NFL touches down in London
London Diary
Friday
It's been quite a week building up to Sunday's NFL International Series showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos at Wembley Stadium.
The excitement has been growing with each passing day and it would be fair to say it has been a memorable few days with the NFL circus in full flow. It has certainly felt like an action-packed and colourful week.
I've seen 49ers head coach Mike Singletary attacked by a persistent and brave wasp, Tottenham and England centre-half Michael Dawson attempt to play quarterback (badly) and I've even thrown a pass to the greatest wide receiver in NFL history in Jerry Rice.
The Denver Broncos finally joined the fray on Friday as they held their first practice in the United Kingdom at The Oval. And in keeping with the madness of the week, tight end Daniel Graham and offensive lineman Chris Kuper ended up having an impromptu game of cricket on the famous old ground, taking on Surrey's Arun Harinath and Tom Lancefield.
"It was a lot of fun and I thought I was pretty good," Graham laughed. "I went two for two. Is that how you say it? I got two wickets (I chose not to correct him given his size and obvious strength). Now I just hope they let me keep the bat." (Would you try to take it off him?)
I cannot see Graham and his American compatriots taking to cricket, particularly the Test variety. Most American sports detest the concept of a tie. Legendary Green Bay Packers head coach Vince Lombardi once famously said: "A tie is like kissing your sister."
One can only hope Vince meant that was a bad thing.
The thought of some Tests going five days and still ending in a draw remains an alien concept to our American cousins.
Daniel Graham enjoys the feel of leather on willow at The Oval
Enough of cricket for now. Back to the NFL and the Broncos, who, like the 49ers, need a win in the worst possible way on Sunday after opening the year with two wins and five losses.
Head coach Josh McDaniels was upbeat and positive ahead of the 49ers meeting and feels a win is vital to his club, insisting: "This is an important game for us, no matter where it is being played. It is important to go into the bye week with the momentum of a victory."
McDaniels may still be growing as an NFL head coach but, at the age of 34, I think he should be given time to put things right in Denver. And I think he will be given some leeway as he looks to mould his team into a championship contender.
I interviewed McDaniels on the telephone a couple of weeks back (you can read the results in Sunday's gameday magazine on sale at Wembley Stadium) and I also conducted a quick one on one with him on Friday after his press conference.
I cannot help but be impressed. I know he is fiery and, at times, controversial but he is also passionate, committed and determined to get the very best out of his players.
He learned his trade under one of the greatest coaches in recent NFL history in Bill Belichick and like the New England Patriots boss, McDaniels is keen to stock his roster with players who are smart, tough, versatile and willing to put the team first. Those kind of guys are not always easy to find so building a team like that could take time.
It's also hard to accuse McDaniels of shying away from the big decisions. Since taking charge in Denver, he has traded potential superstars in quarterback Jay Cutler and wide receiver Brandon Marshall.
The real positive from those moves was getting Kyle Orton in exchange for Cutler. The former Chicago Bears passer has been one of the hottest quarterbacks in the NFL in the first half of the season and he is definitely going to be a player to watch on Sunday.
The Broncos are going to take some lumps along the way, but the general feeling is that this 2-5 team has much more potential than the squad that opened the 2009 campaign with six straight wins.
Now the Broncos just need to find a way to turn potential into wins. I think Broncos fans can rest assured that McDaniels has the passion and energy to lead that challenge.
Looking ahead to the weekend, it should be a great Saturday as the NFL is holding a Fan Rally at Trafalgar Square from 1-5pm. Get along if you can. I am especially excited as I will be on stage interviewing some of the biggest names in NFL history in Jerry Rice, Roger Craig, Morten Andersen and Mike Singletary. I will also be chatting on stage with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
If you get yourself along to Trafalgar Square, be sure to say hi.
Week 8 on Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú Radio 5 Live Sports Extra
Greg Brady and Darren Fletcher will call the 49ers-Broncos game from 4:45pm (GMT) for UK users only. on Sunday evening but, schedule permitting, I hope to join them for a decent chunk of time as in previous seasons.
I think we will be witness to a San Francisco victory on Sunday night, although it will be a hard-fought and close affair. Sure, there is uncertainty surrounding the quarterback position following the promotion of Troy Smith, but we have to remember this is a team with plenty of playmakers in Frank Gore, Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree.
And this is a San Francisco team that has surely set some sort of NFL record, losing four of their opening seven games by an average of three points per outing. With a couple of bounces going their way, the Niners could be trotting out at Wembley as proud owners of a 5-2 record. Such is the fine loss between success and failure in today's NFL.
One thing I think we can be assured of on Sunday is that the playoff atmosphere in the stands is now going to be matched by some genuine post-season intensity on the field.
The 49ers and Broncos have left themselves no room for error on Sunday. And that should make for a passionate and hard-hitting encounter worthy of the occasion.
I'll be back on Monday to wrap up the International Series week and look ahead to just how far this international activity can go in the future.
If you're going along to the game, have fun and be sure to make plenty of noise.
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Thursday
I had another one of those 'pinch yourself' moments on Thursday as I got to spend a few hours at Wembley Stadium with a genuine NFL legend in Jerry Rice.
And while we technically didn't have a game of catch on the sidelines, Jerry did need a football for a photo-shoot and shouted for me to toss one over to him.
I didn't need asking twice.
I hurried to the nearest ball, grabbed it nervously and lofted a wobbly pass to the Pro Football Hall of Famer who played 20 years in the NFL, won three Super Bowls and took the wide receiver position to a whole new level with 1,549 catches for 22,895 yards and 197 touchdowns.
Hello, I'm Neil Reynolds. I commentate and write about the NFL. I've followed the NFL since 1983 and covered the league as a journalist and broadcaster since 1991. I also played for 10 years in the British American Football League.
