BALTIMORE – This is not the normal dateline for a Wednesday practice, but this is far from a normal week for the Rams. After their 17-3 victory over the Ravens on Sunday, the team is remaining in Baltimore until Friday and practicing at Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles, to prepare for their Week 7 matchup against the Jaguars in London. This will cut down on the time difference they have to adjust to as well as the flight length to London.
Prior to the international showdown, head coach Sean McVay, quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Davante Adams, outside linebacker Jared Verse, defensive coordinator Chris Shula and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur spoke with the media about their preparation for the Jaguars. Here are the most significant quotes and talking points from those press conferences.
"It's a fun narrative (going against head coach Liam Coen and general manager James Gladstone, who were both with the Rams under McVay), but it still is the Rams versus the Jaguars. They do a great job in all three phases, you can see the identity, the personality of the team in a lot of ways is reflective of the good traits that Liam has. They're playing tough, there's a commitment to a style of play that they have really in all three phases." - McVay
In 2022, Coen was the Rams' offensive coordinator – now he runs the ship in Jacksonville. Naturally, both teams have some familiarity with how the other wants to operate, specifically on offense, but McVay said they don't know when they're gonna activate it. What McVay does know is that they will face a well-coached team with good leadership.
McVay also gave injury updates on key players, including wide receiver Puka Nacua, who sustained an ankle sprain against Baltimore. He did not practice on Wednesday and McVay said he's not sure if he will practice at all this week. He does expect wide receiver Tutu Atwell (hamstring) and inside linebacker Omar Speights (ankle) to play on Sunday, however, barring any unforeseen setbacks.
"When I'm under center, no (it's not different being at Camden Yards). But when the defense is up or special teams is going, take a peek around. It's pretty cool. It's really cool for us to be able to use really the dugout and clubhouse, all that kind of stuff. It's cool for our guys to see kind of what they go through on a daily basis and some of their stuff, and us guys that used to play baseball are fired up to be here." - Stafford
The veteran quarterback said he thought he was going to play professional baseball up until his sophomore year of high school, so practicing on a historic major league park has been a cool experience. Stafford famously played little league baseball with Dodgers star pitcher Clayton Kershaw, but ultimately chose the football route. The Orioles didn't make the playoffs this year, unlike the Dodgers who are up two games to zero in the NLCS currently, so the Rams have been able to use their facility to prepare for the Jaguars.
If Nacua isn't able to play on Sunday, Stafford said having "one of the best receivers of our era" in Adams will certainly be important. In terms of their connection so far this season, Stafford said, "There's been some good ones, there's been some missed ones," but he took responsibility for most of those misses.
Stafford hasn't played a game in London in 10 years, whereas the Jaguars have played there four times since 2023. He said it makes sense for them to be "dialed in" on the challenges that playing there brings, "But once the ball's snapped, nobody cares if they got there that day or we ate this food or slept on this flight... go play the game."
"It's just not easy (to create chemistry with a new quarterback), man. I mean, I played with Aaron (Rodgers) for the majority of my career. We played nine years together basically, and it definitely didn't start off the first couple years, let alone first couple games, the way that we got it going. So, not that we have another 10 years to go, but it takes time. It's not easy." - Adams
The Stafford-Adams connection is "not how I drew it up as far as efficiency goes," Adams said, but he isn't discouraged by that. He doesn't feel pressure to fix it with one play or one game, but wants to continue to go out and make plays. With Nacua's injury, Adams doesn't feel any added pressure or urgency to be more efficient because, "We got a pretty good sense of urgency now," he said.
Adams also said the Rams' red zone offense, which ranks 24th in the NFL with a 50% touchdown rate, "hasn't been to our standard for sure." Self-inflicted mistakes, timing issues and other miscues have caused the Rams to settle for field goals in the red zone more often than they would like to, he added. That's an area where he "prides" himself in being productive, and wants to do a better job of that moving forward.
The team, and especially the receivers, are bonding on this trip, though, as Adams said they've spent more time together without their families present. Apart from that, they are trying to retain their normal practice week rhythm and prepare like they would for any other game.
"I think me and BY (outside linebacker Byron Young) both say we kind of feed off each other. When he's doing good, I play even better. When I'm doing good, he plays even better. We just got to feed off each other. But to see him kind of elevate to the level that he's capable of is kind of astonishing to me. I'm not surprised, but I'm happy to see him get all the recognition he probably deserves." - Verse
Their boisterous behavior off the field and aggression between the white lines make it evident that the Rams' young edge rusher duo elevates each other wherever they are. And while the attention that Verse commands certainly gives Young opportunities to succeed, leading to the second-highest sack total in the NFL through six weeks (7.5), Verse said it goes both ways. "Me and BY always say, like, 'Hey, if I'm taking all this for you, you better win,' and he does the same thing."
On practicing at Camden Yards, Verse said it's been a cool but "weird" experience, and it feels kind of like a college bowl game. His baseball experience is very limited, and not as successful as his football career, as Verse said he played just one season; his team lost just one game all year, and it was the game he pitched.
The quarterback they've been prepping for, Trevor Lawrence, is "not easy to bring down," Verse said. They can't just "thud him up" and expect to get a sack, and he can use his legs to hurt defenses. He will provide yet another challenge for one of the most productive edge rusher duos in the NFL thus far.
"A computer screen is a computer screen, a field is a field, even though it's a little bit different. But you know what I mean by that. But nothing different for us as coaches. It's really just the players on both sides getting acclimated to what the time zone is going to be, the time change and all those kind of things, getting their bodies right." - LaFleur
LaFleur said the players "have really embraced" their setup in Baltimore. For guys like Stafford and tight end Tyler Higbee, this isn't the first time they've had an extended road trip, so they've been able to impart some wisdom on the younger guys. Still it's "a unique experience" to see all the different jerseys and how excited they get for punts and field goals "for obvious reasons," LaFleur said.
When asked if the level of play is different with all the challenging factors at play for a London game, LaFleur said "It's still ball." However, they may be playing ball without Nacua, which could makes Adams' presence that much more valuable. "Obviously, anytime you have a guy that has as much experience as Davante, no matter who else is playing, it's just fun to have him out there," LaFleur said.
"Just trying to stay in our normal routine as (much as) possible. Just getting back there, had our normal Wednesday night last night, and just kind of getting in the flow. And so, the operations team, everybody's done such a good job, our video people, that we just kind of show up. I was telling my wife, we just kind of show up, plug in our computers, it's like we're back at work." - Shula
The Rams have had this trip planned for a while, and the organization has ensured that players and coaches will have everything they need to prepare like they would on any standard game week, even though it isn't one, as they're practicing on a baseball field in Baltimore. When asked who the best baseball players on the defense would be, Shula said safety Quentin Lake and defensive end Braden Fiske because "He's one of those guys that's kind of good at everything."
Shula said the run defense, which has been very successful so far this season, has benefitted from better execution along with the pieces they added this offseason, namely inside linebacker Nate Landman and nose tackle Poona Ford. On the edges, Shula said Young and Verse are "disrupting the game" consistently. "I think if you talk to opposing offenses, you talk to people, they're probably not guys you want to see they're violent they play hard they're aggressive they play good in the run and the pass."
