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Training Camp

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The NFL is back…sort of, and we’ll take it!

On this episode of the podcast, Wade McElwain is joined by Atlanta Falcons fan Chapman Maddox, as they discuss oodles of NFL news now that Training Camp has begun!

We all know what training camp means!
A chance to see flickers of potential in your team as you imagine them hoisting the trophy at the end of the season.
But in reality, Training Camp is also an eye-opener as to how fat your players got, the ego problems that will hover the locker room all season, and the possibility that one of your star players will go down for the season.

Heck, Carson Wentz is already injured, and that only took 2 days. Going to be a long season for the Colts.

Some of the other topics that Wade and Chapman break down in this podcast includes:

London Games

Are you double vaxxed? Do you have the latest booster?
The London games are a go ahead for October 2021, but we still have no idea what the landscape of the NFL and COVID will look like.
Tickets have yet to go on sale, so if you did buy some already…it’s a scam, sorry.
The most likely scenario for being able to attend the games will be having to be double vaccinated, as well as the potential for testing prior to the games.
We all want the NFL to come back, we all want to watch the games, but we need to make sure that people are safe going forward.
There’s no sense in rushing things if we’re just going to have to step back 4 months from now.

Roddy Weed

Formers Falcons player(s) Julio Jones and Roddy White are finding themselves at the hot end of the bong this week, after being accused of pilfering money from a cannabis company.
Weed is a bug business, and while retired players are getting into the investment sector, current players might find themselves facing a federal issue promoting these products.
As for Julio and Roddy, this smoke will most likely blow over.

Player Vax

Some players just don’t want to get vaxxed period.
America’s battle lines of freedom are being drawn, as many players are turning down the vaccine for personal reasons.
This is all well and good…except their employer (the NFL) has a business to run, and doesn’t really care about your opinion(s), especially if it cause them to lose money.
Teams are already starting to draw the lines on vax safety, just as players are finding their social media groove of supporters encouraging them not to ‘get the jab’.
This is something that we will see all season, and the NFL has already laid down the law in terms of its expectations.
Will players choose ‘freedom’ or ’employment’?

Cheetah Cheetah

Still claiming to be the ‘fastest man in the NFL’, speedster Tyreek Hill has upped his ego game by challenging Olympic phenom Usain Bolt to a race.
There’s no doubt that Hill is fast, but there is a difference between ‘NFL fast’, and ‘100 m fast’, just as there is a difference between the NFL and the XFL.
Bolt doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone, and Hill would be totally outclassed by the worlds fastest man.

Rodgers

The drama is over and Aaron Rodgers is back with the Packers…but is the drama over?
Nope.
After returning to training camp, Rodgers went on a media tear, as did Gutekunst, offering a press banter without actually talking to each other.
Aaron got the one year contract he wanted, and restructured his deal to be able to walk away easily in 2022.
Broken teams don’t win Super Bowls, and there is no way the Packers are winning a Super Bowl with a fractured locker room.
There’s way more talent on the table in 2022, with an extra week of games, and a whole new sizzle of new, exciting players.
The ‘favourites’ better look out!

Have a listen to the podcast, and make sure you share and care this bad boy to your friends, family and enemies.

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?

London Hosts Two-2021 NFL Games

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Wee ha!
The NFL is coming back to London, and it looks like we are getting not ONE, but TWO matches, as it was announced London is to host two, 2021 NFL games.

So who is coming, when, and how can you get tickets?
We’ll have all that information for you shortly!

Atlanta Falcons

It was announced earlier this year that by Falcons own Arthur ‘Blank-itty-Blank’, that the birds would be perching at Tottenham stadium for a 2021 game.
While we don’t know WHO that they are to play, there are certain clues that the NFL has dropped to allow us to figure out which team might be playing here.

We know that their opponent MUST come from the opposing conference, which means that Atlanta would be facing an AFC team.
After looking at the schedules, attendance figures, past London schedule and potential COVID situation, we determined that their opponent would be the New England Patriots.
We still believe that they will be the team that the Falcons play.

The NFL also likes to take advantage of the week long gap during the time changes between Europe and North America.
With only a scant 4 hours between us, it makes game viewing a little easier on the West Coast, so that fans don’t have to get up at 3am to watch the game.
This makes the last weekends of October the most logical choices for London games.

