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National Football League in London

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Week 12 Tips

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The wintry winds of December are starting to roll in, as the NFL begins the final push towards the end of the regular season.

The 2021 NFL season has been anything BUT predictable, as some of the top teams continue to falter, while the middle teams still try to find their footing in the season.

Wade and Ryan are back this week, as they offer up their Week 12 tips.

Wade was able to secure a 10-5 record during week 11, while Ryan pulled down a 8-7 record of picks against the spread.

How will the guys do this week?

Ryans Picks

One of the most anticipated games on Sunday will be the heavy hitting Colts (+3) facing the Tampa Bay Bucs.
Jonathan Taylor and company rolled over the Bills last week, and Ryan thinks that TB12 and the guys will be in for a rough day.
Ryan likes the Colts to beat the Bucs by 3.

It was a Giant (+3.5) week in New York, as the g-men got rid of coach Jason Garrett.
Ryan thinks that this will inspire the locker room to play their butts off to cover the 3 point favoured spread of Philly.

It’s an Urban legend that Ryan is a Jags (+2) fan, but this week he likes them to do a number on his former fix the Atlanta Falcons.
He likes the hometown Jacksonville team to keep it tight in a choke out victory for the Jags.

Lastly Ryan is tapping into Big Ben & the Steelers (+4) to find a way to put up some points against a struggling Bengals team.
He likes Pittsburgh to take the W from Cincy in this one, providing a valuable victory to move the Steelers ahead in this division.

If you take Ryan’s picks of the Colts, Giants, Jaguars, and Steelers on a parlay for £10, you could walk away with £154.70.

Wade’s Picks

On a short sunday of games, Wade tries to find some value picks to balance with some straight up easy victories.

Tennessee Titans (+7) took it on the chin, nose and knob last week in a horrible beat down by the Houston Texans.
The Titans face a fierce Patriots squad who rarely make mistakes, and have yet to be really challenged in their latest push.
Wade likes the Titans to cover in a close loss.

The Denver Broncos (+2.5) might not have a lot, but they often seem to win with nothing.
This should be the case on Sunday, as Wade likes them to play tough at home in a game against division rivals the LA Chargers.

Minnesota (+3) might be a rival of the Bears, but that doesn’t mean Wade doesn’t fancy them to do some damage to the 49ers.
The Vikings are a wrecking crew in the league at this point. Unlikely to make the playoffs, but very likely to cause damage to contenders in their push to the playoffs.

The LA Rams (-1) have been assembling all the tools in their shed to build a winning formula for this season, sadly it hasn’t really worked out that way yet.
The Rams will have a chance to take advantage of an injured Aaron Rodgers, and weakened Packers team.
LA has a chance to start out strong, then put their foot down in this one.

Taking Wade’s picks of the Titans, Broncos, Vikings and Rams on a £10 bet will also win you a whopping £154.70.

Sports Bar and Grill

Where are you watching the games this Sunday?

Come and join us at the Sports Bar and Grill Old Street, or Clapham, which will be showing all of the games, plus NFL Redzone across a bevy of TVs.

Make sure you book your table, so that you aren’t left without being able to watch your game, on a TV at your own booth.

Book yours here:

https://www.sportsbarandgrill.co.uk/oldstreet/party-booking

https://www.sportsbarandgrill.co.uk/clapham/party-booking

 

Turkey Hangover

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The gobble gobble is done for 2021, as the Thanksgiving slate of games are now leftovers, as we look ahead to week 12 in the NFL.

Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull are back with another exciting NFL preview podcast, as the boys digest their Turkey Hangover in this Week 12 preview.

Make sure you listen, laugh and love this new podcast episode.

Turkey Bowls

The Bears look aging and toothless as they fought off an equally inept Detroit Lions squad to get the first Thursday W.
This game was ugly on all fronts, as the only big winner of the night were penalties.
Matt Nagy holds onto his seat for another week.

‘Dem Boyz were lassoed by the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday, in a frustrating game for Dak and the home fans.
This OT thriller was not only a big win for the Raiders, but also the highest watched Thanksgiving NFL game in history.

Ryan was thrilled as his Bills made short work of a depleted New Orleans Saints team on Thursday night.
Buffalo were able to show the AFC who still could be boss, in a game where they lost one of their biggest D pieces for the season.

-3 Bucs (7-3) vs Colts (6-5)  +53

Everyone is in love with the Colts again after Jonathan Taylor boot stomped the Bills last week in an easy victory.
Given this massive performance, all the pundits are pushing Indy on Sunday to give Tampa a tough game.

Let’s not forget it’s TB12. He is a fear factor in every game, and moving ahead to the playoffs, the Bucs only look to get stronger.
Tommy and Bruce will look to make statement here, looking to shut down Taylor, and bury the Colts in points, so they’ll be forced to make throws.

