Like it or not, Rams are on touchdown drive for the ’G
The endless chat all week. The madness of the tailgate parties in the parking lot. The wallpaper of noise throughout the match as announcers demand yet more noise, prompting grown men and women and their children to scream “YEAH!” and “LET’S F — KING GO!” at each other.
But if you do like it, if you love high-speed collision sport played by finely tuned athletes in ridiculously expensive stadiums in which everyone seems to be having an outrageously fun time, there’s nothing quite like an NFL match — whether it was the LA Rams’ thrilling 21-19 win over the Seattle Seahawks at SoFi Stadium on Sunday local time (Monday AEDT) or their historic game next season at the MCG.
I’ll tell you who absolutely loves American football: Rams coach Sean McVay, who seems to be on a permanent sugar high with his infectious love of life and the Rams and the NFL and talking about such these things all the time with great enthusiasm. He’s impossible not to like.
He walked into the media conference room and was already talking about the win before a question was asked. He was still talking as he left the room after being asked a final question about the officials’ decision to determine the Seahawks had one second left on the clock.
Like so many NFL matches, this one was decided on the very last play: a 61-yard field goal attempt from the Seahawks that sailed right, handing the Rams the home win.
“Yeah it was you know what?” McVay said. “You know, I think [referee] John Hussey always does a great job and he said the guy gave himself up until then so that left one second off and I’m not too upset about it because they missed the kick bye.”
And with that he exhaled and walked off.
There were several headline moments, few bigger than safety Kamren Kinchens’ two intercepts — two of four for the match and two of six he’s taken against the Seahawks during his career.
“Man, they just want to throw the ball,” he smiled. “People who want to kind of put it down the field or give us a shot, that’s a mistake.”
That’s the other thing to admire about American sport: they say it as it is and don’t care who they upset. It’s better than the sanitised, media-trained dross that falls from the mouths of many Australian athletes who find it a chore to take questions about how great they are.
At Rams practice earlier in the week, an Australian reporter innocently suggested to gun running back Kyren Williams that he was “relatively small” in comparison to the gigantic defensive lines he must play against.
It was a valid question — Williams stands at 175cm and weighs 93kg – but it sounded funny being put to one of the league’s most productive players.
Williams’ eyes bulged momentarily before he quickly took it in his stride and smiled.
“The bigger they are, the slower they are,” he said. “I’m 5’9’’ as you said. They can’t tackle me, man. It’s more of a mentality. A mindset. That person across the ball can’t get to me, man. I do what I do.”
In the first quarter, the 25-year-old went on a 30-yard run that catapulted him into 10th place on the franchise’s all-time rushing yards list. He used to be a Rams fan as a kid. Now he’s making history with them as a player. The American dream right there, or at least a version of it.
As the media conferences went down, the boom box blared from the adjacent locker room where reporters could speak to whomever they wanted.
But the celebrations were measured; like there was a bigger win to be won down the road, even if this one shot them to the top of the NFC West standings with an 8-2 win-loss record.
The Rams are genuine Super Bowl contenders, although quarterback Matthew Stafford was reserved. Asked how he felt after the Seahawks’ field goal missed, he simply said: “Relief”.
If Stafford and the Rams can win their second Super Bowl in four years, it would add considerable weight to their match next season at the MCG.
Visit Victoria representatives were at SoFI Stadium on Sunday, including board member Eddie McGuire, who was one of the driving forces behind Melbourne securing the match ahead of other Australian cities.
He’d flown in from Ohio where, the night before, he saw son Joe take the field as a punter for the Ohio State Buckeyes. He said younger Australian sports fans and athletes were gravitating towards American sports.
“My son’s a good example,” McGuire said. “He’s one of 80 guys from Australia playing college football. I mean, the Seahawks’ punter here today [Michael Dickson] is from Australia. The American college system is becoming so much front of mind to Australians and Australian kids coming through, particularly if you’re into sports.”
Victoria won the rights for regular-season matches to be played at the MCG as part of a multi-year deal after the NSW government effectively pulled the money for its bid — but you sense it was never going to allow Sydney to get under its guard and snatch an event of this scale.
Americans bring more than $380m into the Victorian economy each year. Little wonder that Victoria wants to strengthen the relationship between Melbourne and LA, which will host FIFA World Cup matches next year, the Super Bowl in 2027, and the Olympics in 2028.
Visit Victoria’s “Rush Downunder” campaign was subtly spread throughout SoFi Stadium on Sunday with an activation at ground level, and advertising displayed on SoFi’s enormous big screen which sits like a halo above the field.
McGuire’s relationship with all-powerful NFL commissioner Roger Goodell helped opened the door for Victoria to win the bid.
“But the ace card we always had was the MCG,” he said. “The 100,000 people and the history. And then you look at Melbourne. The NFL has sent down hundreds of people over the last 18 months to scope the place. They came down and walked through the city of Melbourne. They walked down to the MCG and came to the footy, came to Collingwood games. Saw the crowds going, ‘Right, we can do this’.
“The other thing the NFL is really excited about is that Rod Laver Arena and Centrepiece, John Cain and Margaret Court arenas are all there. They’re ready-made undercover, fully plumbed, with kitchens, with lights; a huge exhibition area for merchandise, for experiences, for tailgate. Or our version of the tailgate.”
As we filed out of SoFi Stadium, there were still embers burning at the tailgate party across the road.
Earlier in the day, it had been alive with all sorts of wonderful creatures who were drinking, barbecuing, eating, dancing, and watching other matches on TVs sitting on the back of pick-up trucks. I saw one elderly couple sipping champagne and orange out the back of their Audi.
Long after full-time, it was just one lone Cybertruck with a grill and loud speaker smashing out the 1977 banger “Flashlight” by the funk band Parliament.
As I said, American football isn’t for everyone.
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American football isn’t for everyone. The excess. The brashness. The indulgence.