Rumored London Trip Could Be Boost For Pats
First, Field Yates of ESPN tweeted Thursday that the Atlanta Falcons would be playing one of their home games in London during the 2021 season.
His colleague Mike Reiss then pointed out the Patriots are scheduled to play a road game against Atlanta.
Thus, a rumor that the Pats might be returning to London was born -- and to be honest, it makes sense considering the Pats’ following worldwide and their absence from London since 2012. They also haven’t played outside the U.S. since they played in Mexico City in 2017.
This could benefit the Pats, who already benefited from an extra home game in the upcoming first season of the NFL as a 17-game league. Now they could play a road game at a neutral site, where they’re likely to have more supporters in the stands (assuming London is far enough past the pandemic by the time the NFL arrives in town).
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It’s also worth noting the Pats are 3-0 all-time on non-U.S. soil.
The NFL schedule won’t be out until next month. Until then, here’s a quick look back at the Pats’ previous ventures overseas:
Oct. 25, 2009, Wembley Stadium, London
Patriots 35, Buccaneers 7
Tom Brady completed 23 of 32 passes for 308 yards and three touchdowns -- to Wes Welker, Ben Watson and Sam Aiken. Welker caught 10 passes for 107 yards.
Laurence Maroney led the ground game with 43 yards and a score.
The Pats improved to 3-2 with the win on their way to 10-6.
Oct. 28, 2012, Wembley Stadium, London
Patriots 45, Rams 7
St. Louis scored first and then the Pats rolled, starting with a 19-year scoring pass from Brady to Brandon Lloyd.
The Pats racked up 473 yards, led by Brady’s 23-for-35 for 304 yards and four touchdown throws. Lloyd caught a second touchdown pass and Rob Gronkowski caught two as well. Steven Ridley rushed for 127 yards and one score; Shane Vereen ran for 22 yards and a score.
The Pats improved to 5-3 after winning the second game of what wound up being a seven-game winning streak. The finished 12-4.
Nov. 19, 2017, Azteca Stadium, Mexico City
Patriots 33, Raiders 8
Clearly Brady enjoyed playing outside of the States, as he again starred with 30 of 37 completed passes for three touchdowns. Brandin Cooks was the biggest benefactor this time with 149 receiving yards and one score.
Dion Lewis and Danny Amendola also caught touchdown passes.
The Pats were 8-2, were in the midst of an eight-game winning streak and finished 13-3-0.
Clearly, leaving the country hasn’t hurt the Pats in the regular season. But we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out that none of New England’s international treks came during a Super Bowl championship season.
