Sarah Barshop
LONDON — On Sunday morning, earlier than the Los Angeles Rams performed the Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Davante Adams wakened at 4 a.m. British Summer time Time. The veteran receiver obtained to say goodnight to his children at house in Los Angeles after which “laid in mattress for an additional 5 hours and could not return to sleep.”
He wasn't the one one in that scenario, he stated, so for that purpose, he was particularly pleased with the power the Rams confirmed of their 35-7 victory over the Jaguars in Week 7.
The Rams, who performed the Baltimore Ravens in Week 6, opted to remain in Baltimore for the week as a substitute of flying house to Los Angeles. Additionally they selected to remain the full week, holding three practices at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, earlier than flying to London on Friday night time. The Rams' arrival lower than 30 hours earlier than their 2:30 p.m. BST kickoff is extensively believed to be the closest for an NFL workforce earlier than the beginning time of a global recreation.
However regardless of any jet lag the gamers had been battling, Rams head coach Sean McVay stated he felt the workforce achieved its objective of a “nice week of preparation” main as much as the sport.
“I believe it is a great credit score to actually our gamers and their psychological toughness and their resolve and their understanding of, ‘Hey, it's a completely different time clock. Let's not make it an even bigger deal,'” McVay stated. “Let's be prepared when the sport kicks off to point out up. Let's do every thing inside our management, however let's not waste our emotional or psychological power on issues that we will not management.”
The consequence was the Rams' highest level complete of the season to this point — led by three landing receptions from Adams — and a 5-2 report heading into their bye week.
By comparability, the Jaguars flew to London on Monday afternoon, holding follow exterior the town.
“You would not have guessed we had been right here for every week, ready, able to go play on this ambiance by taking a look at it by way of the best way we began the sport,” Jaguars coach Liam Coen stated after the sport.
Rams exterior linebacker Jared Verse stated he “thought the power was precisely the place it needed to be” and “would possibly've been higher than anyplace else we performed” this season.
“I simply really feel just like the mindset in figuring out that we did not have that a lot sleep and all people identical to, ‘Oh they simply flew in,'” Rams exterior linebacker Byron Younger stated. “We had power like OK, all people pondering we're simply lackadaisical, sleepy, stuff like that. We had been prepared. We had been able to go and get house. So that is what we did.”
THE RAMS BEGAN planning the journey in Could, when the NFL launched the schedule for the season and granted Los Angeles' request for a recreation on the East Coast earlier than their journey to London.
The thought for holding follow at Camden Yards got here from Rams chief working officer Tony Pastoors, as Orioles chief monetary officer Darline Llamas Llopis spent practically three years because the director of finance and controller for the Rams.
Senior director of apparatus Brendan Burger stated when the Rams began the planning course of, they did not know if the Orioles would nonetheless be enjoying or not. When it grew to become clear the Orioles wouldn't be within the Main League Baseball playoffs, the groups had been in a position to signal an settlement.
By the point Rams gamers ran out onto the follow area in Baltimore on Wednesday, the wheels had been in movement to organize for this week for fairly a while.
Actually.
On Oct. 5, 10 days earlier than the Rams would maintain their first follow at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, the Los Angeles gear employees despatched three semi vehicles to Baltimore. The vehicles contained every thing they would wish to maneuver their whole operation to Baltimore for the week, together with a full “gear room, coaching room, weight room [and] video operation,” Burger stated.
The Rams additionally introduced objective posts for kicker Joshua Karty to make use of, in addition to audio system for follow.
“You title it, we introduced it, from taping tables to video screens to toiletries,” Burger stated. “We obtained all of it right here.”
The burden room was a precedence due to how completely different baseball weight rooms are arrange in contrast to what's wanted for soccer, Burger stated, so the Rams loaded up their full setup used throughout coaching camp at Loyola Marymount College.
The vehicles arrived on Oct. 9, three days earlier than the Rams performed the Ravens at M&T Financial institution Stadium, which is lower than a mile from Camden Yards. At that time, the gear employees began the build-out course of, getting every thing prepared besides what was wanted on Sunday in Baltimore.
After the Rams' Week 6 recreation towards the Ravens, the employees introduced the gear to the close by baseball stadium to arrange lockers for the gamers. As a result of the Rams' roster — they introduced all 53 gamers plus their 13-member follow squad — is a lot greater than a baseball clubhouse, they needed to cut up up the locker room: offense within the Orioles' clubhouse and protection within the guests clubhouse.
Whereas a singular arrange, Burger stated, the Rams had every thing they wanted.
“No, there isn't any limitations,” McVay stated of practising in Baltimore. “It is unbelievable. We would not be capable of take a number of the vertical pictures. We're a bit bit extra restricted with a number of the vertical grass, however that is in all probability an excellent factor. We'll be capable of do every thing. We have now two spot walkthroughs. We'll be capable of get particular person [drills]. We'll be capable of come collectively in workforce settings and activate all components of the sector. It is a fairly rattling cool setting so we're enthusiastic about it.”
The Rams have beforehand spent a part of the week away from their coaching facility earlier than a London recreation earlier than underneath McVay. In 2017, the workforce spent the week in Jacksonville earlier than enjoying the Arizona Cardinals, and in 2019, the Rams practiced at Georgia Tech earlier than enjoying the Cincinnati Bengals.
The distinction? They practiced at soccer fields each of these occasions.
“You possibly can't match a full area [in] both route,” Burger stated of the variations of making ready for follow on a baseball diamond in comparison with a soccer area. “So sort of improvising with that and ensuring our specialists can hold doing what they should do.”
Together with the setup for the gamers, the workforce additionally had a coaching room at their Baltimore lodge, and the coaches had places of work within the stadium and on the lodge.