We had originally thought that with one game, the NFLUK would want to balance the game out during the month.
With the news that Jacksonville would also be coming to the UK, we pushed that Sunday back a week, so that one of the games falls over the time change gap which occurs on Sunday October 31st, which will most likely be a game date.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Jacksonville announced this week that they would also be returning to London in 2021 for ONE NFL regular season game.
With an expanded 17 game season, and a roster buoyed by young and excitement, the Jags could be an interesting game to watch.

Trevor Lawrence will certainly bring the hype train to London, along with his cast of young, plucky stars who probably have never crossed the ocean on a flight.

As previously mentioned, the NFL International games are comprised of two teams from different conferences.
The Jaguars have 8 home games at TIAA Bank Field this season, and the London game is considered one of their home games.
Looking at Jacksonville’s home schedule we can see that they have 6 matches against AFC rivals (Titans, Colts, Texans, Bills, Dolphins, and Broncos), with 2 NFC games against the Cardinals and 49ers.
Given schedule, team priority, travel time, and local newspapers, we believe that the 2021 Jacksonville opponent will be…the Arizona Cardinals.

The NFL has a history of scheduling these international games back to back, so it makes sense that this game will be on continuous weekends.
This allows them to put all the banners across London, keep their staging facilities up, as well as package the games into a marketable, big event.
Given this, the weekends of Sunday the 24th and Sunday the 31st most likely.

Covidity

What’s the deal with Covid? Will visitors need a vaccine? Will there be passports of health? Can Americans visit?
No idea.
All of this will be a wait and see from the UK government.
For those of you from abroad, the UK is due to open to ‘normalcy’ by the end of June 2021.
Should this hold, and we stay clean and healthy, we SHOULD be able to host the games without issues.
Given the nature of the virus, it is unlikely that Tottenham stadium will be at full capacity, but it should be quite full of fans.
Again, this will take a while to figure out.

The whole schedule is released on Wednesday May 12th, at 8pm EST.
Once it’s released we will know a bigger picture, as well as how close we were to picking the right teams and dates.

Are you ready for some NFL in London?

2021 Draft Preview

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With the NFL Draft only days away, the excitement and anticipation brings with it numerous questions.
Will Trevor Lawrence still be Jagging his way to Florida?
Are there enough quarterbacks to go around?
What kid of mischief and mayhem do the Patriots have planned?

We will take a look at these and many more in our NFL Draft Preview Podcast.
In this episode, Wade McElwain & Ryan Cull are joined by Chapman Maddox, a diehard Falcons fan, and good friend of NFL in London.

Everyone and their uncle has their thoughts on who should take whom in the NFL Draft this year.
With many teams desperate for a new franchise quarterback to lead them out of the mediocre standings, it’s easy to forget that one man doth not makeith’ the team.
Sam Darnold couldn’t save the Jets, Johnny Manziel bust out of 3 leagues, and let’s not even talk about Mitchell Trubisky.

In this NFL Draft Preview podcast, the guys go through the first round of the draft and make their predictions for the choices and needs for each team.
Obviously the draft is going to have some drama worthy enough for TMZ, so our pundits have focused on the picks rather than the moves.
Someone is going to trade up, someone already has some potential trades slotted up, and all of us will be ‘wowwed’ when a team makes a truly bone headed call. (looking at you Bears).

The podcast clocks in at just over an hour, so make sure you put on your comfy pants and settle in with a cup of happy to get you in that zone.
We will have more draft coverage throughout the week, but let this podcast ease you on down the NFL Draft road.

Among some of the hot topics that Wade, Ryan and Chapman touch on in this podcast includes:

Trevor Lawrence

Sure, TL will be going number one to the Jaguars, but what are we missing?
While Ryan and Chapman gush over the flowing locks of Lawrence and his date with NFL destiny, Wade is a bit more skeptical and thinks he will be the next ‘Jimmy Garoppolo’ of the league. Too many injuries and too much hype.
The guys all agree that Trevor will be hitting the Jags this season, and hopefully we will see him in action sometime in London soon.

