Spoiler NFL teams you should support based on their Premier League equivalent By The Athletic Staff Sep 4, 2019 The NFL returns this week and the league has never been so big internationally, with four regular-season games in the United Kingdom and one in Mexico. Tottenham’s new stadium — part-funded by the NFL and featuring a retractable field designed for the sport — will host games for the first time, too, and with the likes of Carolina Panthers defensive end Efe Obada and former England rugby winger Christian Wade in the NFL, there is more British interest than ever. But for those who are still relatively new to the sport, it can all be a little … intimidating. There are 32 rosters of 53 players each, eight divisions, two conferences and only one Super Bowl. To help beginners find their team, we asked our UK writers to work out which NFL team you should support based on your favourite Premier League outfit. This is supposed to be fun. Obviously, no direct comparison will ever work, but let us know yours in the comments. Arsenal The Stan Kroenke link would make the Rams an obvious candidate, but anything short of a Super Bowl would be disappointing for the Los Angeles team this season. Arsenal’s ambitions are somewhat lower, but having made a splash in the transfer market, there is renewed ambition, and any parallel for the Gunners has to be a playoff-calibre team. The Houston Texans matched Arsenal’s splashy signing of Nicolas Pépé by trading a haul of draft picks for Laremy Tunsil last week, but on the same day, they also shipped out three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Jadeveon Clowney without replacing him. That left a big hole in the defensive unit, and while they should be exciting with the ball, it will be tougher to stop their opponents from scoring. If that doesn’t sound familiar to Arsenal fans, nothing will. Aston Villa In Dean Smith, Villa have a young coach who is new to the big time and primarily charged with simply keeping his side out of the basement. For Zac Taylor, who took over as coach of the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, the job isn’t too different. It will take a lot of work to make either of these teams into one that can compete with the top teams, but if these young men calling the plays turn out to be as good as their clubs think they are, it is plausible in the next three or four years. Bournemouth The Tampa Bay Buccaneers struggle to get national attention by not being really good and not being really bad, as well as being geographically tucked in a corner. If it wasn’t for Eddie Howe, you feel as if some newspapers might forget Bournemouth exist, snuck away on the south coast and rarely in the relegation fight or European mix. One theory as to why Bournemouth doesn’t really get much pop in the media is because all their players have such, for want of a better word, normal names. Steve Cook, Adam Smith, Charlie Daniels, Justin Smith, David Brooks, Jack Simpson, Simon Francis, Mike Evans, Lewis Cook, Ronald Jones. Well, three of those were Tampa Bay Buccaneers players, but that kinda proves the point. Brighton Having been dire to watch last year, Brighton and the Arizona Cardinals brought in exciting young coaches from other realms to change their fortunes and get the most out of some talented players. It’s not easy to get out of the basement, but progress is all either fan base is expecting this season, and if it’s fun to watch — as it likely will be — that’s a bonus. Burnley Since Stoke’s relegation, London media types have had to turn to Burnley when there is a stereotypical “tough game up north” to be cited. Matt Patricia’s Detroit Lions are about as unfashionable a team as there is in the NFL, and the stylistic similarities with Burnley are obvious. Chelsea The Pittsburgh Steelers are rarely outside the top few teams in the NFL, and the same is applicable to Chelsea. As well as enjoying success in recent decades, these teams were big in the 1970s, when they forged reputations for being somewhat unforgiving (if not outright violent) on the field. Antonio Brown forcing his way out of Pittsburgh was fairly reminiscent of Diego Costa’s departure from west London last year, but the teams took the high road and moved on. They’ve since promoted younger stars, so this might be a season of transition for both. While neither team is among the favourites this year, you’d be mad to count them out. Crystal Palace For Palace and the Carolina Panthers, the story is the same as last year: a standout superstar whom they rely upon to make the difference but a solid defensive unit that will ensure they are never in too much trouble. Wilfried Zaha and Cam Newton take some criticism, but they are brilliant players and the faces of their respective franchises. On the sidelines, Ron Rivera and Roy Hodgson are wily veterans who are very much known quantities. There are murmurs their owners might make a coaching change after this season, but that will always come with risk when you’re leaving behind such safe pairs of hands. Everton Everton and the Chicago Bears should be upwardly mobile this year given the level of talent they’ve managed to stack up. And yet doubts that feel hard to shift remain over these teams. In Chicago and in Liverpool, you will find two demanding fan bases of genuine blue-collar support, but there is always a more glamorous rival just up the road who is more likely to win it all. That seems to be the case again this year for each club. Leicester City To find a team comparable to Leicester, you must find a team that has recently both been in the doldrums and won the Super Bowl for the first time in a tale of almost unrivalled legend. Which could only be the New Orleans Saints, whose Lombardi Trophy a few years after Hurricane Katrina remains one of the most incredible stories in NFL history. Liverpool The Kansas City Chiefs and Liverpool have spent the last couple of years putting together an explosive roster capable of blowing away their rivals. While Liverpool was unfortunate to come up against one of the greatest sides in Premier League history as Manchester City pipped them to the title, the Chiefs found similar misfortune against the New England Patriots after being the best team during the regular season. Arrowhead Stadium is also arguably the best home advantage in the NFL, while Anfield’s famous atmosphere is known throughout the football world. Whether either of these sides can get over the hump domestically and end a championship drought is yet to be seen, but the signs are promising. Manchester City In terms of dominance alone, City has to be paired up with the New England Patriots. Both teams have developed that creeping inevitability — it is not if they end up winning but when. Critics