St. Louis Takes on New England in Old England for Week Eight of the NFL

For the second time in four years, the New England Patriots travel to England for the NFL's International Series. This Sunday they take on the St. Louis Rams in Wembley Stadium. Today we got our first look at the Rams practicing in St. Albans, where Arsenal trains. Something just looks off to me about the Rams practicing in that foggy, gray, bleak weather.

I get why the NFL does this; globalization of the brand, growing the fan base, trying to get a team in London permanently (despite it being the National Football League), but I'm still not a big fan of them having regular season games across the pond. The two teams who do play in the game get their bye following this game, so I suppose they get over the trip before their next game. 

The game always sells out, so I'm sure the NFL's plan is working. In the early years it seemed like the fans were more excited to see the kickoff and field goals more than anything else, but they seem to be coming around.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft is one of the main proponents of having a team permanently in England, but I think that's a bad idea. The travel alone would be a nightmare, and what if the England team made the playoffs and had a home game?  Teams would be getting screwed in the most crucial part of the season. That said, it's probably going to happen. If it does, send the Jaguars over there, and the playoff thing wouldn't ever be an issue.

NFL.com has a bunch of good stuff on the game and the series.