NFL London Games are Out, MNF Double Headers are In
The NFL London Games are played out, they're too early in the day, and the league should focus on MNF double headers.
NFL London Games are out, Monday Night Football double headers are in.
Simply put, the NFL London Games hurt the experience of real, American football fans.
The league should stop trying to make American football a thing across the globe and take care of their fans at home.
NFL London Games Hurt "The Shield"
According to Pro Football Sports Network, "The shield profile of the logo is said to represent the league’s commitment to the highest standard of sporting entertainment."
If that's true, what the league is doing with NFL London games is hurting their $23 billion dollar business.
Here's why:
- NFL London Games are too early in the morning in the United States.
- They require teams to travel crazy distances.
- The product on the field sometimes suffers.
- UK fans still treat NFL football like a niche sport.
NFL London Games are Too Early
This is probably the biggest and most important issue with the London games. Here in the Mountain Time Zone—undefeated in TV-watching time—the Broncos and Jets played at 7:30 a.m. That's 9:30 a.m. on the East Coast and freakishly early 6:30 a.m. on the West Coast.
If you're a parent, you're already up, sure. But that doesn't make it a great time to watch football.
A family member, or multiple might still be asleep. You can't yell and cheer, meaning you can't really enjoy the game like you regularly can.
And, beer? Forget about it. Unless you're a real degenerate, beers before noon are a no-go.
It's not like the NFL glorifies drinking beer while watching their sport. Oh, wait. Yes they do.
It's not just that you can't crush a couple cold ones during the game, the early start has implications on your fantasy football team, too.
You better get those rosters set on Saturday nights, and hope none of your players are game-time decisions.
There's a reason why the NFL has three nights of prime-time football per week; it's better to watch the game at night than in the wee early morning hours.
"We have four windows of football today," Scott Hansen said during NFL RedZone, after the Broncos-Jets game. Yeah, but we don't need four windows of football. Three—11 a.m., 2 p.m., and 6:15 p.m.—are just fine, thank you very much.
International Games Mean Crazy Travel Distances
The Broncos had to travel 4,700 miles to London for their game last week. That clearly puts them at a disadvantage compared to the New York Jets, who still had to go 3,500 miles to play a game. They're away from families and cultural norms.
NFL London games being so far away screws up the teams' preparation times, creates distractions, and ends up hurting the product on the field.
It also means real, die-hard NFL fans in the states don't really have an opportunity to go watch their team play in-person.
The On-Field Product Suffers
Professional athletes are creatures of comfort and routine. Getting them out of that routine means their practices and games aren't up to par.
The Broncos-Jets game is certainly one example. Denver barely won 13-11 in a game that was incredibly sloppy from both teams.
Rich Kurtzman
Luckily, English football fans enjoy kicking because there were 13(!) punts in the Broncos-Jets game. Similarly, the Vikings-Browns London Game in Week 5 was a one-score game, with a sequence in the 3rd and 4th quarters that went:
- Punt
- Fumble
- Punt
- Missed field goal
- Punt
- Punt
- Punt
That's just bad football, no matter how you slice it.
"The problem is that the games in London have not been very good,” said Brian T. Smith, US reporter for talkSport in London. He explained that to the Denver Post's Troy Renck.
UK Fans Don't Really Care About NFL Football
Troy Renck was on the ground in London for the Denver Post this week, and he called it a niche sport in England.
Fans in the UK have little rooting interest outside of the Jacksonville Jaguars, who have played there 13 times over the years.
And the NFL regularly sends some of it's sorriest teams to London. The Browns, Jets, and those Jaguars—who are surprisingly good this year—are subjecting the fans to bad football.
It's difficult to get into a sport when you are watching the worst teams and athletes play. See: The MLS.
In: MNF Double Headers
Look, the NFL tried to make the league an international game and it's just not working. They need to stop forcing it and keep the game at home in 'Merica. '
NFL London Games are out. Double header MNF games are in.
NFL London Games are wack. Double header MNF days are great.
— Tariff Tim and the “Groceries” (@sportsballitics.bsky.social) 2025-10-14T00:05:09.570Z
The league should do away with London Games and give us more Monday Night double headers.
Week 2, last week, and this week each feature MNF double headers and they are great because two football games is better than one.
Rewind to Week 2 and the Buccaneers-Texans game was great, while the Chagers-Raiders was not. Playing two games on the same night, with an hour time difference, means there's a better chance of seeing good football.
People often complain that Super Bowls aren't good games. That's because when you look at NFL games from a 30,000-foot view, there are many bad games throughout the year. You just never know when they're going to be.
Last week we had Bills-Falcons and Bears-Commanders. Everyone expected the first game to be better, but the Falcons completely dominated Buffalo, surprisingly. Meanwhile, the Commanders came all the way back to take the lead late, only for the Bears to steal the lead. And eventually the win when Washington fumbled the ball away.
Two games also means more action. People love watching NFL RedZone because there's always something exciting happening.
When there are two games on at once, fans have a better chance to find something to cheer for rather than otherwise boring parts of the game.
Week 7's MNF double header features the Bucs at the Lions, which should be a great game. And the second kickoff is Texans-Seahawks, which is a total tossup.
There's a better chance of seeing a great game on Monday than there is tonight when the Steelers face the Bengals. Hey, we got three great TNF games in a row, so tonight might see it revert back to bad football.
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