Wade likes the Bucs here to make short work of the Colts, and show Indy for what they really are…a team lacking depth.

Ryan on the other hand is sniffing the Wentz, picking them to give Brady and the boys a tough contest en route to victory.

Ryan- Colts 33 Bucs 30
Wade- Bucs 30 Colts 23

-2 Falcons (4-6) vs Jags (2-8)

Matty Ice and the birds are coming off a TNF beat down at the hands of Bill Belichick and the Patriots, and will be looking to add a much needed win over this sad Jags squad.

Will Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville team be able to respond to keep this game close?

Ryan thinks that the Jaguars at home will be too much for this Atlanta team, especially since he has been clean from betting on Falcons teams for 3 weeks now.
He likes the Jags to upset the flow of Matt Ryan, and reward Urban Meyer with a home W.

Wade on the other hand thinks that Atlanta is too much for this putrid Jacksonville team.
While both teams have really bad D’s, the Falcons have a marginally better one.

Ryan- Jags 23 Falcons 20
Wade- Falcons 24 Jags 21

Steelers (5-4-1) vs -4 Bengals (6-4)  +45

Big bloated Ben struggled against the mighty Chargers last week, despite gooning for four fourth quarter touchdowns in a loss.
The Steelers D is finally getting some healthy bodies back this week, as TJ Watt looks to rejoin the Pittsburgh fold.

Cincy has struggled and Joe Burrow looks a former shell of himself from last season.
The Bengals have taken some bad losses, and Burrow showed weak form in some games, but should look to rebound in this divisional contest.

Ryan likes the heroics of Big Ben to lead the charge here, in a big win for Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Wade thinks this is a get right game for Cincinnati, and Mixon and the boys should have an easy victory against Pittsburgh.

Ryan- Steelers 30 Bengals 26
Wade- Bengals 27 Steelers 18 

That’s it for the picks this weeks Turkey Hangover podcast, make sure that you join us every Sunday at the Sports Bar and Grill Old Street and Clapham for our Sunday Funday spectacular.

Book a table so you can watch the games on your own TV.

London Thanksgiving

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Gobble, gobble y’all!
It’s time for another Thanksgiving NFL party in London!
You ready to turkey up for a Thursday night of NFL games?

London Thanksgiving

Having hosted Thanksgiving parties across London and the UK for the past 15 years, we have come to learn a few things.

  1. Most people and places don’t ‘get’ Thanksgiving-If you ask the average Brit what they think about the holiday, they’ll respond that it has something to do with colonial savagery. Not far off, but they miss the pumpkin spice nuance of the atrocity.
  2. Not many places show the games. Putting on American Football on a Thursday night would seem a daft idea, given how busy the bars get on Thursdays. We still find a few places.
  3. No pub or restaurant has made a passable Thanksgiving meal. Every venue we have worked with has butchered the food in some easy way or another.

Thanksgiving 2021

This year is going to be different, as we are working with 3 great venues who will be showing the Thanksgiving NFL games, without worrying about pandering to our palate.

They will be showing the games, offering their standard menu, and that’s all.
Wings and football together again.

Sports Bar Clapham

Right near the Clapham Junction train station is the Sports Bar & Grill Clapham.
A groovy sports bar with loads of TVs, a jam packed menu and a happening scene that will make you say ‘how come we haven’t been here before?’

On Thanksgiving, this location will be showing the Bears vs Lions at 5:30pm, then the Raiders vs Cowboys at 9:30pm.

Closing time will be midnight, so they won’t be showing the 1:30am game, which is ok since we will all be home by then.

To book your table at the Clapham location, just click and book here:

https://www.sportsbarandgrill.co.uk/clapham/party-booking

Old Street Sports Bar

The Sports Bar & Grill Old Street is one of the biggest locations, with over 50 TVs, pool tables, fruit machines, and plenty of frosty beer taps to fill your thirst.

Located right across from Old Street tube station, this pub is centrally located, and a great meeting spot for all of your mates.

Thanksgiving night, the pub will be offering their regular menu, with loads of chicken wings and towers of beer on offer.

NFL games on during the night include the Bears vs Lions, Raiders vs Cowboys, and the bar will be closing at 12:30am, so no dice for the very late game.

If you want to book a table at Old Street, make sure you click the link here:

https://www.sportsbarandgrill.co.uk/oldstreet/party-booking

Crouch End

North London is also popping and locking with Thanksgiving, as the Princess Alexandra in Crouch End will be showing both sets of NFL games until 12:30am.

Close enough to Finsbury Park, Highgate and buses to central London, this pub has all you need for a fireside night of NFL games.

