NFL in London

National Football League in London

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2021 Wins

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Winner, winner, chicken dinner!
A phrase you might hear ripping through the cavernous casinos of Las Vegas of olde, but not so much these days.
But now we’ll take a look at the 2021 wins.

British betting giant William Hill has already taken a look at the 2021 NFL teams, and released a set of projected win totals for teams this season.
If you’re a betting fan, you can look at these odds and think ‘malarky, I’ll have a bet on that!’
Or you might get pumped up with anger that the betting world thinks so lowly of your team.
Or…you might be a Jets fan.

It comes as no surprise that the ‘super league’ teams of the NFL have the most predicted wins for the 2021 season.
The Kansas City Chiefs once again emerge as the big favourites, with the pundits picking them to win 12 games in 2021.
Of course, it doesn’t matter how many wins you get if you’re going to eventually lose to the Buffalo Bills.

Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers are heralded to win 11.5 games this season (yes, .5 of a game), in a testament to the champs tuning up their late season surge in 2020 to open a bigger can oh whoop-ass.
The champ always has a target on their head, and the Bucs will be ‘the team’ other teams will use to set as their playoff bar.
This number might even go up higher if Julian Edelman decides to jump out of the broadcasting booth.

Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Ravens are both predicted to win 11 games by William Hill, despite lingering questions on both sides.
Aaron Rodgers has been asking questions all off-season like ‘Why am I filling in for Alex Trebek?’, ‘Why do people care about my personal life’, ‘Can I host Jeopardy full time’ & ‘They’re never going to get me a #1 receiver, are they?’
Lambeau is turning into an NFC north drama, and if the Packers don’t make it far enough to choke in the NFC final again, maybe they will show Jordan some Love?

Baltimore is an interesting pick for 11 wins given their up and down past 2 years.
The Ravens are missing several key players to make a threatening push for the playoffs, and unless Lamar Jackson is given a porta-potty-tent on the sidelines, his heroic ‘number two’ performances may become less frequent.
Baltimore feels like they’re still discovering the pronoun that they want to describe them.
Are they a ‘running team’, a ‘passing threat’, ‘Lamar’s Lament’ or a ‘Harbaugh-apocalypse’?

Pumping out with a projected 10.5 wins are the LA Rams and Buffalo Bills, both of whom will be massive threats to the two previous teams.

The Rams finally have their QB to go with that staunch defence and solid coaching by McVay. Unlike the previous Rams appearance in the Super Bowl, this feels like a whole new team with more options and attack than ever seen before.
LA will be looking to showcase their ‘post-off’ body, and the NFC is going to see a whole different Rams team.
Look out Green Bay.

Buffalo Bills predicted to win less games than the Baltimore Ravens? Pishaw! Josh Allen was the sweetheart of the league last year, racking up loads of touchdowns, highlights and ‘aww shucks’ moments.
Buffalo has always been that underdog team that America forgets about, and Canada wishes was theirs.
Although their stadium sucks, it starts snowing in September, and Rachel Bush posts more Insta than the city itself…they have wings.
Both chicken and spiritual wings that guide them through collapsable tables.
And this season, the Bills should be flying high.

Among some of the other win projections that seem off:

Cleveland Browns-10 Wins

The Browns won 10 games in 2020, so why are they predicted to win the same amount this year? Cleveland is a way better team than last year and were a victim of circumstance as much as they were tools of their own ineptitude.
Browns will win more than 10.

Indianapolis Colts-10 Wins

It’s the Carson Wentz led Colts, with a projected win total of 10. Really? The Colts limped into the last half of the 2020 season like they ran half the Grand National before dumping the rider and trotting along to the finish.
They had one of the best O-lines and used Jonathan Taylor well to gash for yards…then they lost tough games.
With other teams spending huge and others looking for fresh blood, it’s hard to believe that they can win 10 in 2021.

Are you ready for the NFL Draft?
We will be making our predictions shortly, as well as on our next podcast.

Make sure you like our Facebook page as well!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/NFLinLondon

 

Spring Loaded

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Spring has sprung, the grass is rise, when the heck is the NFL Draft finally going to happen?!?
We look at the Draft, the League, London Games, and so much more in our Spring Loaded podcast.

In this episode, Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull look at some of the biggest news heading into the final week before the 2021 NFL Draft.
Covid still reigns supreme but the league has other plans, how much normal will fans see at games this season?

