It’s that time of year again when the American game gears up and crosses the Atlantic to serve up another tripleheader of NFL action in the UK.
Three more matches will take place in October, two at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and one at Wembley, and a fascinating mix of teams and players will take part this year.
We have one of only two undefeated teams in the NFL, with a team that was everyone’s favorite before the season, a rebuilding powerhouse and a prolific Super Bowl winner, plus regular visitors from London playing another doubleheader -head.
British fans will have the opportunity to see one of the biggest names in sport, the iconic Aaron Rodgers, play in London for the second and likely final time, as the future of the NFL is represented by the pick number one pick in the draft, Caleb Williams.
Add in a former first-round pick, Trevor Lawrence, and there’s plenty of NFL goodness on display in London this year.
What is the schedule and kickoff times for NFL London 2024 games?
The Minnesota Vikings, one of only two undefeated teams in the league, kick things off against one of the sport’s iconic quarterbacks and four-time MVP Rodgers and his New York Jets.
The Jacksonville Jaguars play back-to-back games in London again, 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 then return to hosting duties for the visit of the New England Patriots, who are also in a huge rebuilding phase.
All matches will kick off at 2:30 p.m. BST.
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Sunday, October 6 – New York Jets vs. Minnesota Vikings (Tottenham)
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Sunday, October 13 – Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Chicago Bears (Tottenham)
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Sunday October 20 – New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (Wembley)
New York Jets vs. Minnesota Vikings
Rodgers and the Jets will arrive in London in fine form and licking their wounds after an ugly 10-9 home loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday dropped them to 2-2 for the season.
Robert Saleh’s team has a great defense, but is just ordinary offensively so far, and they really need that spark as the pressure starts to mount.
Now healthy after his Achilles surgery, Rodgers was supposed to lead this team on a big push to the Super Bowl in what could be his final season. The pressure will continue to mount until they figure this out.
On the other hand, things could hardly be better for the 4-0 Minnesota Vikings, the only other undefeated team in the NFL alongside the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell lost his new quarterback JJ McCarthy in preseason to injury, but Sam Darnold has enjoyed a remarkable renaissance after being one of the worst quarterbacks statistically over the course of its previous six seasons.
Darnold was drafted third overall by the Jets, but never really received any support and with now the league’s best receiver in Justin Jefferson, an elite running back in Aaron Jones and a solid defense – even so only four games in, he’s a very surprising precocious player and MVP candidate.
Darnold leads the league with 11 touchdown passes and would like nothing better than to stick one with his old team – and make headlines, Rodgers, in the process.
Star players: Aaron Rodgers and Justin Jefferson
Jets fans and general NFL fans will want to get a glimpse of the 40-year-old Rodgers in action as one of the league’s greatest 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 the second time, following the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the New York Giants in 2022.
He showed glimpses of his old self, especially when throwing to Garrett Wilson, but at times looked back to his years when he was chased by elite young NFL defenders. Rodgers will no doubt want to put on a show in London.
It’s hard to put into words how good Jefferson is and not just for the numbers he produces, but also for some of the more highlight-reel catches he makes that no one else can.
And he also gets the most out of every take. For illustration, he has the same number of catches this season as Wilson (20), but instead of 191 yards and a touchdown for the Jets man, Jefferson turned them into 358 yards and four touchdowns at the top of the league.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Chicago Bears
We see two number one draft QBs face off in London as Caleb Williams comes to town with the Chicago Bears to take on Trevor Lawrence’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Bears have built a solid offense around Williams, but it hasn’t really taken off yet. There have been glimpses, but they’ll want to see more as the season progresses.
Being the only team yet to win in the NFL wasn’t exactly in the script when the Jaguars dealt an exceptional new deal for Lawrence this summer, and losing nine of their last 10 games, dating back to last season, leaves head coach Doug Pederson firmly in the hot seat.
It’s not just the losses, but also the performances that have been concerning, blowing leads against Miami and Houston and being shown on national television in Buffalo.
Pederson hopes a return to London can spark a recovery, as the Jags won both games at UK last season to begin a five-game winning streak.
Star players: Travis Etienne and 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 particularly in Tottenham where he recorded 184 total yards and two touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills. He will no doubt be delighted to find this land again.
The Bears have veteran Keenan Allen and DJ Moore as two top receivers, along with rookie Rome Odunze, but let’s be real: Everyone wants to see how Williams performs.
He’s a larger-than-life character off the field and certainly has playmaking ability, and even his major flaw of holding the ball too long makes for exciting viewing.
New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
For the Jags’ “home” game at Wembley Stadium, they will host the six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots, who are on perhaps 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 tasked with rebuilding the old dynasty, but it will be a long and difficult process.
The former Mayo linebacker has fond memories of London, as he was part of the Patriots teams that posted two emphatic victories in their previous visits – although Brady and Belichick were still at the helm.
Star players: Keion White and Travon Walker
The Pats have to run the ball a lot, which means Rhamondre Stevenson will get a lot of action, but Mayo is trying to build from defense.
Big defensive end Keion White will be one to watch, not only for fans but also for Trevor Lawrence, as White has caused problems for opposing quarterbacks all season.
And with New England’s offensive woes, 2022 first-round draft pick Travon Walker could step in and have a big game at Wembley — where he suffered a quarterback sack last year.
How to follow NFL London 2024 on the BBC and elsewhere
We’ll have live text commentary on all three NFL London games on the BBC Sport app and website from around 2:00 p.m. BST each match day.
After the match there will be the usual match report, reactions and highlights.
All three matches will be shown live on Sky Sports and ITV.
NFL London Tickets – British Fans Lead the Way
Tickets are going like hotcakes for the London games as the appetite for the NFL shows no signs of slowing down and for the second year in a row fans in the UK will outnumber those from abroad .
According to data from ticket marketplace viagogo, 53% of ticket sales have been to UK supporters for the three matches taking place in London – but there is still a broad global appeal, with tickets being sold to fans of the NFL from 41 different countries.
But there are major differences in the individual games that make for interesting reading, with the opening game between the Jets and Vikings being 47% fans from the UK and 53% from elsewhere.
The Bears attracted the most fans from the US for the second game against the Jags, while the third game involving the Patriots at Wembley was the biggest for UK fans with 69% of tickets on the viagogo platform going to national fans. in the United Kingdom.
It seems like a perfect storm between the regular fans of “Team London”, the Jaguars who play at Wembley every year, but also the attraction of six-time Super Bowl champions New England.
Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are gone, but the enormous support attracted by those decades of glory still makes the Pats one of the most popular teams across the Atlantic.
