’s not enough to put bums in seats week after week.
Fans do want more football during the offseason, but not the kind of crap that has been peddled out the past few years.
Releasing a league to be able to ‘tinker’ with it in progress only hurts the league and the fans, and stymies any chance of future leagues developing.

The CFL will keep rolling on.
Ratings in Canada are enough to keep the lights on, and solidify its status as ‘Canada’s league to watch just before the NFL starts.’

The XFL however has one last shot before it joins the monorail as a foolish endeavour.
Dwayne Johnson is going to need put a lot of energy (and money) into it if he wants to see results.
The XFL might be positive about their future, but after this deal fell apart, it’s tough to see how they will be able to go it alone without a massive commitment NO MATTER WHAT.
Does The Rock have the mettle?

NFL Pride

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The offseason in the NFL is usually just a slew of arrests, mental breakdowns, and ego posturing of young men, suddenly flush with cash.
Occasionally, some truly cool news will come out of the league, which is why we call this podcast NFL Pride.

In this podcast, Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull look at some of the top stories kicking around the NFL while we wait for the season to officially start.

Some of the biggest news that the guys ramble on about this week, includes:

Carl Nassib

Some heart warming news from Las Vegas this week, as Raiders DE Carl Nassib announced he was gay.
While Nassib might not be the first openly gay player, he does help push the conversation forward, as well as serving as an inspiration for any gay players out there who might be nervous about coming out in their sport.
Even bigger and better news was that Nassib’s jersey quickly jumped to the top of the sales charts, evidence that the fans are proud of Carl.
It’s nice to see that we have moved beyond the myopic sexual hysteria of our early ages & into a generation where we judge players not on their sexuality, but on whether or not they play for the Patriots.

Frank Clark

To some more consistent NFL news, Chiefs player Frank Clark was arrested once again for gun violations.
Clark’s bodyguard apparently was in possession of an ‘uzi’, taking this case back to the 1980s’.
This isn’t the first time that Clark has been in trouble, with gun and domestic violence issues following him since his Michigan days.
What will Kansas City do here?

Guice

Derrius Guice has had various charges dropped stemming from a past domestic assault issues. Guice was also dropped by the Washington Football club after the incident, and might have teams looking at him to bolster their 2021 squads.

AB

Antonio Brown also got some lucky law this week, as his probation for assault was reduced.
You might remember Brown moved to Florida to be closer to TB12 and the Bucs, when he was arrested for assaulting the guy delivering his furniture.
Not surprisingly, Brown will have to attend MORE anger management classes, and potentially face a civil suit from the driver.
Oh AB!

XFL

Former XFL players hoping to get paid took a shot in the chin this week, as it was announced that outstanding fees owed to the players would be reduced.
Brokeass amateur athletes hoping for the $14,000 that they were owed to pay off their bills were told that they can now only expect $580.00, minus fees.
On the bight side, the new league is due to form next year…so maybe they can apply to be a part of that one?

London Games

The London NFL games are still good to go for October, so fans should start to get ready!
While we don’t know too much information yet, it’s looking like fans that are fully vaccinated will be allowed to attend.
Given that many people under 18 haven’t been given the shot, there is no word yet whether they will be required to do so.
Honestly, with this summer of sport on, and variants popping up like incarnations of ‘Loki’, we won’t know much until end of August.
When we do, we will let you know.

Here is the latest episode.
Have a listen, a laugh, and maybe even a guffaw.
As soon as more NFL news pops up, we will let you know!
In the meantime, make sure you follow us on social media for all the latest news about the 2021 London NFL games.

Memes of June

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When life gives you lemons, you throw them at the team when they start playing poorly, those are the new rules of NFL survival.

Given that this time of year is historically boring for NFL news, we present to you another selection of pithy pictures with titles, in our Memes of June post.

NFL Memes are not only a perfect distraction from the lack of the sport, but also a perfect way to serve up one of your buddies with a massive ‘burn’ as to their favourite player, franchise, or the very way that they live their lives themselves.
That’s how good an NFL Meme can be.

Here’s a selection of memes to kick off the end of your June, and rip you right into July.

June Memes

GIF Giving

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To break up the boredom and monotony of waiting for the NFL season to begin, we have been sharing silly videos and GIFs with each other to pass the time.
After all, isn’t it just as fun to burn your buddies with a quick video torch of their team in a way that publicly shames them, and gets your point across?
Exactly girlfriend.

To that point, we have put together some GIFs that fit some of the current woes of certain NFL teams.
They are the GIFs that keep on Giving!

Buffalo Bills

The Bills look ready to rock the AFC in 2021, the only thing that stands in their way…is themselves. Playoffs have never been kind to the Bills, which is why we present the Bills Playoff chances.

Kansas City Chiefs

Back it up, beep beep. That’s the attitude of the Kansas City Chiefs this season, as they are confidently heading into the 2021 season.
Sure, they got whooped in the Super Bowl by the Bucs, but they seem pretty confident they’ll be backing that truck back up to the Super Bowl this year.

Dallas Cowboys

America’s team has been having some issues lately. Despite not having won the Super Bowl since the internet and social media existed, dem Boyz are pretty cocky heading into the 2021 season. Be careful what you wish for, and don’t shoot your eye out.

Tampa Bay Bucs

TB12 and the team might be old, but that doesn’t mean that they still don’t have a few tricks up their sleeves. Just like grandma whipping your ass at beer pong, the Bucs will be back to bring in some olde fashioned shaming for the 2021 season.

Chicago Bears

Justin Fields is in! What could possibly go wrong? Ask any Bears fan, and they will give you a list of reasons that doom could be on the horizon. All seems to be going well, until getting hit in the nuts. Is it the front office?

Jacksonville Jaguars

Everyone in the pool, it’s time to party! The Jaguars once again have reasons to be proud, but will this translate into wins?
Jacksonville is banking on its young stars to lead the way for 2021, but could they just be making waves, instead of a splash?

Carolina Panthers

Sam Darnold is out of NY, but will that still stop him from seeing ghosts?
The Panthers are hoping that Christian is back and healthy, and their new crop of stars are going to lead them to glory.
But are these just shadow games?
Will the REAL Carolina Panthers show up this season?

New York Jets

You spin me right round baby, right round.
That’s the feeling of New York Jets fans who get the circle jerk spin every season.
How many times can they tank to get good draft picks, before it’s time to address the real issues?

Cleveland Browns

You’re driving down the highway, thinking that everything is going to be ok…then BAM! Ice crashed into the windshield, and you’re questioning the validity of everything.
Sounds like the Browns in the playoffs?

That’s it for some of the GIFs for this week. We will continue to hunt for funny little videos that you can use to burn your friends, or just to watch in pain as the truth of your own team sets in.

Heck, it’s only June. The NFL will be here soon!