Displaced Rams showcase their best in Wild Card smothering of Vikings

GLENDALE, Ariz. – State Farm Stadium became a Rams House away from home on Monday.

Displaced to the home of the Arizona Cardinals due to the wildfires that continue to rage across the Southland, both the Rams and Los Angeles showcased their best in a 27-9 Wild Card smothering of the Minnesota Vikings.

"I’m really proud of our team tonight and with everything that’s going on with our community, everything that these guys have gone through," Rams coach Sean McVay said. "I thought they epitomized, and they represented the city the right way. You talk about sports offering a platform for people to come together and offering a little bit of temporary relief and I thought the way that our team competed tonight was what it looked like to stay connected, to stay together"

At their heart, sports are tribal. The team represents a community, and the fans fly that team’s colors. In turn, a community is formed around that team and through its fans.

It feels like “home.”

To me, that sense of “LA Together” was shown well before the Rams took the field to close out Wild Card Weekend.

As I drove across the Sonoran Desert early on Monday–doing my best, as many do each day, to avoid the traffic of the 91 and the 10–that community began to crop up. Car flags waving by. Bumper stickers reflecting the morning sun.

It hit me upon stopping for gas at the Arizona state line. Several charter buses and more than a dozen cars dotting the rest stop burst open with blue and gold, as legions of Rams rooters enveloped the combo gas station and Wendy’s.

Oh yeah. Glendale was going to be a Rams House.

Aside from the pops of red in the endzone, the crimson seats seeping through the sellout crowd of 64,515 and the smattering of Cardinals division banners of Kurt Warner’s past, you’d have no idea this wasn’t SoFi Stadium.

From the soothing tones of Rams radio play-by-play man JB Long welcoming fans to State Farm Stadium through speakers in the parking lots to the booming calls of “Whose house?” from SoFi Stadium public address announcer Sam Laganà, this was every bit of a Rams home game with just half a week of preparation.

Upon walking through the doors of State Farm Stadium, fans were handed royal blue NFC West Champion rally towels and greeted with a warm “Welcome home.”

Sure, the crowd itself resembled that of a college football bowl game, with a 50-50 split and each team’s fans in mostly sequestered to the half of the stadium behind the team’s respective sidelines. However, the video production, the graphics and every bit of the game presentation emulated that of its SoFi Stadium counterpart, aside from the lack of the oculus video board.

For Eric Dickerson’s sake, they brought out the Mariachi Rams, in addition to Rams regulars DJ Skee and rocker Nita Strauss.

This wasn’t just painting some logos on the field and calling it a day. Full marks to every facet of the Rams game day staff, and extra plaudits to the Cardinals organization and the NFL–this was, for the day, Rams House.

And as the Rams racked up an NFL playoff-record nine sacks, including a scoop-and-score 57-yard fumble recovery touchdown by rookie sensation Jared Verse, the crowd roared like the Rams House.

"Unbelievable show of support that we got from the fans today," Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford said. "Can't say enough about that. Can't say enough about our organization and how well they treated us and our families this week in a tough week. Pulled some stuff together to make sure we could all stay together and still get our work done.

"Give the people back home something to cheer about for a little bit.”

They were full-throated for just the Rams’ third opening-drive score of the season, as Stafford bought time to hit Kyren Williams in the end zone. There were bellows of “Puuuka” as Puka Nacua barrelled forward to set up a touchdown before the half. “Coooop” echoed through the domed stadium after a 29-yard pass to Cooper Kupp established field-goal position for the Rams’ final score of the game.

While the clapping “skol” chant was reignited by a third-quarter Minnesota touchdown, the Rams defense cleared out the Vikings fans in the fourth quarter to allow their traveling community to soak this one in.

Michael Hoecht and Braden Fiske teamed up for the Rams’ seventh sack, which sent half the Vikings fans to the exit with 12:54 to play. The remaining half filed out with Los Angeles’ eighth sack by Neville Gallimore with 4:53 to play.

At the end, it was all Los Angeles, as the thoughts and messages circled back to the reason everyone was in Arizona on Monday night.

Within sight all night long was a banner across the southeast endzone thanking the firefighters and first responders to the Los Angeles wildfires. “LA Together” was printed at the back of both endzones and emblazoned on a tifo during the pregame, while Rachel Patten performed “Fight Song” over a montage of images of those firefighters and first responders from back home.

Super Bowl champion Andrew Whitworth wore an LAFD shirt and addressed the crowd with a uniting message before the game. Aaron Donald travelled and showcased an LAFD hat. Dodgers star Mookie Betts attended and flashed an "L-A" hand sign to the crowd. They were together for LA.

The proceeds of the 50/50 raffle were being donated towards the firefighter’s foundation and relief efforts, as were “LAFD” Rams hats and shirts on sale in the stadium. Even halftime performer Xzibit implored the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights in recognition of those still at home fighting the blazes during his finale. They were together for LA.

Many say sports are a necessary distraction in times of crisis.

Myself and the thousands of others in a makeshift Rams House will tell you they are a uniting force, a community bond and a rallying point for the strength of people.

By the strength of Los Angeles, Rams House was not a place, but a people. LA Together.