There was only one man they had all come to see. When the Green Bay Packers became the 32nd of the NFL's 32 teams to make the trip to London on Sunday, it was quarterback Aaron Rodgers who was the undoubted star attraction.
American football fans on this side of the pond have been treated to Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Russell Wilson over the last 20 years, but never Rodgers, one of the finest quarterbacks of his or any generation. A four-time and reigning league MVP, Rodgers might just be the most talented player to ever grace these shores.
It was no surprise then that, when saved for last as the Packers offense were introduced to the capacity crowd at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the thousands in attendance - the majority decked in the Pack's famed forest green and gold - let him know just how happy they were to finally see him.
When play got underway, however, things got far less welcoming. Now sans Davante Adams, Rodgers' supporting cast isn't what it was in storied times past and for much of this 27-22 to-and-fro it showed. While Rodgers has booked his future Hall of Fame ticket with perfectly-executed rockets and rainbows from his expert right arm, this 2022 version is now forced to be lot more selective.
The short pass is the order of the day these days with the shot plays almost out of the offense altogether. Only three of Rodgers' 39 completions on the day went for more than 15 yards with underneath throws out to the flat preferred to bombs over the top. This is now a death by a thousand cuts rather than kill shots attack.
Moments of magic are still there of course - a third-quarter scramble out of a collapsing pocket before firing down the sideline to Randall Cobb - but were too few and far between on a day where the Packers started out piping hot with 10 first-quarter points for the first time in more than a year before fizzling out almost entirely.
The lack of explosiveness and verticality would cost them dear in this one as a Giants team down multiple receivers on the outside, and with a quarterback in Daniel Jones nursing an injury of his own, were allowed to stay in a contest they long looked like being very much out of before they roared back to win it.
With rookies Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson yet to fully acclimatise to the step up to the pros it was left to veteran Cobb to pick up the load with a team-high 13 targets. Marcedes Lewis, a 16-year vet tight end caught a touchdown. Allen Lazard, the new number one after Adams' offseason exit, got the opening score but on an even more meaningful play late in the fourth failed to haul in a deep pass from Rodgers that would've moved the chains and flipped the field. The ensuing fourth down got the Giants back on the field and ultimately led to them taking a lead they would never relinquish.
Rodgers isn’t blameless either. After dinking and dunking down the field so effortlessly well in the first half, the easy completions that were on offer dried up after the break while the few deep shots that he did let fly were errant and off-target. That their only second-half points came on a deliberate safety probably tells you all you need to know about the offensive road block they ran into.
After Saquon Barkley's go-ahead score in the fourth quarter, he still had a chance though. A final shot at yet another come-from-behind, rabbit out of the hat act to add to the list. But deep in Giants territory, with the end zone and a tie game tantalisingly within reach, two throws on third and fourth down were batted down at the line and sent the Packers' chances with them.
What started in a cacophony of noise and celebration ended in silence and defeat for Rodgers and the Packers. After waiting so long, it certainly wasn't how the crowd here in London expected it to.
