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Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams caught an early-season break.
The Los Angeles Rams unveiled their 2026 regular-season schedule, and some good news for head coach Sean McVay and Co. accompanied it.
McVay is “excited” about the setup for the Rams.
He noted what his key points are when examining the schedule, as well as his true feelings about the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks and the historic season-opening matchup against the San Francisco 49ers in Australia.
GettyThe NFL did not do Kyle Shanahan and the San Francisco 49ers any favors on their Week 1 tilt against the Los Angeles Rams.
Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio noted that 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan wanted a break from the NFL, only for the league to turn around and hand that benefit to McVay and the Rams.
It will come in the wake of the showdown in The Land Down Under.
“Shanahan wanted his team’s Week 2 game to happen on Monday night,” Florio wrote on May 14. “That isn’t happening for the 49ers. Instead, the Rams will get the extra day to adjust and recover after playing in Australia.
“Only one of the two Australia teams could have gotten the extra day. Still, some will wonder whether Shanahan’s public gripes prompted a little twist of the knife by the league office. At times, the powers-that-be can have a very long memory — and they sometimes don’t react well to public complaints.”
McVay noted the advantage of having that additional day to readjust stateside before their next contest.
That will be at home against the New York Giants on “Monday Night Football.”
“I was glad to be able to see. It sounds like coming back is going to be the real challenge. So, it’s good to have that Monday night game. Give us a couple more days to turn over,” McVay said on “SportsCenter” on May 14.
“I always look at that opener. We kind of knew that, obviously, a while ago. And it’s going to be a great challenge. But it sounds like it’ll be an exciting venue to be able to play in.”
The 49ers will host the Miami Dolphins in Week 2.
Still, Florio urged Shanahan to continue expressing his grievances with the NFL. McVay and the Rams already benefited from avoiding facing the 49ers in Mexico, which Shanahan wanted in direct response to having to play in Australia.
McVay and the Rams split their two meetings against the 49ers last season, with their loss coming in overtime in Week 5.
GettySean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams will be on primetime often during the 2026 regular season.
McVay and the Rams will match the NFL record with seven primetime games during the 2026 season. That is in addition to their historic game in Australia and the NFL’s first-ever game played on Thanksgiving Eve.
“I think you got to earn it,” McVay said of the spotlight. “This league is so humbling. You obviously look at it. But it’s the coaching cliche, but it’s the truth: It’s one week at a time. Try to be totally present. We’re going to use every day in the meantime to get ready to peak going into that Niners game. But it’s a great challenge.
“This is all fun, but every single year is a great challenge in this league. We’re excited to be able to get the opportunity to play in some of those games.”
McVay also revealed his priorities when viewing the schedule.
“The first thing I’m looking at, what’s our opener? When’s the bye? When are some of those Thursday short weeks?” McVay said.
“What you can’t help but notice is that we play on five days of the week throughout the season. And then, shoot, you never know. One of those flex games, if it goes to Saturday, we’ll check every day off except for Tuesday. It’ll be fun.”
McVay said that he loves the Rams’ bye being in Week 11, calling it “a perfect time” for it.
GettyMike Macdonald and the Seattle Seahawks await the Los Angeles Rams at the end of the regular season.
McVay did not lament the travel to Australia, as Shanahan did, when recently discussing it, citing his faith in the Rams’ staff to figure out the logistics.
However, asked about LA’s two late-season tilts with the Seahawks, McVay stayed safe.
“You’re getting ahead of yourself, big boy,” McVay told ESPN’s Peter Schrager, who asked about the matchups. “Here’s what I know. I know there’s a ton of respect for the reigning Super Bowl champs. They earned it. They were a great team from the very beginning all the way through.”
McVay said they are “going to take it one week at a time. And, you know, when that game comes, we’ll be excited about it. And I’m hoping for a good day after, with the family, after Christmas.”
LA lost both regular-season contests and the NFC Championship Game against the Seahawks.
Josh Buckhalter covers the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com. He has covered both leagues since 2016, including bylines at FanSided, Last Word on Sports and Clocker Sports. He's based in Villa Park, Illinois. Follow Josh on Twitter and Instagram: @JoshGBuck More about Josh Buckhalter
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