Thursday 17 August 2017 12:03, UK
We did it! And we’re on our way home. I’m penning this final column while waiting for my London-bound flight from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.
It has been so much fun to cover the eight teams heading to London to play games this season, but there have been plenty of challenges along the way when trying to visit all of the clubs in eight straight days.
We got there in the end and covered off more miles in eight days (more than 16,700) than around half the league will travel during the course of the regular season. The days were great and so often fascinating and insightful - but the travel was long, the security lines testing and the late nights plentiful.
5 observations from life on the road…
You meet a real cross-section of society on airport benches after midnight when waiting for your shuttle buses. And some of them are actually normal. Well, almost!
The men on this trip were creatures of habit. We travelled to each team in seven-seater SUVs. And we sat in the exact same place every time. Cameraman Simon Gunby occupied left midfield, I settled in at right midfield and Sky Sports producer Alex Mason was shoring up our defence from the back.
Late night arrivals at hotels followed by very early starts the next morning led to me spending far too much time in Starbucks. Everyone needs a guilty pleasure, right?
NFL coaches struggle with the work-life balance and are the first to admit it. With the exception of Arizona's Bruce Arians, every coach we met on this trip said they struggle to find balance and are all-in with football from now until the season's end.
I'm not saying I've spent too much time travelling but I'm pretty sure the next time I get on a train to London I'm going to remove my belt and shoes and take my laptop out of my bag. Airport security screening is vital, I totally get that, but it won't be missed!
5 observations from Browns training camp…
As offensive lineman Joel Bitonio admitted when I interviewed him last month, there is a quiet confidence about the Cleveland Browns. They are not about to start shouting from the rooftops but both head coach Hue Jackson and linebacker Christian Kirksey admitted as much during our chats in Berea, Ohio, on Saturday morning. And it's easy to see why there is some confidence with this building team.
Jackson made a point of saying that these Browns have learned the harsh lessons of last term and that he was impressed with how they stuck together through adversity. The NFL Draft has brought in more talent such as defensive end Myles Garrett and safety Jabril Peppers, while free agency saw wide receiver Kenny Britt, and the offensive line pairing of J.C. Tretter and Kevin Zeitler head to Ohio. Of course, those upgrades will be further augmented if the Browns can find their long-term answer under center.
Christian Kirksey is not a household name outside of Cleveland… but he should be. He is a tackling machine with an athletic style of play and a real nose for the football. Kirksey played more snaps than any other defender in the NFL a year ago and rarely comes off the field. He was rewarded with a big contract extension in the offseason and told me on Saturday that he used some of the cash to buy his first house. More important than his ability to pick out soft furnishings will be Kirksey's skill at not resting on his laurels and driving his teammates forward. I see no problems in that area because he has developed into a true leader of these Browns.
Man-mountain is the right phrase to describe Joe Thomas. When he walked into our interview area by the side of Cleveland's practice field, he blocked out the sun for a second or two. Size aside, what is most impressive about Thomas is the fact that he has never missed a snap in the course of his NFL career. We're talking north of 10,000 snaps here! That is impressive in its own right, but even more so when you consider that Cleveland have been down by some big scores in a lot of games over the years and Thomas could have easily tapped out from time to time.
It was very enlightening to spend 10 minutes chatting with Browns general manager Sashi Brown. It is clear that Cleveland does like to think outside the box, but it's not all weird and new-fangled approaches to player acquisitions. The Browns rely on good old-fashioned film study and scouting as much as the next team. Brown said the perception is that Cleveland are all 'Moneyball' and analytics, but that is not the case. A perfect example was the acquisition of Brock Osweiler. At first glance, the trade for Houston's quarterback was simply in order to 'buy' a high draft pick. But that's not the case at all - Osweiler is being given every chance to win the starting job in Cleveland. Which brings me to…
Training camp finish that sentence…
The quarterback job in Cleveland is… well and truly up for grabs. There is no clear leader. That means the competition is fierce, but it also means no one has separated himself from the pack 11 days into training camp. That has to be a bit of a worry for a franchise that - top to bottom - admitted on Saturday that the long-term answer at quarterback must be found. Cody Kessler, DeShone Kizer and Brock Osweiler are all still in the running, but the last thing the Browns need at that position this season is a job share.
Quote of the Day…
"We expect to be a very competitive football team in every game we play. Our goal is to win every game we play. I truly believe we will be a vastly-improved team. I feel really good about where we're heading." - Browns head coach Hue Jackson expects much more of a team that won just a single game in 2016.
Quote of the Day II…
"Early on in my career I would take more notice of potential trades that people were talking about. But as I've got older and it's happened every year, I've just ignored it and stopped worrying about it." - Cleveland's future Hall of Fame offensive tackle, Joe Thomas, who gets linked with trades to other NFL teams every autumn.
Final Thought
What a trip! And what a lot of fun. What's a bit of tiredness among friends when you get to enjoy this kind of summer journey across the United States? From the youthful exuberance of Sean McVay to the wily experience of Bruce Arians, it has been fascinating meeting and spending time with eight NFL head coaches. Who knew that Sean Payton could be so utterly charming and cheerful away from the sidelines? And we also got to catch up with some true legends of the game in Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald and Adrian Peterson. Thanks for following along and here's to the next eight in eight!
Follow the 2017-18 NFL season with us on Sky Sports and through our website skysports.com/NFL also our app for mobile devices and iPad, or follow our Twitter account @SkySportsNFL
The regular season of home and away matches run from September to December 2017, culminating in PlayOffs from January 6, 2018 and the Super Bowl on February 4, 2018 at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minnesota to determine the world champion.