Here’s a link to the website to book yourself in.

https://princessalexandran8.co.uk/

Week 8 Preview

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We’re almost halfway through the 2021 season! Where did it all go?

Ryan is back from Canada, as the guys look ahead to their Week 8 Preview podcast.

The London games might be over, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t still put on great events every Sunday!
Join us at either the Sports Bar and Grill Old Street, or Clapham so that you can watch all the games on their own TV.
Make sure you book a table now!

Among some of the other things that Wade and Ryan talk about in this episode of the podcast.

Fall Back

The clocks wind back at 2am on Oct 31st, allowing British fans more of an NFL witching hour.

NFL games in the UK will start at 5pm and 8:20pm for Week 8, so make sure that you kick out any relatives, and turn off any soccer that might get in your way.

The Sunday Night Game airs at a respectable 12:30 am Monday morning, which means you can still catch the game and get a good nights rest.

Work from home! You have our permission.

Watt-Age

The broken toy that is JJ Watt finally collapsed into a heap after another season of crippling injuries.

This isn’t the first time that Watt had to limp away from an NFL season due to injury, but with the amount of problems that JJ has been piling on his body, the finish line for his career must surely be in site.

Deshaun Watson

Watson looks like he might be cleared to be traded, but what doe that really mean in NFL terms?

While Deshaun has yet to be formerly charged (with anything), civil and criminal lawsuits are widely different in terms of the way that they are handled.

The NFL could clear him to play, then suddenly decide he needs to sit out 8 games for effrontery to the league.

Whatever the situation ends up being, the biggest loser here is Tua.

Here are some of the games that Wade and Ryan chat about in this episode of the podcast.

Eagles (2-5) -3 vs Lions (0-7)  +48.5

Dan Campbell might be the best 0-7 coach in the NFL right now, but that’s not much of a distinction given how bad Jared Goff and the Lions are playing right now.
The only thing that Detroit has going for it is the running game, but how can that last when it faces the pressure every week.

Jalen Hurts is an unappreciated QB as well, putting up big fantasy numbers every week despite the Eagles not being able to stay competitive. They have been close in good games, and beaten in bad ones. Philly does seem to be figuring it out however, with the team staying competitive in most matches.

Ryan thinks that Dan Campbell and the Lions will get their first win of the season here but stuffing out the Phily squad. He likes Goff and the boys to thwart the birds in their pursuit of a win in Michigan.

Wade likes Jalen and the guys to get it down in Motown. The Lions lost an emotional game against Matt Stafford last week, despite throwing every trick play they could at them.

Ryan-Lions 24 Eagles 17
Wade- Eagles 30 Lions 23

Steelers (3-3) vs Browns (4-3)  -3.5  +42.5

Bloated Big Ben is slowly easing his way out of what looks to be his final season.
There’s no more zip on that ball, and his O line is barely able to protect him and the running game on each drive.

Cleveland has been stuck in quicksand this season, slowly realising that Baker might not be the best chef in the kitchen to move this team forward. The Browns D and O line carries more of load than the rest of the team.

Ryan is betting on Big Ben and the running game to stick it to the flopping Browns, riding their bye week to a big W against a division rival.

Wade thinks that the Browns still have too much talent on D to rattle Ben and that shaky O line.
Chubb is back, and that’s all they’ll need to stick it to the Steelers.

Ryan- Steelers 24 Browns 20
Wade- Browns 26 Steelers 18

That’s it for some of our picks for Week 8, make sure you listen to the whole podcast to get all of our tips and predictions.

Sports Bar Old Street and Clapham are the place to be this Sunday for all the NFL games.
Make sure you book a table now to avoid disappointment!

See you Sunday!

 

Remembering Wesseling

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The NFL lost a good friend in 2021, as NFL pundit and personality Chris Wesseling passed away after a battle with cancer.

Remembering Wesseling as part of this loveable trio of NFL fans who entertained fans from Lincoln, Nebraska to London, England every week.

An outspoken and ‘big kid’ at heart when it came to the game, Wesseling had a profound impact on not only those who covered the game, but those who played it.

A key member of the ‘Around the NFL’ podcast with Dan Hanzus and Gregg Rosenthal, Wesseling was remembered as being so passionate about the NFL, his knowledge and energy became infectious for fans to watch and listen to.

Although Chris died earlier in 2021, it has only been until now that his wife Lakisha has been able to process this pain into a memorial video dedicated to Chris and their son Lincoln.

“For our son: The story of Chris Wesseling” is a beautiful tribute to Chris and his passion for the NFL and its fans.

We encourage you to watch this video, and remember Chris on Sunday when you’re making your lineups and drafting your picks.

It’s been a tough few years for everyone, but please make sure to check yourself, keep yourself in good health, and hug your families.