of Manchester City would point to the club’s financial chicanery, while Tom Brady accepting below-market contracts has arguably been the Pats’ most significant competitive advantage over the past decade. And if it isn’t Brady’s contract, it’s Bill Belichick, the greatest coach of the NFL’s modern era and a man with the sort of legend surrounding his name that you imagine Pep Guardiola will no doubt retire with when he decides to call it a day. Manchester United World-famous, phenomenally rich and keen to let everyone know it but suffering a slump after unrivalled dominance in the 1990s? It’s hard to know if you’re talking about the Dallas Cowboys or Manchester United. Newcastle United A team that has never won the big prize but did at least pick up some silverware during the middle of the 20th century, Newcastle draw parallels with the Buffalo Bills. The geographic similarities are clear, too, with both teams being tucked away in the northeastern corner and suffering some of the more extreme weather conditions seen in the league. Newcastle and the Bills came close to tasting the ultimate glory in the 1990s but fell agonisingly short. While the Bills avoided a takeover by Donald Trump earlier this decade, the Magpies got an owner who is just as popular with fans. Norwich City The Canaries are back in the big time after smartly adding talented players for cheap and then plucking an inexperienced coach from obscurity to lead them forward. Titans general manager Jon Robinson has some big roster decisions to make, but the early signs are that coach Mike Vrabel could be a rising star. Both teams are owned by women, too. Sheffield United Chris Wilder’s overlapping centre backs have had plenty of column inches already this season because they’re a genuine tactical innovation. If you want something similar in the NFL this season, there are a few options, but Baltimore’s back-to-the-future offense is going to be a must-watch with Lamar Jackson at its heart. Jackson would be a brilliant running back even if he couldn’t throw the ball, but it turns out he’s pretty good at that, too, so when you have the option to use his legs, throw it to a new, explosive cast of receivers or hand it to Mark Ingram, things suddenly get interesting. Nobody wants to visit these two teams this year. Southampton It’s been a long time since they tasted success, but Southampton has lost Cup finals and the San Francisco 49ers have lost Super Bowls in recent years. This season there is no talk of winning trophies at St. Mary’s or Santa Clara, but with two young, engaging coaches dragging their teams upwards, there is plenty to look forward to. Tottenham Hotspur The exciting young coach, the wealth of talent and the agonising defeat at the final hurdle last year: These will all sound familiar to fans of both the Los Angeles Rams and Tottenham. Both clubs have moved in recent years, both rely on a blond guy pulling the strings and both never fail to be entertaining. The question hanging over them is whether they can get over the bitter end to last season and taste sweet victory. Watford The Jacksonville Jaguars have recently felt the thud back to earth after overachieving and setting high expectations. Watford should recover from a poor start, but the early-season form is concerning, and the Jags have a tough slate to begin with, too. West Ham United The New York Jets have had little success for 50-odd years, but back in the day, they were the talk of the town, the original glamour boys. Joe “Broadway Joe” Namath and Bobby Moore were national stars, and even as the times have gotten harder, these teams’ respective fan bases have stuck with them. From the bustling metropoles, buoyed by an infusion of young talent, there is an outside chance of success this season. For the Hammers, that would be sneaking into Europe. For the Jets, sneaking into the playoffs. Wolves An unfashionable team making strides after hitting rock-bottom, Wolves fans will feel much in common with the Cleveland Browns. While their routes to success have been very different, with the Browns leaning on analytics and Wolves more on agents, the reality is these sides now have expectations, more talented players than they could have dreamed of [/spoler]
some of those are pretty good and spot-on i 1,000,000% am counting out chelsea and the steelers to win the league/super bowl tho. feel quite confident in that claim
Remember this distraction tomorrow while watching Zardes blast a ball into the goalie’s gut or over the cross bar from inside the box
Not my Spurs hatred, stuff like this is absolute bullshit even on Neymar. De Ligt gets a penalty today for the most accidental handball ever but this is cool 100% of the time. Shoving guys into camera pits is fair game too.
Michael Cox’s Iconic Teams of the Decade: Leicester shock the world by doing things their own way https://theathletic.com/1190017/201...eams-of-the-decade-leicester-shock-the-world/
Probably directly related to the quality of the football teams I cheer for, but its week 2 of NCAA and NFL opening weekend but I keep thinking about how I missed not having EPL games this weekend.
Yerry Mina fined £10,000 for making a commercial for a betting website when 10 PL teams have betting sites as their sponsors
gotta say, I think there's a fair bit of difference between sponsorship and individual players being on the payroll for betting sites.
Reposting: ALL TIMES EASTERN Saturday, September 14 Liverpool vs. Newcastle, 7:30am, NBCSN, Universo Spurs vs. Crystal Palace, 10am, NBCSN, Universo Manchester United vs. Leicester, 10am, NBC Sports Gold Brighton vs. Burnley, 10am, NBC Sports Gold Sheffield United vs. Southampton, 10am, NBC Sports Gold Wolves vs. Chelsea, 10am, NBC Sports Gold Norwich vs. Manchester City, 12:30pm, NBC, Universo Sunday, September 15 Bournemouth vs. Everton, 9am, NBCSN Watford vs. Arsenal, 11:30am, NBCSN, Telemundo Monday, September 16 Aston Villa vs. West Ham, 3pm, NBCSN
Didn’t see too much impressive on the City legends end. Kompany being out injured for his own testimonial though is both incredibly sad and incredibly fitting. I don’t know if I could’ve handled a Richards Lescott Kompany Zabaleta back line
I walked right into that. Henry was supposed to play on the EPL side but he was in normal clothes. Vieira was supposed to play for City but didn’t see any pics of him. Arteta played.
Went to Villa after City and I think he just kept getting injured (26 appearances in 3-4 seasons) which just destroyed his progression and is now retired
To be fair, I’ve made the joke 2-3 times over the past few months It never gets old, as long as you mix it up a bit
I, for one, will not complain about that non pen after all the shit Skrtel used to get away with. Especially now that Mane levelled