Jaguars' Season Ticket Holders Lose Game Against Defending SB Champs as NFL Beefs Up International Series
By Jason Lisk
The NFL schedule release is coming out throughout the day, for those that don’t want to sit and watch a television program about when games we already knew would be played will actually be played, and where. The NFL did release its International Series games this morning. They will be:
- Oakland vs. Seattle at Tottenham (London) on October 14th on FOX
- LA Chargers vs. Tennessee at Wembley (London) on October 21st standalone in morning on CBS
- Jacksonville vs. Philadelphia at Wembley (London) on October 28th standalone in morning on NFL Network
- LA Rams vs. Kansas City at Mexico City on November 19th on MNF
The good news for Jaguars fans, who have endured a decade of despair while the team has played an annual game in London for most of it, is that the Jaguars are a young, exciting, and attractive draw now. The bad news is that you won’t be seeing the defending Super Bowl champions at home in one of the best matchups of the NFL season. (The other good news is that Jacksonville does have home games against both Pittsburgh and New England and plays a schedule with lots of notable games).
It’s a clear attempt this year by the NFL to get better matchups for the International Series of games. The combined 23 wins by the Jacksonville Jaguars and Philadelphia Eagles are the most by two teams to meet in London the next year (previous high, 21 by the Bears and Bucs for the 2010 season). There have been only 4 games (out of 21 previous) where both teams had a winning record the year before, and this year there are two. Add in that the Chiefs and Rams will be playing in Mexico City, and it’s hard not to notice that the NFL went out of its way to set up more attractive games outside the United States.