Sean McVay didn’t wait for the blame game to start after the Rams’ 27-7 loss to the 49ers in Australia. He opened his postgame news conference by acknowledging that “narratives” were coming and that some people would “appropriately, put the blame on me.”
And he didn’t duck it.
McVay said he accepts responsibility for the defeat, but he stood by the Rams’ decision to arrive in Australia less than 30 hours before kickoff for the first-ever game played there. The timing of the trip immediately became part of the conversation after a season-opening dud from a team many had pegged as a Super Bowl favorite.
“I don't believe that's why we didn't play well enough,” he said. “I really don't.
I'm more than comfortable with that. I'll always make decisions that I think are best for the football team.
It's easy in hindsight to be able to say it was it was a miss. But those are responsibilities that I'll take and then you try to be able to look at it.
I'll always look at myself inside out and figure out where I can improve.”
What happened on the field looked nothing like a contender. The Rams were outgained by nearly 100 yards, went just 2 of 9 on third down and let the 49ers move the chains on more than half of their third-down tries.
Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes, including scores to Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel. Christian McCaffrey finished with 88 total yards, and Fred Warner added 11 tackles and a forced fumble.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, had too many of its biggest names disappear. Matthew Stafford endured what McVay called his worst game in recent memory, finishing with 155 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.
Davante Adams didn’t catch a pass until midway through the third quarter and ended with three receptions on six targets. Myles Garrett never recorded a sack or even a tackle.
McVay said there were other issues beyond travel. He pointed to the Rams’ inability to turn early momentum into points, said communication broke down “on either side of the ball,” and conceded that the 49ers “outplayed us in every phase.”
“They deserve the win,” McVay said. “I think that's really what it boils down to.
And sometimes sports can have days like that. And like I said, this will only define us if we allow it to.
And I'm looking forward to leaning in, going back to work. And today was humbling, but sometimes life can do that to you.
We've got a lot of football left, and we're not going to allow this one game to do anything other than help us learn and grow.”
The Rams did have a chance to make it a one-score game late in the third quarter. Instead, Stafford was stopped on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line, and the 49ers answered with a 99-yard drive in 11 plays. Purdy finished it with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Samuel for a 24-7 lead.
From there, the Rams leaned away from their running game, which had been one of the few parts working, and the offense became easier to read. Los Angeles turned it over on the next possession, San Francisco added a field goal, and McVay pulled Stafford with 3:05 left.
“We got outplayed,” McVay said. “They did a good job.
We didn't, and you know, there's a lot of football left to be played. And I love that locker room.
I love our coaching staff. And today will be an opportunity for us to learn it, and we're going to find out what we're about.
And I'm excited to be able to lean in, and certainly I make no excuses. And you know, it starts with me, and I got to do a better job for our group.”
McVay also apologized to the large Rams contingent in attendance at what was the seventh largest crowd for a regular-season game in NFL history. But he finished by making clear that the travel plan was made strictly with football in mind.
“We thought that was the best plan of attack in terms of our approach,” he said. “We didn't have the result that we wanted today, but you know, you could certainly say it was great to be able to get the feel for the culture here.
That didn't have anything to do with us not wanting to embrace that. It was just what we thought was best, and unfortunately, we didn't have the result that we wanted and didn't play the way that we were capable of.”
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