Brazil will finally be getting a taste of American football as the Green Bay Packers are set to play the Philadelphia Eagles on South American soil for the first time. While talking about the game, Jordan Love was excited but worried about the “out of control” things that can happen in Brazil.
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In an interview, Love talked about his plan to cope with playing in a totally new environment. He said:
“It’s just a lot of unknowns, it’s kind of it’s one of those things like I like to say it’s out of our control. So you know just trying to focus on everything I can do to get myself prepared for the game.”
Love revealed that before the game he would likely go to the stadium and “get a feel for the layout and the field” to prepare himself better.
The game will be held in the Corinthians Arena, Sao Paolo which also hosted the opening game of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Following that, Love shared his strategy for managing the lengthy flight ahead. He shared his intention to spend most of the 10+ hour journey sleeping and simply “praying that the flight goes quickly.” He even lightheartedly remarked that his engagement trip to Europe provided him with some valuable practice for handling long-haul flights.
The Packers had a strong show in the pre-season and would like to continue winning ways, but Brazil might throw an unexpected challenge at them.
NFL’s Brazil debut might not go as planned
Sao Paulo is battling ‘air quality’ issues as the NFL gets ready for South America. A massive wildfire in the nearby Amazon areas has significantly deterited the air quality of Sao Paulo and the government has raised a smog alarm for the first time in the last 17 years.
The NFL didn’t comment on the situation but it’s unlikely that the league will put its players’ health in jeopardy. If the situation remains the same, they might need to put their international expansion plans on hold and cancel the game. However, the local authorities battling the fire claim that the situation is improving.
Last season, the Packers faced a slow start but resurged in the later part of the season to grab a playoff berth. They won a playoff game against the Cowboys but fell to the 49ers.
The Eagles, on the other hand, won 10 out of their first 11 games but fumbled the ball in the latter half of the season and ended the campaign with a disappointing 32-9 loss against the Bucs in the Wild Card Round.
