WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. — The Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers will meet nearly 8,000 miles from home in their season opener, but the NFC West rivals are taking dramatically different routes to Melbourne.
While the 49ers are already in Australia adjusting to the 17-hour time difference, the Rams will spend most of the coming week practicing at their Woodland Hills training facility before making a late departure for the NFL’s first regular-season game in Australia.
San Francisco left the Bay Area on Wednesday night aboard a chartered Qantas A380 and landed in Melbourne on Friday morning local time following a flight of more than 15 hours. The 49ers are scheduled to hold a light workout Saturday before taking Sunday off and beginning their normal game-week practice schedule Monday at AAMI Park.
The Rams, meanwhile, will remain in Southern California through Tuesday. They are scheduled to practice Sunday from 2:45 to 4:20 p.m., Monday from 2 to 3:40 p.m. and Tuesday from 1:40 to 3:20 p.m. at their facility on Owensmouth Avenue in Woodland Hills.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford and receiver Davante Adams are scheduled to speak Sunday, followed by defensive lineman Aaron Donald and receiver Puka Nacua on Monday. Defensive end Myles Garrett is scheduled to address the media following Tuesday’s practice.
The contrasting schedules reflect two very different theories about how to prepare for one of the longest road trips in NFL history. The 49ers want nearly a full week in Melbourne to recover from the flight and acclimate to the local time zone before facing the Rams at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
“The people we’ve talked to, you don’t feel normal until like the third or fourth day,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said earlier this year while explaining the team’s decision to leave nine days before the game. “So, we’d like to go out seven days early. But since it takes a day and a half to travel there, we’re going to go nine.”
The 49ers’ flight landed at approximately 7:50 a.m. Friday in Melbourne after traveling 7,855 miles. The team prepared personalized hydration and sleep instructions for players during the trip, with approximately eight hours of sleep targeted during the flight.
Los Angeles is taking a much more aggressive approach. Rather than attempting to adjust its players’ internal clocks to Melbourne time, the Rams intend to preserve their normal rhythm for as long as possible. Because the game begins at 10:35 a.m. Friday in Melbourne, it will feel like a 5:35 p.m. Thursday kickoff to players who remain on Pacific time.
The Rams reportedly studied the effects of the trip by sending members of the organization between Los Angeles and Melbourne during the offseason. Their conclusion was that preparing at home, traveling as close to the game as possible and returning immediately afterward could limit the disruption caused by jet lag.
“I would say the essence of what it really comes from is what we learned in COVID, that the more that we can keep guys in their normal rhythm and routine, the better off,” Rams coach Sean McVay said last month. “Everything that we do is geared toward what we think is best for our players.”
McVay had kept the details of the itinerary private but acknowledged that the Rams would leave “later than most people would probably expect.” The team is expected to depart Wednesday and arrive in Melbourne on Thursday, approximately 24 hours before kickoff.
The Rams are scheduled to hold their only practice in Australia at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at Marvel Stadium. McVay, Stafford and select players will speak afterward. By comparison, the 49ers will practice at AAMI Park on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, giving them three full game-week workouts in Melbourne.
The NFL has also adjusted its injury-reporting requirements because of the unusual travel schedule. The Rams and 49ers will not be required to submit their first injury reports until Tuesday following practice. McVay will speak Friday and again before Sunday’s practice but will not discuss injuries, practice participation or player availability until the reporting window opens.
The game will be played Friday, Sept. 11, at 10:35 a.m. Australian Eastern Standard Time at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which seats approximately 100,000. It will air live in Los Angeles on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 5:35 p.m. Pacific time.
By the time the Rams board their flight, the 49ers will have spent nearly a week living and practicing in Melbourne. Whether full acclimation or a rapid in-and-out mission proves more effective will become one of the most closely watched storylines surrounding the historic opener.