Rams taking a page from their past playoff success to navigate a short week against Eagles

By Canadian Press on January 16, 2025.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams have experience handling a short week in the playoffs, even if not all of them remember it.

Head coach Sean McVay decided the Rams wouldn’t practice Wednesday ahead of their NFC divisional round game at the Philadelphia Eagles following a 27-9 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Glendale, Arizona, last Monday.

It’s the same approach the Rams took during the 2021 postseason, when they went from a Monday night home win over the Arizona Cardinals to a road game at Tampa Bay en route to a Super Bowl title.

“I was told that we would copy and paste, kind of, some of that stuff over. I didn’t even remember what it was,” wide receiver Cooper Kupp said Thursday. “I was wondering what we were doing and weren’t doing yesterday versus what we’re doing today, and they said that’s what we did then.

“It’s like, ‘You know what, it worked. I’m good with it.’”

McVay revisited the previous plan in hopes of reducing the physical stress on his players. There was an additional day of rest and recovery for the Rams on Wednesday as they went through a lifting workout instead to begin ramping back up for the game in Philadelphia.

That meant there was two days’ worth of on-field work to condense into Thursday’s practice and McVay was pleased with what he saw.

“They got themselves refreshed and recharged. I think our guys have been able to handle short weeks, if you will,” McVay said. “Our guys handled it really well today.”

Coaches also benefited from the measured approach, McVay said, as not rushing right into a practice less than 48 hours after the wild-card round reduced their mental stress.

The Rams (11-7) have already successfully navigated two quick Monday-to-Thursday turnarounds this season, beating Minnesota on Oct. 24 and San Francisco on Dec. 12.

This week is also different not only the high stakes of a win-or-go-home contest, but the lingering uncertainty from the wildfires throughout the Los Angeles area that have killed at least 25 people and destroyed thousands of structures.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford acknowledged there were unknowns about what to expect when the Rams’ extended traveling party, which included families and pets, returned home from Arizona.

“Luckily, we got back here, and everybody’s doing everything they can to make it as functional of a city as we possibly can,” Stafford said. “I think they’re doing a hell of a job, which is great. And then our mind turns to football right away.”

Not everything has been resolved — McVay said power at his home in the Hidden Hills neighborhood went out again Thursday — but the Rams have been able to put their full focus on an Eagles team that beat them 37-20 on Nov. 24. It was the team’s last loss at full strength, having been able to hold key players including Stafford and Kupp out for the regular-season finale against Seattle.

Given what’s on the line, Kupp knows the Rams will be ready for Sunday.

“We don’t have anything else guaranteed past that,” he said. “There’s a finality to it that brings a good focus, good concentration.”

NOTES: CB Ahkello Witherspoon (thigh) and DT Bobby Brown III (shoulder) didn’t practice Thursday. TE Tyler Higbee (chest contusion) was limited. McVay expects all three will be able to play. … LB Troy Reeder (hamstring) and DE Larrell Murchison (foot) were each designated to return from injured reserve Thursday. Reeder started the first six games of the season. Murchison hasn’t played this season after injuring an arm in a preseason game before breaking his foot in practice in early October.

___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Dan Greenspan, The Associated Press