Some of the other big issues that Wade & Ryan look at in this podcast includes:

Aaron Donald

When everyone first heard the news that Aaron Donald was in a fight, the collective consciousness could be heard to say ‘yeah, right.’
Donald does not only strike you as a street fighter, but the way that the fight was described just smelled of fish.
Turns out, the guy was making it up.
A new video has emerged of Donald rushing to help a friend get out of the situation and to safety.
A full on blatant lie to attempt to condemn a young man who wants nothing more than to play the game he loves.
When will we (and the league) start holding these accusers more accountable for the damage that they do?

Browntown

The Cleveland Browns have a stacked team ready to deliver some results this season.
They have the most first round picks of any team on their roster, yet still wouldn’t be the top pick for AFC champ next season.
Is this the year for Cleveland, or are they lined up for another year of disappointment?
Wade & Ryan break down some of the team, and what they need to do to make sure that they come out on top next year.

Blarty-Gate

Paul Blart Mall Cop is back, and this time he is taking on the Saints.
Comedic actor Kevin James will be playing Saints head coach Sean Payton in a new direct to VHS movie.
Fans will remember that Payton was suspended for ‘Bountygate’, in which he put prices on the heads of opposing players, so that his players would collect by injuring them.
Classic New Orleans!
This movie however will focus on Payton’s choice to coach his 12 year old son’s football team during his downtime.
No word if there will be children being paid to injure each other.

Washington Football Chumps

So the Washington team has finally buried the ‘Redskins’ in a dusty plain somewhere near Wyoming.
Now that the team has officially decided to move on, they have pitted 4 new team names for DoC residents to vote on.
Given that the names sound like that they were developed by a Chinese AI that had never seen an NFL game before, there might be a few more votes down the line.
‘Wild Hogs’ in a gesture to the feral pigs of Maryland, ‘Demon Cats’ as an homage to the imagination of a 3 year old, ‘Presidents’ is a reflection that the whole city is ‘fixed’, or the simple ‘DC Football Club.’
Of course most Washington fans would probably happy with ‘Time to go Dan Snyder, you Creep Machine.’
Or just ‘Creep Machine.’

Have a listen to the Spring Loaded podcast, and share it with your friends.
We keep creeping up the charts and adding new listeners every week, so thanks a bundle for that!

London Balling Podcast

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The NFL is officially returning to London!
That’s right, in 2021, the Atlanta Falcons will pop over the pond to Tottenham for a non-divisional contest in October.
So what does that mean for NFL fans around the world?
Wade McElwain and Ryan Cull break it down in this London Balling Podcast.

Covid 19 was definitely the player of the season in 2020, gashing the league for over 85% of their profits from the previous year.
Virus be damned, the games are back on and Mr. Goodell is promising 100% capacity at the stadiums this season.
It all seems very positive…

Among the hot topics in this edition of the podcast include:

London Games

We have one game in the can for 2021, with a whole host of potential games over the next eight years. Sure, we have to split them with Germany, Mexico and even Canada…but at least the games will be spread across the globe.
Wembley looks to be out of the mix for now, but you would have to expect the stadium to make a push a Khan to help heal the wounds of his downtown Jacksonville implosion.
Tottenham already has a head start on the rest of the world by building a purpose built stadium for the NFL, it’s a matter if other countries are willing to build up to keep up.

Falcons at Tottenham

We know that Atlanta is playing in London in October 2021. Further breadcrumbs reveal that the opponent will be non-divisional, which only leaves 5 teams to choose from.
The Eagles last played in London in 2018, so they would be the least likely to return.
The Lions, Jets and Washington are all fan ‘duds’ when it comes to drawing a crowd, so it would be tough for the NFL to promote such a lack lustre game.
New England Patriots are no longer the massive draw that they once were under the TB12 dynasty, but they are still a much bigger ticket than any of the other bum teams available.
If you only have one game this season, go out swinging.
Bring back a 28-3 iconic Super Bowl game for UK fans to enjoy.
It’s doubtful that any foreign fans will be attending the game, so let’s make Britain ‘New England’ again.
That’s our two cents anyway.

Green Bay for $200

Aaron Rodgers tests out a new career path this week, as he hosts Jeopardy for 2 whole weeks. A huge Jeopardy ‘nerd’, Rodgers will be looking to open up his lexicon and fan base by hosting the nighttime quiz for a fortnight.
Don’t worry Packers fans, he won’t be leaving you…this season.

