NFL in London

National Football League in London

Oakland Raiders

What the Week?

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Even the most ardent NFL supporter will tell you that this is ‘one heck of a year’ in terms of playability, and Week 6 sure showed us why.

Somehow the New York teams are all killing it, while perennial favourites are struggling to get out of the first weeks’ mud.
And that’s not even mentioning the injuries!

Let’s take a look at some of the cray-cray storylines as we look at What the Week?

Tommy Boy

TB12 is sure trailing a bucket of drama as he heads into this season, with divorce, depleted squads and AB all piling on to make Tommy’s woes even bigger.

Despite losing one of their Watt’s, the Steelers D gave Tom Brady all kinds of headaches in Pittsburgh, and showed Tommy yelling it up on the sidelines at his teammates.

No one should lose to the tandem Mitch Trubisky & Kenny Pickett, but the Bucs took one on the chin from an AFC chump.

The Bucs are going to need to start stringing something together soon if they want to have any hope of pipping the Atlanta Falcons (whelp) to secure the NFC South title.

A Week 7 match-up between the Panthers should get them right, although Tommy sure would have liked to have snagged Robbie Anderson before he left for the Cards.

New York!

The Jets, Bills and Giants all have winning records…and get this…the Jets just walloped the Green Bay Packers.
What kind of bizarre multiverse is this?

The Jets are 4-2, the Bills are 5-1, and the Giants are also 5-1 in a patchwork that no one would thought we would see in decades, but here we are.

The Giants seem like that they are going to be ‘found out’ every week, yet Daboll and the boys keep finding new ways to beat tough opponents. And get this, they still do it with Daniel Jones and few receivers to speak of.

The New York Jets laid a beating on the Green Bay Packers in week 6, making the O-line of the Pack seem more like swiss cheese, than the fine cheddar it use to be.

The Bills are the one team that might bring some worry. Although they were feted to have top honours to take the title this season, there have been signs of weakness that this ride might get bumpy.

Pack Hack

If you were to tell Green Bay fans that they would be sitting at 3-3 after week 6 at the start of the season, they would have been severely ‘cheesed off’.
Surely their beloved Aaron Rodgers would never let the team sink that low…maybe Matt LaFleur…just not A-A-Ron!

The Packers have had a rough start to the season, with their 3 wins not coming easy, and their 3 losses coming effortlessly.

With no O-Line, and a scant supply of receivers, Rodgers like Brady is kind of wishing that this ends up another Covid year.

Green Bay has upcoming matches between the Bills, Eagles, Cowboys, Lions and Titans…with a few L’s anticipated in these tough contests.

Rhule the World

The Panthers took a massive squat on the state of South Carolina this season, by bring in Baker Mayfield and keeping the unpopular Matt Rhule.

After going a pathetic 1-4, the Panthers let go of Rhule, allowing him to collect $800k+ per week to sit on his butt, and field offers from college football teams.

Carolina is in trouble, and will need to unload C Mc if they can find anyone willing to swallow such a massive load.

Salmonella Russ

Russ has been cooking this season, unfortunately all the dishes keep coming out raw, and with no taste, or texture.

Russ has almost single-handedly ruined prime time NFL this season, putting in performances that more likely gift him a ‘Razzie’, than any football award.

The Seahawks are happy-clapping this season, having the weight of Russ lifted off their shoulders, not to mention the nice pay chunk in their pockets.

Will Russ get any better? Is he injured? Did he also get injured on MNF?

It’s tough to be a Broncos fan!

London Game

We still have another NFL game in London, as the Broncos and Jaguars face off at Wembley on Oct 30th in what is being billed as ‘an AFC match-up’.

Given how Russ has been performing as of late, and the sudden scoring demise of Jacksonville, we might expect some baseball like scores in this one.

Giants-Packers London

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Wowza! What a heck of a game that was between the Saints and Vikings last Sunday, as the sun came out to bring London one beauty of a game!

And guess what? We do it all again this week, as it’s Giants-Packers London this weekend!

