It is no secret that the National Football League has been trying to expand into the international market for quite some time. The National Basketball Association (NBA) has a large fan base all around the world and the NFL sees no reason why American Football can't be just as popular outside the US.

There are many hurdles for the NFL to overcome before it can reach a global appeal. For one, most international sports fans consider football to be a game played kicking a round ball into a goal. The whole concept is relatively foreign and probably confusing for these fans.

The other major hurdle is that NFL athletes have voiced considerable objections to playing in the International Market. An NFL franchise in say London would have a very difficult time signing top players to their roster and would probably need to pay a premium. 

Regardless of these hurdles, the NFL is still full speed ahead in their quest to become a globally recognized trademark. This Sunday of Week 4, the Minnesota Vikings will cross the Atlantic to battle the Pittsburgh Steelers in London Town. They even got Gene Simmons on board to sing the National Anthem. The American National Anthem that is!

I have a few questions to ask about this booking: 
    
    1. Why would the new owner of an Arena Football Franchise (LA Kiss) agree to promote a rival Football League? 

    2. Why in the world would anyone think Gene Simmons has the singing ability to pull off the national anthem? 

    3. How much alcohol is going to be served to the Brits to make all of this entertaining? 

Would love to hear some of your answers in the comments below.  

Two of the NFL's elite franchises take on each other in a preseason game. The New York Giants (2012: 9-7 SU, 7-9 ATS) are looking to bounce back from last year's swoon. They did have the same record that they had in 2011 when they won the Super Bowl. The Pittsburgh Steelers (2012: 8-8 SU, 6-9-1 ATS) also missed the playoffs last year. They are 28-1 odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Giants are 22-1. The Giants visit Heinz Field on Saturday night to take on the Steelers from Pittsburgh at 7:30pmET.


Pittsburgh opened as a -3-point betting odds favorite and moved to -2 in most books. The total opened at
35.5 and remained there in most books.

Brown and Wilson battle for starting running back

The New York Giants had a decent running attack last year, as they ranked 14th
in the league with 116.4 yards per game. Ahmad Bradshaw is gone and the Giants
will go younger with speedy David Wilson and Andre Brown. 

Wilson is the more explosive back, while Brown provides the power. He had eight
touchdowns in 10 games last year. 

The defense is the main concern for the Giants as DE/OLB Justin Tucker and DE
Jason Pierre-Paul is recovering from back surgery. The Giants drafted Damontre
Moore in the third round and he'll play alongside another rookie in Johnathan Hankins,
a second-rounder from Ohio State. The Giants ranked 25th last year against the run,
so they need better play up front. Both young players have been very impressive in
camp.

With Eli Manning taking a series or two, expect the Giants to get
a long look from rookie Ryan Nassib, the fourth-round pick from
Syracuse. 

Key Injuries

NY Giants:

• DE Justin Tuck (back) is out.
• DE Jason Pierre-Paul (back) is out.

Pittsburgh:

• WR Plaxico Burress (shoulder) is out indefinitely.
• TE Heath Miller (knee) is out indefinitely.
• LB Sean Spencer (knee) is out indefinitely.

Steelers looking for a Prime Comeback

The days of Jerome Bettis are over. Rashard Mendenhall is now playing in
Arizona. The Steelers have always been a run-first team but last year they
ranked an atrocious 26th (96.1 yards per game) on the ground.

They drafted Le'Veon Bell from Michigan State to help with the
running game. Bell is a big back with good feet but he's not considered a
powerful runner. He'll get every chance to win the job from Jonathan Dwyer and
Isaac Redman. He'll work with the starters on Saturday. 

The Steelers also changed their backup quarterbacks around as they brought in Bruce
Gradkowski to back up Ben Roethlisberger, who played with an injured shoulder
and rib last season.

Defensively, Pittsburgh needs to get younger as linebacker James Harrison and nose tackle Casey Hampton are gone. Safety Troy Polamalu can't seem to stay  healthy. Outside linebacker Jarvis Jones is the prototypical player for their 3-4 scheme. Rookie Shamarko Thomas is a big
hitting safety who the Steeler took in the fourth round that could eventually
replace Polamalu.

Weather:
Kickoff temperature: 73. Northeast wind 7-9. 
 
QB Rotations
New York Giants
Eli Manning
David Carr
Ryan Nassib (R)
Curtis
Painter

Pittsburgh
Ben Roethlisberger 
Bruce Gradkowski
Landry Jones (R)
John
Parker Wilson

Oh, the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers also have a very sexy female fan club that includes the hot Jessica Alba. Check them out!