The NFL is playing a regular season game in Brazil this Friday, but it continues to sound like nobody involved is particularly enthused about it.
The Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers are set to open their season in Sao Paulo on Friday, but there are definitely some internal concerns about the trip. Eagles cornerback Darius Slay admitted on his “Big Play Slay” podcast that he has told his family not to make the trip, citing safety concerns and the restrictions players will be under.
Slay on Brazil trip: “Week 1.. I can’t wait. But man, I do not wanna go to Brazil.. They already told us not to leave the hotel. They told us we can’t do too much, because the crime rate is crazy. I’m like ‘NFL, why would you wanna send us somewhere with a crime rate this… pic.twitter.com/7921ob1f8R
— Eagles Nation (@PHLEaglesNation) September 2, 2024
“Week 1, I’m looking forward to it, I can’t wait, but man, I do not want to go to Brazil,” Slay said. “They already told us not to leave the hotel. They told us we can’t do too much because the crime rate is crazy. I’m like, NFL, why y’all want to send us somewhere where the crime rate’s this high?
“I told my family, do not come down there. I’m going to be at the hotel chilling, minding my business, playing my game after a long nine-and-a-half hour flight.”
The public comments from players about the Brazil trip have been largely negative. One of Slay’s teammates has also said he essentially plans to hole up in his room for the duration of the trip, with the obvious exception of playing the game. One Packers star had some even wilder claims about alleged restrictions placed on players, though the league sought to deny them.
Enough players have spoken out that it’s fair to suggest there are definitely some tight restrictions on what players can and can’t do. One has to wonder if the league will try to do anything like this again anytime soon.