To help you figure out what to do, where to do, and all the latest news, we have a packed little diary of ‘to-do’s’ to make your trip extra special.

Here’s what you need to know for the weekend of October 7th to 9th.

Transit Strike

Get ready to go nowhere, as the transit union is once again using this weekend to try to shame a Tory Party Conference with stagnation, catching NFL fans in the crossfire.

A national rail strike is due to go ahead on Sat Oct 8th, meaning that trains into London, out of London and some of the national rail lines will be affected.
Tubes and buses should be fine, but you might experience a knockoff affect of noticeable gaps.

If you are planning on travelling this weekend, make sure you plan ahead, as it will be a slow start on Sunday before the trains are up and running again at full tilt.

Getting to the Game

There are quick a few ways to get to the game, with the tube, overground and parking nearby all being options.

Direct trains from Liverpool street will have you at Tottenham within 25 minutes, and the busy Victoria line will take you to Seven Sisters or Tottenham Hale where you have easy access to the stadium.

Some folks also like to park a few Overground stops away, and just zip south to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

UK vs USA

It’s America versus the United Kingdom in Women’s Football (soccer), with a high profile friendly game kicking off on Friday October 7th at Wembley stadium.

The last time these two teams played was in 2020, when America delivered a 2-0 victory over the Lionesses.

Kickoff will be at 8pm on Friday night, and coverage will be available on ITV.

The game is SOLD OUT, so if you are looking for tickets, make sure you find someone who isn’t going to steal from you.

Football (soccer)

If you’re looking to watch football (soccer) this weekend, you’re in luck!
If you’re looking to watch college football this weekend…you’re kind of SOL.

It’s another big weekend in the Premier League, with some massive London derbys to check out if you can find the time.

Saturday kicks of with some major matches, as posh club Chelsea host Wolverhampton at 15:00GMT, and if you fancy a trip to the coast-Brighton and Hove host Tottenham in the 17:30 match.

There are some great traditional pubs to watch the games in, so make sure you explore the neighbourhoods to find a lovely local boozer.

Sunday might be the NFL, but it’s also a major day in English football, with games on all day-but it’s the later games that might be a problem.

Arsenal host Liverpool in an exciting 16:00GMT match, that will be on most tvs in most pubs across the country.

Later, Everton play host to Manchester United in a 19:00 GMT corker than will also predominate TVs in pubs and bars across the capital.

Comedy

London loves to laugh, so why not check out some of the great comedy on this weekend to laugh it up?

The Backyard Comedy Club in Bethnal Green has a great line-up on this weekend, and it’s one of the places Dave Chappelle likes to warm up before destroying larger venues.
Get your tickets here.

https://backyardcomedyclub.co.uk/event/backyard-comedy-club-saturday-night-427/

American comedy fans will have no idea British comedy icon Stewart Lee is, but they can find out as Lee performs in a series of intimate London comedy dates.
There are still some tickets available, and American comedy fans will be pleasantly surprised at the different stylings of Lee.
Tickets here:

https://www.stewartlee.co.uk/live-dates/

Fair Time

The fall fair is a classic of Americana, with rides, fun games, and novelty foods sure to choke arteries.

South London is hosting its’ own, with Fairgame Funfair setting up in Canary Wharf.

Loads of games, digitally updated games from your past and plenty of booze to make this an all day fun day.

Tickets and info here:

https://www.wearefairgame.com/

Sundays

As we have mentioned in the past, London is not a late night city-and Sundays are the worst of the bunch.

Please be careful in areas like Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square, as they are very dangerous at night.

Areas like Shoreditch, Highbury & Islington, and Finsbury Park all have late night options.

Stay safe, and watch this space for more info!

 

 

Week 1 Review

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Well that was a bit of a surprise wasn’t it?
Week 1 came in like a rainbow, and left like a sloppy wet storm as the 2022 NFL season is officially under way.

If you’ve just awoken from a coma, or have been inconsolable over the death of Queen Elizabeth, we’re here to give you a recap, in our Week 1 Review.

