WEEK 4 PREVIEW: NFL HEADS TO LONDON |
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| Welcome to the latest outing to the Endzone, our weekly NFL newsletter that swaps six points for NFL chat - and lots of it. So we are heading into Week 4, or technically have already headed into it after the game last night, and what a week it is set to be.
Hopefully there will be less injury drama than last night's match between the Bengals and the Dolphins as the health of Tua Tagovailoa took centre stage again. Fresh from injuring his back against the Bills last time out - a problem that initially looked like a head injury, what with Tua stumbling around afterward - Tagovailoa was once again pulled from the game due to worrying head and neck injuries.
Questions will now need to be asked how he was allowed to play against the Bengals at all, and hopefully no long-term damage was done. Either way, it was not a good look for the Dolphins – or the NFL. It is a shame as the game against the Bengals was one that had a lot of promise going into it, but the exit of Tua is it will be remembered for.
Now on to London...
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| There are some quality games on the slate this week: Eagles versus the Jaguars; Ravens versus the Bills; the Bucs v the Chiefs... but for UK-based fans, there is only one game that stands out - the London game. The Saints v the Vikings will be the 31st time two teams have travelled to the capital for an NFL, and the fifth game to be taking place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Both the Saints and Vikings have made the trip before - both in 2017 - and are 2-0 in their travels to England in the past. The Saints first came in 2008 and beat the Chargers 37-32 and then they followed that up in 2017 by beating the Dolphins 20-0. Meanwhile the Vikings made their first trip over to London in 2013, beating the Steelers 34-27 and it 2017 they followed that up by beating the Browns 33-16.
The two teams have changed a lot since that time, and both go into this game on the back of a mixed start to the 2022 campaign. The Saints got off hot with a win over the Falcons, but have followed that up with defeats against the Bucs and the Panthers. Meanwhile the Vikings beat the Packers to open the season, but then lost to the Eagles and then narrowly beat the Lions last time out.
At the time of writing this there is a strong chance that the Red Rifle, Andy Dalton, could be leading the Saints out in this one as Jameis Winston is suffering from an injury – a shame for those who like watching defences shine as last time out in London with the Bucs Winston threw for five, yes FIVE, picks against the Panthers.
Despite injuries to the likes of Saints duo Winston and Michael Thomas, and the fact that Dalvin Cook is carrying an injury for the Vikings, this game promises to be fun for those making the trip to North London as it does have some of the best players in the NFL today still playing in it.
Alvin Kamara, Justin Jefferson, Marshorn Lattimore, Tyrann Mathieu, Danielle Hunter, and Cameron Jordan are all superstars in their respective positions so it should be a close game - and being in London should help that as five of the last eight games in the capital have been decided by one score or less.
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| Aside from the match-up in London there is also some action going on over the pond, with the game between the Bills and the Ravens standing out as one of the biggest of the week. The Ravens are flying right now and they have probably the most devastating player in the NFL in their ranks in quarterback Lamar Jacskon.
It doesn't matter if he is running the ball or throwing it; Jackson is finding a way to make fools of NFL defences early on this season, and a Bills defence that is hurting in the secondary right now (they had to bring in Xavier Rhodes in off the street this week to help out) should only aid Jackson this week. On the flip-side the Bills are no mugs on offence themselves and in Josh Allen they have a quarterback who is every-bit as dominating as Jackson.
This game should bring fireworks and plenty of points to boot, but with the Dolphins losing out this morning, a win for the Bills would have them right back in the hunt in the AFC East.
Another game that has two high-performing quarterbacks facing off this weekend is between the Eagles and the Jags, or the 'Doug Pederson revenge game' as it is known. The Jags have progressed through their rebuild at lightspeed so far this season, showing an ability to get points on offence and an ability to cause havoc on defence – much the same as their opponents this weekend.
Jalen Hurts has put himself in the running for MVP according to early-season bookmakers odds and his ability to make plays with both his legs and his arm is leaving defences with no answer. This is another game that has shoot-out potential.
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