The NFL's 2025 International Games are still many months away, but now we know the identities of the three designated teams that will play in London: the Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets. And that's enough information for us all to start conjuring up ideal opponents for each.
Below are three dream matchups I'd like to see, with pairings made using each squad's list of 2025 home opponents.
LOCATION: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Here are two sub-.500 teams that have a chance to turn things around by their 2025 meeting. Even if Cleveland and San Francisco stumble again, I'm fairly confident they'll at least be interesting. The Browns could be working in a new QB, either a highly drafted rookie (Cleveland owns the No. 2 overall pick) or a veteran with the capacity to operate efficiently under Kevin Stefanski, depending on what happens with Deshaun Watson and his recovery from a torn Achilles. And if Cleveland can show Myles Garrett a plan that he likes, he'll be on hand to demonstrate his otherworldly pass-rushing prowess.
As for the Niners, they are at a crossroads. Will they extend Brock Purdy and -- with Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk returning to health -- reclaim their place among the league's upper-tier contenders? Or will they be going through more of a traditional rebuilding period, figuring out how to best position the roster for a wider window further down the road? Whatever San Francisco does, I have faith that Kyle Shanahan will keep the team competitive on a game-by-game basis.
LOCATION: Wembley Stadium
Initially, I shied away from the Chiefs, being drawn to a more hipster-ish pick like the Chargers, especially since we don't know at this early date if the Jaguars' new coach will have this four-win team ready to compete with Patrick Mahomes. And as one of the decade's marquee organizations, Kansas City is just so obvious as an ideal choice to up the entertainment quotient of just about any game anywhere in the world. But the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to go for the Chiefs, despite how unsurprising the choice might be.
First, the London crowd has only had one chance to see the Chiefs thus far, in a 2015 game against Detroit, when they somehow scored 45 points despite Alex Smith throwing for 145 yards (it probably helped that they started seven drives at their own 39-yard-line or better). It's only fair to give the U.K. a close-up look at K.C. in the Mahomes era (even if it wouldn't be a total shock these days to see him put up a W while throwing for fewer yards than Smith did nine seasons ago). All the better if the Chiefs are pushing for a four-peat.
As for the Jags, the new coach will get a great chance to stress-test the operation, by either a) gathering valuable info about how far Trevor Lawrence and Co. are from the upper tier of the AFC, or b) walking on air, because guess what, his team just beat the Kansas City Chiefs.
LOCATION: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
With the identity of the Jets' head coach and QB still unknown, let's lock in some headliners on the opposing sideline who can help Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner bring star power to this game. Whether or not Mike McCarthy returns in Dallas, Dak Prescott, Micah Parsons and CeeDee Lamb should be plenty capable of providing some spice. In the best-case scenario, Gang Green's newly installed principals will be able to maximize the roster strengths that mostly failed to show up with Aaron Rodgers under center this season.
Of course, this matchup of high-profile franchises offers a ton of appeal beyond the individuals involved -- and, again, given how much is up in the air here, I'm looking for bankable storylines where I can get them on the list of the Jets' 2025 home opponents. The Cowboys and Jets have played each other 13 times in NFL history, and just twice since the Prescott era began. The last clash was a 30-10 blowout in favor of Dallas last season in Week 2, after a ruptured Achilles first sent Rodgers' New York tenure sideways. In reality, the schedule-makers might not be able to resist showcasing this game stateside in prime time. But today, we're dreaming, and I say let's give London what is likely to be one of the buzzier showdowns on offer.
