WATFORD, England (WROC) — Sean McDermott said players were having fun the moment they heard their first English accent on the team plane. They were even doing their own accents, which were poor by all accounts.
The Bills will face the Jacksonville Jaguars this Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. This clearly isn’t a normal road trip for the team and they plan to enjoy it and appreciate it.
“This is new for me and I think a number of our players and staff,” said McDermott. “What a great experience. This doesn’t happen everywhere all the time. Just pretty cool to be here.”
The only other time that the Bills have played a regular season game in London was in 2015. The Rex Ryan-led team fell to the Jaguars 34-31 at Wembley Stadium.
The Bills are staying at The Grove, a luxury resort hotel, approximately 45 minutes away from Tottenham.
“We’re staying at an extremely beautiful place,” said Allen. “I know some guys are going downtown to check out London. Again, we’re here for one job and that’s to go win a football game, but it’s really cool to experience this and a different culture.”
Wide receiver Stefon Diggs said he was excited and that American football feels different in England.
“People are excited,” said Diggs. “It’s not necessarily a new sport, but it’s something they don’t get to see often. I know they’re excited to cheer them on and let them know that third down is a big down.”
McDermott added that he’s coached in the NFL for a long time and never had the opportunity to coach in London.
“When I was young growing up outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, going to Seattle, Washington in the United States was pretty cool,” said McDermott. “Never ever did I think I would be coaching in London in an NFL game. What an honor and it’s amazing what the NFL does and how they do it and where it can take you.”
Allen did not get much sleep on the flight to London on Friday morning. The team wants players to stay up during the day on Friday.
As a result, Allen found to appreciate the coffee in London. The Bills quarterback said it’s for real.
“I’m caffeined out,” said Allen.