“I used to be telling my spouse, we simply have to point out up, plug in our computer systems and it is like we're again at work,” defensive coordinator Chris Shula stated. “It has been very regular and it is an incredible place to be.”
Added offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur: “For coaches, a pc display is a pc display and a area is a area.”
After the week of follow, Burger and the gear employees loaded up gear from the week of follow and despatched it again to Los Angeles. And due to the quick journey to London — with a walkthrough on Saturday at Wembley Stadium however no follow — the Rams needed to pack solely their recreation gear for London, which is similar as another of their journeys this season.
“It is like an everyday recreation,” Burger stated. “We go to Seattle, proper? Identical deal. In order that was a blessing and a part of the explanation we did what we did. … We really feel prefer it was a greater surroundings for our gamers right here for the week [and] make it a bit extra routine for them.”
ALONG WITH THREE practices in Baltimore, it additionally meant Rams gamers spent their Tuesday off day there as properly.
Although Verse joked earlier than the journey that the one distinction in the place he spent the week is that he “needed to convey his PlayStation some place else,” different gamers stated the problem disrupted a number of routines.
Adams stated he has a “lot of various checkpoints” all through the week that he does in Los Angeles, together with flying in individuals from the Bay Space and Las Vegas.
“Twelve years in, you discover a strategy to hold it working for you,” Adams stated the week earlier than the journey. “I've discovered my method and like I stated, it's going to simply be every week, however I might slightly have them with me.”
Adams additionally stated being house along with his children and spouse through the week is “an enormous a part of my therapeutic course of and mentally all through the week.”
“Not having that factor … I imply, we'll get by means of it,” Adams stated. “I have been away from them for every week or so earlier than that. It isn't the tip of the world, but when I used to be drawing it up, I might like to have my household with me. It is a week that'll be a bit bit completely different from what we usually do, however we'll be capable of get by means of it.”
Quarterback Matthew Stafford described his Tuesday as “fairly nondescript,” watching tape and making an attempt to prepare for the week. Adams stated his Tuesday appeared like “plenty of movie, plenty of teammate interplay.”
Inside linebacker Nate Landman and working again Ronnie Rivers had a fishing journey booked for Tuesday in Baltimore, but it surely was canceled due to an excessive amount of wind. As a substitute, the pair, together with security Tanner Ingle and inside linebacker Elias Neal, took a rideshare to Bass Professional Outlets.
There, they “obtained some starter rods, some spin rods after which simply tried to stroll across the bay,” Landman stated.
“However we did not know that there was a complete water turnover factor that occurred a few week in the past,” Landman stated. “So fishing has not been nice.”
The water turnover, which is attributable to dramatic climate adjustments, additionally affected proper guard Kevin Dotson. Dotson, who stated he tries to fish anyplace he can, ordered some fishing gear for same-day supply.
“He had some catfish bait and shads and he was throwing sort of smelly stuff, however I suppose he did not catch something both,” Rivers stated. “However it was good to see him on the market too.”
On Wednesday, when speaking about his buy, Dotson stated he wasn't positive how he was going to get it again house, however he was going to attempt.
“I imply, I do not need to waste it,” he stated.
That day, Landman stated if he may discover someplace to donate it to, he would, or he would “discover a child that is strolling across the Bay and provides it to him.”
Rivers stated he requested a few teammates in the event that they wanted an additional pole and if not, he would go away it at his lodge room. When instructed Dotson needed to ship his fishing rod again to Los Angeles, Rivers stated, “Oh, he should have purchased an excellent one then.”
Verse described the distinctive week in Baltimore like enjoying in a bowl recreation, whereas Dotson stated it felt like “a highschool area journey the place you are out of state and also you sort of get free time to discover the town.”
After follow Wednesday, a number of gamers traded a soccer for a baseball, throwing down the third-base line or pitching from the mound. Stafford, who stated he thought he'd play baseball till his sophomore yr of highschool, pitched to and caught passes from security Quentin Lake.
“I liked it rising up,” Stafford stated. “This was my favourite sport and I nonetheless love watching it.”
The Rams completed their week in London on Friday, practising for the ultimate time in Baltimore earlier than flying to London that night time.
“The fellows have completed an incredible job,” McVay stated Friday. “I have been so impressed. There are such a lot of individuals which were instrumental on this being a clean, fluid journey. I am grateful for all of the individuals behind the scenes that we definitely do not take with no consideration which have made this actually seamless.
“Guys are enthusiastic about this enterprise journey that now we have, however I believe it has been an excellent week for a workforce camaraderie that is organically unfolded. It has been in regards to the week of preparation and guys have completed an incredible job.”
THE “BUSINESS TRIP” ended Sunday after the Rams' Week 7 victory, once they flew again to Los Angeles, scheduled to land Monday round 1 a.m. PST to start their bye week.
The Rams are 5-2, their second-best report coming into their bye week up to now 20 seasons, in response to ESPN Analysis. They've additionally had their greatest seven-game begin since 2021, once they began 6-1 on their strategy to profitable Tremendous Bowl LVI.
This bye week will likely be “so much completely different” than the previous two, McVay stated, when the Rams had been 1-4 (2025) and 3-6 (2024). Each seasons, McVay identified, the Rams “end[ed the season] higher” and made the playoffs.
“I need to see us be capable of put it collectively,” McVay stated. “I am actually pleased with this group and I can not consider a time the place we have had two extra gut-wrenching losses. The best way that these unfolded. … There's one thing about this workforce the place the best way that they go to work, the intentionality.”
And though the Rams had an extended flight house, Adams stated the win “goes to make this bye a hell of so much sweeter, that is for positive.”
“With the ability to rally and determine it out and are available out with plenty of power and have an excellent convincing win like this, it was nice,” Adams stated.
