It’s that time of year again when the American game packs up and heads across the Atlantic to serve up another triple header of NFL action in Britain.
There are three more matches scheduled for October, two at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and one at Wembley, and this year an intriguing mix of teams and players are taking part.
We have one of only two undefeated teams left in the NFL, along with a team that was everyone’s favorite in the preseason, a rebuilding powerhouse and a prolific Super Bowl winner and also the regulars from London who have another double header to play.
British fans will see one of the biggest names in sport, the iconic Aaron Rodgers, play in London for the second and likely final time, while the future of the NFL will be represented by number one draft pick Caleb Williams.
Add in former top draft pick Trevor Lawrence and there’s plenty of NFL quality on display in London this year.
What are the schedule and start times of the 2024 NFL London games?
The Minnesota Vikings, one of only two undefeated teams in the league, will kick us off against one of the sport’s iconic quarterbacks and four-time MVP Rodgers and his New York Jets.
The Jacksonville Jaguars will play back-to-back games in London, first as the designated away team against the rebuilding Chicago Bears and their new star QB Williams.
After the two games at Tottenham, the Jags will resume hosting duties for the visit of the New England Patriots – who are also in a massive rebuilding phase.
All matches start at 2:30 PM BST.
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Sunday, October 6: New York Jets vs. Minnesota Vikings (Tottenham)
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Sunday, October 13 – Jacksonville Jaguars v Chicago Bears (Tottenham)
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Sunday, October 20 – New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (Wembley)
New York Jets vs. Minnesota Vikings
Both Rodgers and the Jets will arrive in London licking their wounds after an ugly 10-9 home loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday dropped them to 2-2 on the season.
Robert Saleh’s side have a great defense but are mediocre in attack so far, and they really need to click when the pressure increases.
Now fit after his Achilles surgery, Rodgers was slated to lead this team on a big Super Bowl push in what could be his final season. The pressure will continue to mount until they figure it out.
On the other hand, things could hardly be better for the 4-0 Minnesota Vikings, the only other undefeated team in the NFL besides defending champions the Kansas City Chiefs.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell lost new QB JJ McCarthy to injury in the preseason, but Sam Darnold has had a remarkable renaissance after previously being statistically one of the worst quarterbacks during his previous six seasons.
Darnold was drafted third overall by the Jets but never really got any support and with now Justin Jefferson, the league’s best receiver, to throw to, an elite running back in Aaron Jones and a solid defense – although he only after four games an early and very surprising MVP candidate.
Darnold leads the league with 11 touchdown passes and would love nothing more than to stick one to his former team – and put headliner Rodgers on the podium in the process.
Star players: Aaron Rodgers & Justin Jefferson
Jets fans and general NFL fans alike are eager to catch a glimpse of the 40-year-old Rodgers in action, as one of the league’s greats is in the twilight of his remarkable career.
Rodgers is listed as questionable on the Jets injury report, but all indications are that he will play in London for a second time following the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the New York Giants in 2022.
He has shown glimpses of his old self, especially when throwing to Garrett Wilson, but he has also at times looked back to his years when he was chased by elite, young NFL defenders. Rodgers will undoubtedly want to do a show in London.
It’s hard to put into words how good Jefferson is and not just because of the numbers he produces, but because of the highlights he makes that no one else can.
And he also makes the most of every catch. To illustrate, he has the same number of catches as Wilson this season (20), but instead of 191 yards and one touchdown for the Jets man, Jefferson has turned them into a league-leading 358 yards and four touchdowns.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Chicago Bears
We see two number one overall draft pick QBs battling it out in London as Caleb Williams heads into town with the Chicago Bears to take on Trevor Lawrence’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Bears built a strong offense around Williams, but it hasn’t quite taken off yet. There have been some glimpses already, but as the season progresses, they’ll want to see more.
Being the only team left to win in the NFL wasn’t exactly in the script when the Jaguars handed Lawrence a huge new deal over the summer and moved on from the head coach for nine of their past 10 games dating back to last season. Doug Pederson firmly in the hot seat.
It’s not just the defeats, but also the performances that are worrying: throwing away leads against Miami and Houston and excelling on national television in Buffalo.
Pederson hopes a return to London can lead to a recovery as the Jags won both games in Britain last season to start a five-match winning streak.
Star players: Travis Etienne & Caleb Williams
Lawrence needs to step up, rookie Brian Thomas and fellow receiver Christian Kirk are dangerous, but Travis Etienne is a player who can make a difference – as he showed in London last year.
The running back had two decent games, but most notably at Tottenham, where he recorded 184 yards and two touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills. He will undoubtedly be happy to be back on that field.
The Bears have veteran Keenan Allen and DJ Moore as their two top receivers, along with rookie Rome Odunze, but let’s be honest: everyone wants to see how Williams performs.
A larger-than-life character off the pitch, he certainly has gamesmanship, and even his biggest mistake of holding onto the ball for too long makes for thrilling viewing.
New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
For the Jags’ “home game” at Wembley Stadium, they will host six-time Super Bowl champions the New England Patriots, who may be going through the biggest rebuild the league has ever seen.
With Bill Belichick following Tom Brady out the door, young head coach Jerod Mayo is the man charged with putting the former dynasty back together, but it will be a long and difficult process.
The former Mayo linebacker has fond memories of London, having been part of the Patriots teams that recorded two emphatic wins during their previous visits – albeit with Brady and Belichick still at the helm.
Star players: Keion White & Travon Walker
The Pats need to run the ball a lot, which means Rhamondre Stevenson will get a lot of action, but Mayo is looking to build from defense.
Big defensive end Keion White will be one to watch, not only for the fans but for Trevor Lawrence as well, as White has been causing problems for opposing quarterbacks all season.
And with New England’s offensive problems, Travon Walker could move up with the first overall draft pick in 2022 and have a big game at Wembley, where he had a quarterback sack last year.
How to watch NFL London 2024 on BBC and elsewhere
We’ll have live text commentary on all three NFL London matches on the BBC Sport app and website every game day from around 2pm BST.
After the match there will be the usual match report, reaction and highlights.
All three matches will be broadcast live on Sky Sports and ITV.
NFL London tickets – UK fans lead the way
Tickets are selling like hotcakes for the games in London as interest in the NFL shows no signs of slowing down, and for the second year in a row there will be more fans from Britain than from abroad.
According to data from ticket marketplace viagogo, 53% of ticket sales went to British fans during the three games taking place in London – but there is still broad global appeal with tickets sold to NFL fans from 41 different countries.
But there are big differences in the individual matches that make interesting reading, with the opening game between the Jets and Vikings being 47% British fans and 53% from other countries.
The Bears have attracted the most fans coming from the United States for the second match against the Jags, while the third match with the Patriots at Wembley is the biggest for British fans with 69% of tickets on the viagogo platform going to domestic fans. in Great Britain.
It seems like a perfect storm between regular fans of ‘London’s team’ the Jaguars who play at Wembley every year, but also the attraction of six-time Super Bowl champion New England.
Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are gone, but the massive support those decades of glory attracted still make the Pats one of the most popular teams on the other side of the Atlantic.
