As the number of NFL games staged in London reaches an incredible quarter-century, Charlie Mullan reviews number 25 before throwing a few numbers our way…

Congratulations to the Oakland Raiders on winning the first NFL International Series game of the 2019 season. The Raiders beat the Bears 24-21 thanks to Josh Jacobs’ second TD run of the game from two yards with just under two minutes to play. Charlie Mullan takes a closer look at the 25th game played in London by breaking down the numbers.

A crowd of 60,463 witnessed the first ever NFL game to be played in Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium, a number which took the total attendance through the two million barrier for all 25 games played in London since the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins splashed down at Wembley in 2007. The total attendance now stands at 2,037,738, and those in attendance on White Hart Lane on the opening Sunday in October were treated to a great game, which went to the wire with Chicago QB Chase Daniel intercepted and sacked on the Bears’ last two possessions to secure the win for Oakland.

For only the second time in NFL London Games, the first quarter ended scoreless, replicating the void that preceeded the Saints beating the Dolphins 20-0 in Game 19 at Wembley in 2017. But the Tottenham crowd didn’t have to wait much longer for the first score as Josh Jacobs took a hand-off from Derek Carr and weaved to a 12-yard TD on the first play of the quarter. Once the stalemate had been breached, the Raiders went on to score a further 10 points without reply to lead 17-0 at half-time, and seemingly hand the Bears a mountain to climb if they were to leave the capital with a win.

Only two teams had won an NFL game in London after trailing at half-time: Detroit were 21-0 down to Atlanta in Game 10, but managed to keep the Falcons scoreless after the interval while putting up 22 points of their own to complete a famous comeback; and the Vikings rescued a 33-16 win from a losing position after spotting Cleveland a narrow 13-12 advantage in Game 21 at Twickenham two years ago. The common denominator in those two results? Both were achieved by NFC North teams, giving Chicago something to cling to. The Bears defense finally turned up to play at the start of the second half, forcing two punts and recovering two fumbles which swung the momentum their way. The offense responded in kind, scoring 21 unanswered points to start the fourth quarter leading by four, including a brace for Allen Robinson on touchdown passes from Daniel, the wideout scoring for a third successive London game after snagging TDs for Jacksonville in both 2015 and 2016. He now has four in total in London games.

When Cordarrelle Patterson downed a punt on Oakland’s three-yard line midway through the final quarter, it left the Raiders a long march if they were to retake the lead, but Carr drove his team a series-high 97 yards down the field and, thanks to a running into the kicker penalty and a fake punt, Oakland took control of the game and the clock. Jacobs finished the game with 123 rushing yards from 23 carries – the sixth highest tally in a London game – and it was fitting that the rookie rounded off the scoring with a leaping two-yard effort that was also the 50th rushing touchdown in the history of the International Series. Jacobs also became the seventh player to run for two TDs in a UK game, but the first since Jacksonville’s Denard Robinson did so in Game 11.

The Raiders’ running game continued to take the pressure off Carr and the defense stood firm to secure a famous with for the silver-and-black, leaving the quarterback to note that he no longer cares about individual stats and fantasy football numbers, preferring to savour victory with the team. This was Carr’s third game in London, and he has thrown for just one touchdown – back in his first visit, in 2014, against the Dolphins.

The average number of points scored in London Games prior to this 25th match-up was 45.3, and the Bears and Raiders fittingly combined for 45 this time around, as Oakland improved their record to 3-2 while pegging the Bears back to the same numbers. The three-point winning margin was the seventh time that a London Game had been decided by three points or less, including the 27-27 tie between Washington and Cincinnati in 2016.

The designated ‘home’ team is now 11-13-1 in London, giving the Buccaneers – the designated ‘home’ team when they face the Panthers in an NFC South divisional match-up at the same stadium – something to aim for.

Key NFL London numbers:

2,037,738 – Total attendance for all 25 NFL London games
0 – Scoreless first quarter was the second in the Series history after Saints/Dolphins in Game 19
123 – Oakland’s RB Josh Jacobs’ 123 rushing yards was the sixth most in a game
26 – 26 carries by Jacobs is third most in an NFL London game
50 – Jacobs’ second TD run was the 50th rushing TD in NFL London games
2 – Jacobs’ is seventh player and first since Denard Robinson to run for two TDs
3 – Chicago WR Allen Robinson has caught TD passes on his last three visits to London
250 – Robinson’s stats from three London games are: 18 catches, 250 yards and four TDs to lead the series in catches and yards and sit level with Frank Gore on four TDs
21 – Chicago set a record for points scored in the third quarter with 21
71 – Tarik Cohen’s 71-yard third quarter punt return for Chicago is the longest in an NFL London game
45 – The average points per game before this game was 45.3. The Bears and Raiders scored 45 points
32 – The longest plays of the game were 32-yard passes from Chicago QB Chase Daniel to Anthony Miller in the third quarter and to Robinson in the fourth
78.13 – Oakland QB Derek Carr is now first (78.13% Game 25) and third (74.19% Game 22) on passing accuracy in London games
97 – The previous longest TD drive was 95 yards by Philadelphia in Game 24, but the Raiders eclipsed that with their 97-yard drive to win the game
3 – This was the seventh London game decided by three points or less, including the 27-27 tie between Washington and Cincinnati in 2016