AB Gone

Antonio Brown is ready to get paid! Again.
After finally winning a ring (thanks to the generosity of TB12), Brown is ready to hit the free market and see what he’s worth.
This ageing and outspoken player might find that the turf is a bit frosty in the league, especially given that he still has some pending lawsuits lined up every month.
While Brown doesn’t exude the same drama that he did in his younger Steelers years, his petulance is far too advanced for a man of his age.
It’s nice to get paid, but if the team can only muster 4 wins in a season, was it worth it?

Sam Darnold

Darnold was traded to the Panthers just after this podcast was recorded.
This will have some big implications for the Jets, and their 2021 Draft.
By all accounts, it looks like that the Panthers got a great deal off the Jets for Sammy D.
New York has a lot to change, so it’s good to get the bad memories out of the way.

London Stuff

London is going to host a game! Will you need a vaccine passport?  Can you visit from the US? What does that mean for you and I?
We will be exploring all of this in the weeks ahead, and letting you know as soon as we do. We are still hopeful that we will be hosting NFL events this season, just watch this space for more info.

Here’s the podcast:

London Calling Atlanta

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The NFL is returning to London!
Fans will be allowed back in stadiums, a new 17 week season awaits, and Covid has been traded to the Jets for future considerations.
Everything is getting back to normal right?
Uh, sure.
We don’t know a lot, but we do know that London is calling Atlanta for a 2021 game.
So who are they playing? When? Where? What’s the deal-lio, yo?
We’ll try to break it down for you, as London is calling you Atlanta!

International Games

In your face world! The NFL is coming for you!
American football fans around the globe were giddy like kids at Christmas, after the league announced that we can expect more NFL International games over the next few years.
London’s Tottenham stadium will be the first to host a game in 2021, with more venues and teams to be rolled out later this year.
All 32 teams will have to play at least 1 international game once over the next eight years.
According to the league it will look for  “up to four neutral-site games per year in a country outside the United States will focus initially on Canada, Europe, Mexico, South America and the United Kingdom. In addition, interested clubs can continue to volunteer to play home games internationally, as is currently the case.”
When the games will be played and where is anyone’s guess, but we can make some inferences based on previous outings.

Canada

Canada has previously hosted NFL regular season games, and they did not go well.
Given that Toronto is only a 90 minute journey to Buffalo, it was assumed that Canuckleheaded fans would fill up the stadiums with maple pride.
They did not.
Toronto is a fickle city, and one Ernest Hemingway once described as a ‘fistulated asshole.’
If the Blue Jays are doing well, the Maple Leafs show a semblance of pulse, or a waft of warm air hits Ontario in October, Canadians make other plans.
Previous NFL games were beset by fan apathy, low turn out, snarky broadcasters, and truly bad playing conditions.
The Rogers Centre/ Skydome is a decaying downtown edifice whose turf has ruined more professional athletes careers than a Kardashian.
The Rogers family themselves are snarky snake billionaires with a grasp on the throat of Canadian media, and none too pleased with the NFL for turning down previous franchise opportunities.
If Canada does host NFL games, they will need to not be held in Toronto or Vancouver, where fans already have a taste of ‘American sports.’


South America

When the NFL says ‘South America’, we assume that the NFL means ‘Mexico’, given that Mexico has hosted previous NFL games.
Although Mexico is considered to be in North America, you can forgive sports fans for not giving a hoot about geography.
It’s highly unlikely that South America would host anything other than a vaccination drive, as Covid has torn through the region like Derek Henry playing ‘Red Rover.’
One can’t imagine Argentina, Peru or Brazil hosting a regular season NFL game given the security, testing, and kidnapping threats that exist in those regions.
Previous Mexico City NFL games have been well attended, but also fraught with peril.
These games cost the NFL the most in safety and security of ANY NFL game, not to mention the flurry of items tossed on the the field and hundreds of laser pointers aimed at QBs eyes.
Only the Raiders seem to do well in Mexico, which is fitting.

Europe

To Americans, Europe is a big country.
Not only did they save it in WW2, but they also kicked the Germans out of it.
They might be totally insulted to learn that not only IS Germany IN Europe, but that the Germans may actually host an NFL game.
Germany has a massive NFL fanbase, and it truly is their time to host a game.
American football has been a popular sport in the country since American GI’s were stationed there after the war. The game grew in appeal, and Germany boasts one of the best American football development program on the continent.
The only issue that might interfere is time. With a 6 hour gap between the states, a 1pm EST game wouldn’t kickoff until 7pm in Germany, making it a bit of a later prospect.
The games will still be awesome, and it will be great to see what Germany can offer as hosts.

