Eagles’ QB Pushes Back on DeVonta Smith’s Dismay Amid Security Concerns Over NFL’s Brazil Trip

Reportedly, two things might ruin the NFL’s Brazil experience: gang violence and wildfires. Both of these problems raise a serious threat to players of the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles. So naturally, players like DeVonta Smith have apprehension about the Brazillian debut of the league. However, it won’t stop Tanner McKee from bringing “football to Sao Paulo.”

This is the NFL’s attempt to spread ‘football’ in the land of ‘futbol’. Will they succeed? Only time will tell. Numbers say that Brazil is the NFL’s top export after Mexico with more than 35 million fans. That might be the reason why McKee thinks people in Sao Paulo will resonate with people from Philly: always ready to give more love than they are given. Check out what he said in a recent presser.

Tanner McKee thinks Brazil will show him love like Philly

“I think they’ll definitely love it,” McKee said. “I think anytime that you give love to that culture…It’s similar to the people of Philadelphia. Anytime you show a little bit of love, they’re going to love you back ten times more. And so just having an NFL team there and present, the fans are going to love it.”

McKee went on to describe how “hundreds” of Brazilian fans have been flocking to his DMs looking for answers. That’s why the QB thinks that the experience will be a “lot of fun.” While McKee has an upbeat attitude towards his Brazil debut, some uncertainties might cause the game to be rescheduled or even canceled. Why?

Brazil is battling wildfires and over 30 cities in the country have been affected by it. In fact, according to some reports, this is the first time since 2007 that a smog alert has been issued. The air quality was declared “very unhealthy” by Brazil’s Environmental Institute, and it poses a major health scare to the athletes.

Then there’s the issue with the colors of their jerseys. Donning the color green may be an issue in Brazil due to existing soccer rivalries. It’s also an impending gang altercation waiting to happen. There was a meeting where players were advised to not use their phones on the street and that has convinced AJ Brown to stay in his hotel room.

While Brazil is getting all the bad rep about violence, the citizens and people involved with NFL teams in Brazil didn’t hesitate to take a stand for themselves. Marcus Rovere, who runs the Packers Brazil fan account, didn’t mince words as per USA Today: “Stop thinking that we are living in a jungle with wild people with animal behaviors.” He backed his claim by mentioning how Sao Paulo has a lower murder rate than Milwaukee.

Even Felipe Reis Aceti, a Brazilian writer for Cheesehead TV, came to Sao Paulo’s defense as he claimed, “São Paulo, the most populous city in Brazil, offers all essential services, including law enforcement, hospitals, and transportation, operating around the clock. This won’t be the city’s first time handling such large-scale events.”

But despite all the assurances, DeVonta Smith is still not convinced that his experience in Sao Paulo will be smooth.

DeVonta Smith is not thrilled about the Brazil trip

Jet lag is the last of DeVonta Smith’s concerns. Just like he lined up for the presser ahead of the game, he’s expecting to line up in Brazil to play football and nothing more. The media tried to get some answers from the receiver, and he just uttered two words: “No comment.”

Some reports say that the teams will not be wearing green, others suggest that donning green is not a problem since the rivalry is soccer related and the Brazilians might not see it as something inciting. The teams have been given some eyebrow-raising instructions and Eagles receiver AJ Brown wasn’t too keen on accepting what he’d heard in the meeting.

“We had a meeting yesterday. It was like a whole bunch of don’t do’s,” Brown said. “I’m just trying to go down there. Win a football game and come back home. That’s the best way I can put it.” But coming back to the wildfires, Brazilian officials say that the fires are man-made and have declared it a “war.” At this point, all we can do is hope for everything to go by the book.