Sean McVay braced himself.
After receiving bad news about player injuries the day after the first two games of the season, the Rams coach arrived at the team facility Monday confident but also wary.
On Sunday, immediately following the Rams’ 27-24 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, team medical personnel indicated players suffered no major injuries. Still McVay, perhaps shell-shocked from the previous weeks, steeled himself for a possible change.
“If you’re asking if that was something that I was holding my breath about,” McVay said during a videoconference with reporters, “well, hell yeah.”
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As it turned out, no news was entirely welcome news for McVay, who said Reggie Scott, the Rams’ vice-president of sports medicine and performance, confirmed the initial postgame report.
“A couple little nicks and bruises but nothing that’s going to keep anybody out,” McVay said.
That is a stark departure from the first two weeks, when the Rams lost six significant players because of injuries.
In the season-opening defeat by the Detroit Lions, receiver Puka Nacua (knee) and offensive linemen Steve Avila (knee) and Joe Noteboom (ankle) went down. All are on injured reserve. The earliest they can return is for an Oct. 20 game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
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In a rout by the Arizona Cardinals, the Rams lost receiver Cooper Kupp (ankle), offensive lineman Jonah Jackson (shoulder) and safety John Johnson III (shoulder). Kupp remains out indefinitely — he will not play against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, McVay said — and Jackson and Johnson are on injured reserve. Jackson and Johnson cannot return until an Oct. 24 game against the Minnesota Vikings.
No new injuries means the Rams can prepare for the Bears with a semblance of continuity. The offensive line and quarterback Matthew Stafford and receivers could benefit most.
“We talk about a process: there hasn’t been a process when we can’t work together,” McVay said, adding, “I’m very glad that we came out of this clean and now I want to see us continue to improve.”
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
