Let’s examine the games since the NFL began playing regular-season contests across the pond four years ago and see what we can glean for Sunday and going forward for future contests in England.

It’s been rainy day in London, and as result both the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers decided not to hold their scheduled walk-thrus on the field at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.

LONDON — With only four days remaining until the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers face each other at Wembley Stadium, it is easy to tell the game is near. The NFL offices at the Landmark Hotel are busy from early in the morning until late at night. Bucs cheerleaders are roaming the hallways, and league executives and assorted team owners have arrived for the Global Sports Summit, which takes place on Friday.

LONDON — After nearly nine months of preparation, the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are only seven days away from playing in the NFL’s third annual game at Wembley Stadium. Preparations have been well under way for months.

NFL GameDay Morning, the first information packed show on the air Sunday mornings, checked in at 10 a.m. ET on the only network dedicated entirely to football, NFL Network.

Warren Sapp, Marshall Faulk, Adam Schefter, Alex Flanagan and host Spero Dedes bring fans the latest news, injury reports, pregame analysis and game previews on NFL Network. Former 49ers head coach Mike Nolan also joined the team as a guest analyst.

Football is America’s most popular sport, but does anyone care across the pond? Well, yes, writes Nick Szczepanik of The Times of London. Last year’s Giants-Dolphins matchup was a success and the International Series was extended into 2010. But the British organizers want the annual game to build long-term interest in the game of football, not just provide a spectacle for Londoners.

The Saints play the Chargers at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday, but they’ve been there before — in 1990.

Will a Chargers-Saints matchup be a better gauge for fan interest in England?

While last year’s International Series game featured the Dolphins and Giants — two teams from larger markets and with strong fan followings in England — this year’s game features two teams from smaller markets and less of a following overseas.

Sky Sports may carry live NFL games on television in England, but Kevin Cable of Sky Sports writes that there is no substitute for real, live football — and real, live football that means something!

The NFL put its marker down for another London festival on Monday as gridiron posts once again adorned Wembley’s turf. This is the latest significant development in the battle for new hearts and minds, writes the Londonist.

The Saints’ home away from home is more than 4,000 miles from the Superdome. It sports a gigantic crowning arch rather than a roof, and the playing surface is grass rather than synthetic FieldTurf.

Teddy Kider of The Times-Picayune writes, the one-weekend move for the Saints can be considered an honor, since their new home usually is reserved for the identity of an entire nation.