ISunday, 18:30. Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is talking to reporters in the foul-smelling makeshift press room at Wembley Stadium when he is interrupted by a loud voice from behind a curtain. That's teammate Davante Adams yelling, “Whose house?” delighted after his three touchdowns in the romp Jacksonville Jaguars.
Adams knows what it's like to score a hat-trick at Wembley, but he's less sure what day it is. “Now I feel connected to the country and the people,” he says. With the game starting at 6:30 a.m. at home on the West Coast, the Rams took the lead before most of their fans had settled down on the couch with their morning coffee. Adams and his teammates will soon be heading home 5,400 miles away – just 36 hours after arriving. Welcome to the International Series.
It was a fleeting visit for Sean McVay's team. They arrived in London on Saturday morning and left shortly after the game on Sunday, deciding not to attend any press or open training sessions as soon as they had unpacked their bags. Some wardrobes in their hotel must have remained unopened.
So, was Stafford jet-lagged when he scored his five touchdowns? “Ask me tomorrow,” he says with a smile. “It's been an interesting 24-48 hours, that's for sure. We slept on the flight, treated it like a red eye, and for the first two quarters we thought, “This is great.” It's going to be a wild ride back in Los Angeles tonight. It's just amazing.”
How did McVeigh cope with the transatlantic journey? “It’s in different time zones, but there was no point in wasting mental energy on it,” he says. “We just had to be ready to go. The people behind the scenes deserve a lot of credit for taking over the whole operation and going on a nine-day journey. We're in for a fun, long flight home.” While the effervescent coach cracked jokes with the writers about beating the Rams, his communications director looked like he was about to fall asleep on his feet.
None of the six teams playing in London this month stayed long. Jaguars and Minnesota Vikings flew out on Tuesday evening, giving themselves the opportunity to train in London for three days. The Cleveland Browns arrived Thursday and got the blood flowing with a short practice Friday. The series gives NFL players a glimpse into their travels around the world. “Other sports like baseball are used to it, but it's new to us,” Adams said after his Wembley heroics. “I went to bed at 10.30pm, woke up at 4am, lay in bed for five hours and couldn't get back to sleep. I had to say goodnight to my kids though. It was weird, low energy.”
Despite the crazy nature of their travels, most players enjoy the experience. “Before the schedule comes out, I'll see if it's possible that the teams you're playing can host international games and then hope it's one of your road games,” Vikings veteran AJ Thielen told me between their matches in Dublin and Tottenham. “I was with the Panthers when the schedule came out, and we didn't have any international games that year. Then when I got traded, I thought, oh cool, I'll get two international games.”
When visiting London, teams typically follow a familiar pattern: camping at Hogwarts country hotels on opposite sides of Hertfordshire. This month the Browns New York Jets and the Jaguars were based at Grove near Watford; The Vikings and Broncos chose the Hanbury estate near Ware. They have almost completely taken over the hotels. The convention center became a replica of the Jets' practice facility, with conference rooms, a player lounge, plunge pools, a mandatory weight room and a custom field. Teams travel with so many employees that many of them have to be bused to a nearby hotel every night.
The mood among the non-playing staff is deadly serious. The stern-faced Slings check the guards at every turn. When the Browns were at the Grove, reporters had to go through airport-style security every time they went from the press room to the restroom or to the sandwich and bagel pile. Reporters are only allowed to watch a short clip of the training.
The warm-up was accompanied by energetic music – heavy hip-hop with a hint of grime and a dose of Adele for London flair. The gymnastics were done en masse and in full gear (the only time all 60-odd players were together on the grass) before the groups were separated into their positions, the defensive line 50 yards away from the rest of their teammates. Helmets were not required at the polling stations. Interestingly, half the Vikings team wore Guardian Cap helmets during practice for added protection, but only two players wore them on game day.
Their personalities emerged during the sessions. Trevor Lawrence is clearly the leader for the Jaguars. During high jumps before practice, he jumped several inches higher than all the other players, most of whom were simply going through the motions. Travis Hunter spent more time tying his shoes than stretching, like a truant kid at school avoiding the run across the field before gym class. The lithe Hunter debunks the myth that American football is a game of size.
While Lawrence has impressively powerful legs and tight end Tyler Long is arguably the most eligible player in professional sports, flyweight guards Greg Newsome III and Montaric Brown looked like youth team players admiring first-team drills as they watched the Jags' special teams rehearse kick returns. You might imagine that moving further than the front of the buffet line would be an effort for some linemen—324-pound Halen Saunders is definitely round—but when the coach begins her drills, they sparkle like turning on an electric drill for five seconds of serious impact.
When NFL located in the city, it attracts attention. The Browns were watched by several FA coaches, including Ashley Cole. A week later, several hundred lucky Jaguars fans got to see their heroes up close. Lawrence and Hunter signed dozens of autographs for fans together, but they were very different in the media room. For $60 million, one might have expected more than Hunter's one-sentence soundbites, but Lawrence welcomed the press, listened intently to questions and gave long, thoughtful answers.
Not every player is comfortable in front of a room full of strangers with cameras. Browns rookie Mason Graham looked like a schoolboy called into the principal's office as he awkwardly looked at the media with a glassy look. He admitted that during his first trip from North America, “it was difficult to stay cooped up.” He spent the free day before the game visiting Big Ben. Some Vikings players went to the London Eye. The Rams didn't have time for any of that. But they will all return.
Twenty years after the NFL's first overseas trip, Mexico City has hosted 60 international games. With the Jaguars planning to play as many as four games in London when their stadium is renovated in 2027, it won't take long to get another 60.
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