Bills Hype

At the start of the season, everyone was talking Josh Allen and the Bills, and how they were primed for a SuperBowl run this year.
Well after their dismantling of the LA Rams on TNF, it certainly looks like the Bills are ready to shuffle off to the post season.
Sure, there were loads of mistakes in the game, but by the second quarter we saw a Buffalo squad that moved the ball wherever Josh wanted it to be, not to mention stifling Matt Stafford and a Rams team who looked like they didn’t even know who they were playing.
Get yourself to Witness Protection-because the Bills Mafia are looking for victims.

NFC North

Bears win, and Aaron Rodgers gets choked out by the Vikes. Yes, you heard that correctly.
Rodgers looked incredibly pissed in a big L to the division challenging Vikings.
Flipping channels to watch Davante Adams snagging oodles of Carr’s balls, while Rodgers limp balls found no hands.
While it’s too early to ‘count out’ any team-it certainly seems that the Packers need some sort of Viagra to get the blood pumping.

The Bears were able to smother Trey Lance on a wet Sunday, but it was the Bears D who was the real star here-making it tough for the 49ers move the ball.

Detroit lost in a nail biter against a tough Philly squad-causing Dan Campbell to double his caffeine intake.

Minnesota is looking good.

What the Mahomes

Who said Patrick Mahomes was too old, past his prime and would never be back to the big game? (no one hopefully).
We did say that Jackson Mahomes needs to STFU and get his grown ass a job…

Patty Mahomes was incredible on Sunday night, ripping the Cardinals a new one with 5 TDs and 360 yards passing. Sure, the Cardinals are dealing with loads of injuries already, but it’s clear that ‘Tyreek Who?’, isn’t an issue any more.

Now if only Jackson and JuJu could make a super Tik Tok that destroyed them both…

Dak It

Just when you were getting ready to roast the Cowboys for another feckless season, Dan goes out and hurts his hand again.

Dem Boyz took a hefty beating from TB12 and the Bucs on SNF-not as much as Dak’s hand, but a beating nonetheless.

Many Vegas bookies have already written Dallas off as a playoff team.

Back to the back up QB once again.

Kicking It

What the heck was with the kickers in week 1?

The Steelers-Bengals game was painful to watch, as each kicker took the worst of the early games, and dragged it into the second set of games to torture us all.

After that many misses, surely they could just bring a fan in and try to give it a go?

Koo was on fire…the east of you…practice!

Justin Jefferson

If we ever run out of solutions for the energy crisis, we should just hire Justin Jefferson to ‘light it up’ for us every week.

The much vaunted Packers D was no match for Jefferson, who was so open-he was offering free shopping carts to anyone who wanted a ride.

Jefferson proved he is well worth the fantasy splurge after humbling Green Bay.

Imagine what he’ll do against a really BAD defence?

Patriotical

Could the New England Patriots be the worst team in the AFC East this year? Sure looks like it after getting dick-punched by the Dolphins on Sunday.

Sure, it was a sweltering day in south Florida, but Billy B and the boys went down there early to prepare for the game.

Eesh. Mac Jones took a few tough hits, but even tougher on the Pats is that it looks like scoring is going to be REALLY hard for them this year.

Oh well…off to Week 2.

Who do you like?

 

 

Week 1 Picks

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After a long, long wait-the NFL is finally here, and we couldn’t be more excited!

COVID is long gone, the ballsy hot days of summer are a mere scar from the sunburns, and everything is coming up pumpkin spice.
It’s NFL time!

Wade and Ryan are back at it, making their predictions in our Week 1 Picks podcast.

Make sure you listen to it over, and over to get all the nuggets of information distilled by the boys.

Among some of the things and games the boys talk about in this podcast includes:

Eagles (-5) vs Lions +48.5

Has everyone had a big gulpy slurp of Dan Campbell juice from Hard Knocks? Be careful, it’s full of caffeine!