J-E-T-uggh

The Jets have proven what not to do with top NFL picks. They have ridden the pines of the league for the past few years, adding more laughing stock to the soup of their woes.
New coach, new team, new focus…who dis?
It’s one thing to take new talent from the NCAA, it’s another to develop and encourage it.
Wade, Ryan and Chapman all think that the Jets will scoop up Zach Wilson at number 2.
Where he is in 3 years is anyone’s guess.

Poisoned Fields

It wouldn’t be a draft without drama, and this week we had plenty of that.
It turns out that Justin Fields might have an electrical condition (?), a heart problem (?), something that could ruin his career (?).
NFL fans know that when rumours of ineptitude surface prior to something big, the Patriots must be involved.
Pissing on a prospect for the good of the empire is a total Belichick move.
The guys all have Justin Fields on different teams, where do you think he will end up.

Bold Predictions

The podcast has loads of bold predictions for the NFL Draft, among some of the crazy ideas the guys banter in this one includes:
-Ryan and Chapman like Pitts making his way to Atlanta.
-Wade likes the 49ers to move up for playmaker Trey Lance.
-Carolina will trade their 8th pick away to a QB hungry team
-Roger Goodell goes in for an awkward hug, still gets booed.

Make sure that you listen to the whole NFL Draft Preview podcast and share it with your friends!
We will have more NFL Draft predictions throughout the week.

Shadow Moves

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What lurks in the the shadows of the NFL?
What secret moves are happening in free agency?
Turns out, a lot-as Wade & Ryan look at Shadow Moves in this podcast.

Miami flipped a flop on the 49ers and Eagles, trading then sliding back in with some nifty picks.
All signs point to QB heaven as the teams line up to grab the next bigbit of  quarterback Mccheese.

The boys look at some of the other big news in this podcast including.

Bucs Start Kicking

Tampa Bay brings back a whopping 22 players, pointing to the fact that the Buccaneers are kicking to win another Super Bowl this season.
Tom Brady has all his weapons, and only time will tell if they can kick their late season run into a near perfect season.
Once you win the big show, everyone wants to steal your limelight.

Wilson!

Will Wilson drift away from the Seahawks raft, or will he let them paint his face and be the head on the stick again. When someone wants to leave that bad, it’s hard to see the lockerroom feeling the love if he does return.
The Seahawks have a lot of shoes, issues, and issues in shoes.
Maybe Petey should walk away this season.

Falc Off Matt

What’s the deal in Atlanta? If only they could vote on what to do with the team. Oh, that’s right.
Atlanta is in the fist flock frenzy of QB grappling and Matt Ryan may have more than a protégée.
The Falcons could also play it smart and trade their pick the dozens of teams willing to slit a fans throat after the anthem if they could get a sniff of Zach Wilson.
Ryan said it.

Benglosity

The Bengals have a great slice of picks, and it would be wise to load up that front line in the early going.
TB12 got a Wirf of a boost this season and Joe Burrow deserves a shot at not getting his head torn a sunder.
Cincinnati also benefits from grabbing a few wide receivers to make them a little more solid at points next season.

Aging Ravens

Baltimore went full The Wire, by bringing back a couple of old crows to flock the sidelines.
Sanu and Sammy Watkins signed with the Ravens in a chance to give Lamar Jackson two solid number 3 receivers.
If both of them stay healthy, they might be able to play 8 games this season and average 4 fantasy points.

Watson, Watsoff

Deshaun Watson is in the news again but for some not so good reasons.
It ‘seems’ that several Insta-masseuses claim that Watson did yada yada, and they felt blah blah.
Not to seem insensitive, but it’s all conjecture at this point.
Deshaun Watson is not charged, and he hasn’t said anything.
An interesting convenience in a legal battle to extricate himself from the grasp of a billionaire, only to find himself in the very position of one.
Kraft cooked his tapes, and added some orange cheese to offer a meal of of innocent denial.
In Robert Kraft’s case though, they had tapes and titilating testimony.
Let’s not forget that Deshaun Watson is also a young man under an extraordinary amount of pressure professionally and personally.
Kneeing him in a his mental nuts is not cool.

That’s it for this podcast, make sure that you listen to more in our library.
We’re glad to keep chatting about the NFL, and excited about the future of the league here and making you all laugh.