Rams’ road warrior tactics? Sean McVay’s clever ploy to claim home-field advantage
Sean McVay has devised a strategy to make the Arizona field feel familiar to his players after they lost their home-field advantage.
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LA Rams head coach Sean McVay (Via San Deigo Union-Tribune)
Despite earning a home-field advantage in the Wild Card round, the Los Angeles Rams faced an unfortunate setback due to wildfires in the area. However, head coach Sean McVay has devised a strategy to make the Arizona field feel familiar to his players, as he is determined not to leave anything to fate in the playoffs.
The confidence the Rams could have gained at the SoFi stadium in Los Angeles would have provided a significant advantage against the fifth-seeded Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round of the postseason. Replicating that atmosphere at the State Farm Stadium will be challenging, even with the field painted in blue and gold for the game day.
However, the Rams’ head coach McVay thrives off such challenges and is determined to do so this time as well. He reportedly made a surprising and unconventional request to the Cardinals to allow his players to visit the locker room for the crucial Monday Night Football game, which Arizona obliged according to NFL Network’s Bridget Condon.
Sean McVay requested the visiting locker room for Monday night's game because of the familiarity.
— Bridget Condon (@BridgetCondon_) January 11, 2025
The Vikings will be in the auxiliary locker room.
Their opponents will get the auxiliary locker room. Given the high stakes for the match, the Rams are doing everything in their power to have a smooth run while hosting their divisional rivals.
Sean McVay praises his team for handling wildfire relocation ahead of playoffs
The California wildfires compelled the Rams to relocate their entire setup at SoFi Stadium to Phoenix in less than 48 hours while getting ready for the most crucial game of the season. And during such a challenging and inconvenient time, head coach McVay is taking pride in his players’ understanding and management of the whole situation.
What a tremendous credit to so many heroes for being able to get some of this stuff under control and containe. Being able to allow them to do that and then be able to go to Arizona with just the necessary things to provide everything that’s needed to be able to put on an NFL game. That’s what we’re going to do and we’ll handle it the best we can.
Sean McVay said
While the Cardinals have used around 1,500 gallons of paint to make the State Farm Stadium replicate the SoFi Stadium, the Rams have dispatched two planes to LA on Friday to bring around 300 individuals, including friends, family, and even a few pets of the players to the Phoenix area for the crucial game day.
Related: George Pickens’ cryptic comments post Wild Card loss spark concern about his future with Steelers
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Pratyusha Srivastava
(2078 Articles Published)