HBO and the smooth voice of Liev Schreiber once again lulled us into believing that slick editing and inspirational music would help make a 3 win team better.
Only the season will tell.

What was telling was how the Eagles were able to make the playoffs in a ‘re-building’ year. Jalen Hurts and the Philly running game were able to put together a respectable season last year, and they only look to get better with some key additions to make for a deeper push this year.

Detroit has been Hard Knocking it, but they still have Jared Goff and a QB bench that even the Steelers could look down on.
Great running game, improved D, but you still gotta score.

Ryan likes the Lions to lickety-split the Eagles. He thinks that the running game and speedy receivers will be too much for the Eagles.

Wade is big on Philly, and thinks that this game will show that Detroit is not the motor city that people are hyping it up to be this season.

Ryan- Lions 23 Eagles 20
Wade-Eagles 31 Lions 24

Browns vs Panthers (1.5) +42.5

These lines have shifted quicker than an earthquake at a California cocaine party.

It started with the Browns being favoured, moved to the Panthers, had no line, was even and last was at 1.5 points for the Browns.

All eyes on Baker, as Mayfield hosts his former team in an ego battle like no other.
Matt Rhule needs a win here-not only to keep his job safe, but to also not lose the fans to start the season.
Christian McC is back, and Robbie Anderson might have the playmaker he needs to gash the backfield with incredible plays.

The Browns have been rubbed down, iced, and given a little moisturiser to start their season, as all eyes and hands have been rubbing down Deshaun.
Facing the ire of their fans, and the league, the Browns have opted to let Brissett take the reigns of a very capable Cleveland team.

Ryan has Baker and the boys laying a little beating on Cleveland, with revenge hot on his mind for week 1.

Wade on the other hand thinks that the Browns and the pressure might be a bit much for Baker in week 1, with Chubb and Hunt doing most of the work for the Browns.
He also sees loads of turnovers in a sloppy game.

Ryan-Panthers 28-Browns 20
Wade-Browns 24 Panthers 20

Raiders vs Chargers (3.5) +52

Lock up your china mom, the boys are battling it out in the living room tonight!

The AFC West battle starts out in fine form, as the LA Chargers and their fanless stadium host the under the influence Las Vegas Raiders.
It’s Carr vs Herbert in a showdown, throw down!

Vegas has blown many wads over the past few years, having many of their draft picks burn up quickly in the desert sun.
Through attrition the Raiders have found their squad, adding in Devante Adams as well as some O line pieces to give Derek a wee bit more time.
Don’t forget about Darren Waller and Josh Jacobs as well.

The LA Chargers were a thrill to watch last year, as Justin Herbert challenged Joe Burrow for newbie QB you wish was on your fantasy.
LA added Mack to the D, as well as giving Herbert some supporting tools for a longer distance drive into the playoffs this year.

Ryan likes the Chargers to win, but doesn’t think that Vegas will be an easy opponent.
Too much talent on both sides to allow the Raiders to keep it close.

Wade also thinks that this AFC doozy will be close, with the Chargers having that extra spark for victory. There will be plenty of fantasy points in this one.

Ryan-Chargers 30 Raiders 27
Wade-Chargers 33 Raiders 30

Week 1

Let’s not forget that it’s week 1, so whatever you thought you knew is most likely wrong.

No one really knows what the heck is going on until week 5, so at least find solace in that if you suck a big stone in week 1.

 

 

AFC/NFC Preview

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Well NFL darlings, it’s that time of the year again, as that giddy feeling in your stomach turns into the excitement of another NFL season!

The preseason is done, London games set, initial rounds of injuries have skated across the league, and it’s time for some football!

To commemorate the start of the 2022 NFL season, once again Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull have taken the task at hand of trying to determine who will emerge as the top teams to face off in the 2023 SuperBowl.

Thus we present to you our AFC/NFC Preview Podcast!

As a Bears and Bills fan, they have a skewed barometer of how their teams will fare, but there’s no loyalty in making picks.