UK

The UK has established itself as the de-facto home of the NFL outside of Europe, so what’s changed?
Covid obviously, but there is also a Wembley issue.
The Jacksonville Jaguars contract with Wembley has expired, and they also lost their pitch for a new downtown stadium. Will Khan take out his wrath, or find a new way?
By all accounts Wembley is keen to reopen the NFL despite Tottenham making the stadium push for future games.
Other stadiums that host Liverpool and Manchester United are also keen to refit their homes to potentially fit the NFL in for future years.
While the NFL may never establish another franchise in the UK, we may start to see games hosted around the country, as well as Scotland and Ireland in the mix.

With the big game announced for 2021, loads of questions have emerged.
When will the Falcons being playing at Tottenham, and who?
We have our thoughts here.

Which Sunday?

October 2021 has 5 potential Sundays to offer as one of the London games.
Previously, the NFL has tried to keep the International Games earlier in the season to balance out the byes, and fit the games within the busy hosting schedule of the city of London.
October 2021 has Sunday October 3, 10, 17, 24 & 31st as options for the London games, with each Sunday having a 20% chance of hosting the game.
With Week 1 of the NFL due to begin on Sun Sept 12th, that would make October 3rd part of the Week 4 schedule. Given Covid, rules, travel and more this might be more unlikely.
One of the biggest factors in choosing the date of the London game is time.
Clocks ‘fall back’ in October, with the US and UK having a gap of about a week when the clocks are only 4 hours apart.
The NFL has capitalised on this in the past, as this hour means a huge difference to the body clocks, and broadcast clocks of international timings.
UK clocks change on Sun Oct 31st, and US clocks on Sun Nov 7th. This means that there would be only a 4 hour gap on the 31st, making it the most likely date to host a game.
Sunday October 31st is Week 8 in the NFL, which is a tad late for a UK game, so we are not keen on it, especially with Diwali (Indian Festival of Lights) set to take over central London less than a week later.
Prediction: Sunday October 17th (Week 6)

Atlanta Opponent

The Atlanta Falcons will be playing a ‘non-divisional’ opponent for their 2021 game, which means that there are only 5 teams that they could potentially play.
These teams are Detroit, New England, NY Jets, Washington or Philly, each with an even 20% chance of being chosen.
Detroit last visited London in 2015, where they took an epic beating at the hands of Alex Smith and the Chiefs. The Lions aren’t really an international fan draw, and with so many changes in the organisation, an unlikely pairing for this match.
Washington is rebuilding not only as a team, but also as a franchise. With owner Dan Snyder under the microscope for being a bit naughty, it’s unlikely that the league would want him to travel internationally, where the foreign press would be keen to address his ‘reputation’.
The Eagles were only here in 2018, with Carson Wentz carving out a win over the hapless Jaguars. Very doubtful that they would be back here again this soon.
New York Jets and New England Patriots are the other teams that could be London bound.
Jets owner (and former UK Ambassador-Woody Johnson) is back home & working in the vaccine factory, so he might be inclined to not let his team back to his former home. The Jets last played in London in 2015, beating the Dolphins in a Wembley stinker.
Bill Belichick and the boys haven’t played in London since 2015, when a guy named Tom Brady was still at QB.
The Patriots have shed a lot of weight, personnel and allure as of late, with the team missing their first playoffs in decades.
Given that they are the only team with ‘England’ in their name, they would be odds on favourites to make the crowds happy, and sell tickets.
Boston is the closest US city to fly to London, so that 5 hours might seem like nothing compared to West coast jaunts.
After all, who wouldn’t want a Super Bowl matchup in England?
Let’s do it!
Prediction: New England Patriots

Full Prediction

We think the 2021 NFL London will be…the Atlanta Falcons hosting the New England Patriots at Wembley on Sunday October 17th, 2021

In closing, we have no idea what is really going to happen.
Covid is still on the field, and despite vaccine efforts, we still don’t know what the NFL could look like for this season.
Commissioner Goodell has promised that we will have ‘100% capacity’ at all stadiums, but that could be about as accurate as our predictions.

Watch this space as we will have full details on who is playing the Atlanta Falcons here as soon as we know it.  London is calling Atlanta!

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.