3 NFL Storylines to Watch in Week 11
American Fútbol Returns to Mexico
Back in 2005, the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers became the first two NFL teams to compete in a regular-season game held outside the United States. Quickly, spreading international appeal in American football become a priority for the NFL. Three years later began the ongoing series of games held in the United Kingdom. From 2008–2013, the Buffalo Bills played one home game each season in Toronto, Canada.
Last year, the NFL returned to Mexico City for a very competitive Monday night contest that saw the Oakland Raiders edge past the Houston Texans thanks to a 35-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper with under five minutes left in the game.
Oakland will return to Estadio Azteca again, this time taking on the New England Patriots. After disposing of the Denver Broncos in the Mile High City, the Patriots stayed on the road and are practicing this week at the Air Force Academy in Colorado. The reason? It happens to be located an additional 2,000 feet above sea level versus Denver, nearly identical to the elevation of Mexico City.
The Patriots had their first practice at the Air Force Academy today. @CSGazetteSports , @csgazette pic.twitter.com/nONhodbD69
— Jerilee Bennett (@jerileebennett) November 15, 2017
As the Patriots are take advanced measures to prepare, Vegas likes what they see in this game south of the border. The contest carries what is easily the highest over/under (54.5 as of Thursday night), with New England owning a slate-high 30.5-point implied team total. Expect the points in come through the air as the Raiders and Patriots are bottom four in pass defense based on numberFire's metrics.
Over on Sharp Football Stats, the passing attacks of the Patriots and Raiders rank fifth and sixth -- respectively -- in explosive pass rate. On the defensive end, both sides are top 10 when it comes to surrendering passes of 20 yards or more.
With so much focus on big-name pass catchers like Rob Gronkowski, Brandin Cooks, Michael Crabtree and the aforementioned Cooper, one player who could get overlooked is Jared Cook. Yet Cook leads the Raiders in both receptions and receiving yards thanks -- in part -- to a catch rate that's 13.1 percentage points ahead of his career average.