To make sure that you get the best out of both guys, we have recorded not ONE, but TWO podcasts on this-one for each division!

AFC

The Buffalo Bills are heavily favoured to take it all this year, but as any seasoned Western New York fan knows, the wing might be spicy, it doesn’t mean that it’s fully cooked inside. (aka-expect failure0

It’s the Bills to lose this season, but the AFC East has the much touted Dolphins and their diminutive QB looking to be the big man.
The Dolphins have all the tools, but will those tools fit into the new machine?
Billy B will be looking to pull off some sleight of hand, convincing many preseason pundits that the Pats don’t have it together-they will.
The Jets…two words…Joe Flacco.
They’s be better off with Edie Falco.

The AFC North has all the drama for your mama this year, as Deshaun Watson immediately makes the Browns the least favourite team of any female fan of the NFL.
Cincy is fresh off a Superbowl appearance, but as history tells us-that isn’t always a good thing.
Lamar has a lot to prove this season, let’s just hope he doesn’t get hurt before he gets paid.
Pittsburgh has Trubisky. ‘Nuff said.

The West is Best in the AFC in terms of team calibre, but which of these rats can chew off the others faces to pip the top.
Patrick Mahomes is a safe bet to put on a show, as the Chiefs shrug off some dead weight to make another run at the title.
Hot on their heels will be the strong arm of Justin Herbert and a rejuvenated Chargers D. Is this his Joe Burrow year?
Vegas went all in on Carr, giving him the pieces he needs to make a buffet to feed the city their dreams.
Denver has Russ-but can he ever cook again?

Matty Ice is in the AFC, as he hope to run off of Taylor’s legs and take this AFC South division with ease.
Tannehill has lost loads of weapons this season, with the Titans trying to make a run, without all the tools they had before.
Houston-we have a problem. Davis Mills is fine, but you can’t build a team around him.
Jacksonville has to do something this year now that Urban Meyer is back working as a manager at Hot Topic. It’s all on you Trevor!

NFC

The NFC claimed the SuperBowl title last year, with the LA Rams and the noodle-elbow of Matt Stafford winning it all after a woeful time in Detroit.

It’s hard to repeat as champs, so they’ll need all the Cialis in their wallets if they want to stay hard this year.
The NFC West is a feast of talent, so the Rams will need to stifle the tough D and running game of the 49ers if they want to move ahead. This is your chance Trey!
Kyler asked to ‘show me the money’, now he needs to show he can score. Boom or bust year for him.
Seattle is famed for being a depressive place that led to grunge and copious coffee drinking. Put another pot on.

NFC East is the least in terms of being impressive, but that doesn’t mean that they haven’t gotten better.
Hurts and the Eagles were able to make the playoffs during a rebuild year-and that running game should move them to the playoffs again this year.
The Devil and Daniel Jones have one last chance in the Big Apple before the angels of Harlem chase their asses out of town.
‘Dem Boyz are looking more like the Proud Boyz, as many people are turning on them, as wondering who the hell they are.
Washington sucks so bad, they should change the name again.

The NFC Dirty South has TB12 and his mama drama. Will that stop the Bucs from returning to the big game and send Tommy Boy to retirement?
Jameis is ready to rock the Saints and their top tier D into the playoffs-they have enough talent to do it, but do they have enough discipline?
Baker has to cook something up in Carolina this year, before he finds himself carrying Pat McAfee’s golf bags.
Atlanta is a great TV show starring Donald Driver.

Aaron Rodgers has taken a full dose of himself, and he is ready to lead the Packers to another early round playoff exit. Is his team ready to this to the NFC North?
The Vikings have an amazing team on paper, but paper doesn’t play every week.
Hard Knocks fans have swallowed the Dan Campbell pill, and have them beasting the league this year. Do we all remember the Lions of last year? Good.
The Bears are slated to be the worst team in the league this year. They will definitely have the worst O line…and draft picks!

Wade & Ryan will be back with their Week 1 predictions, as well as more NFL in London fun.