Early home games, winnable matchups on Los Angeles Rams schedule


By Alden Gonzalez


The NFL has released its 2017 regular-season schedule. Here's a look at what's in store for the Los Angeles Rams.

Breakdown: The Rams won't have so much of a backloaded home schedule this year. The 2016 season featured only two games at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum within the first eight weeks. This year's starts with back-to-back home games and three of them within the first five weeks. There seem to be a lot of winnable games here, too. And it starts with the NFC West, where the Cardinals have seemingly taken a step back and the 49ers are in the initial stages of a rebuild. It looks like only four games (on the road against the Cowboys and Giants, and twice against the Seahawks) will come against what many consider legitimate playoff contenders. Two others (on the road against the Jaguars and Titans) will come against teams that are seemingly on the rise.

All the feels for Sean McVay: The Rams' 31-year-old rookie head coach will get an interesting test early on. In Week 2, he will host his former team, the Redskins, after spending the last three years as their offensive coordinator. That Sunday, on Sept. 17, he will re-unite with his former quarterback, Kirk Cousins, and one of his key mentors, Jay Gruden. And then, a mere four days later, McVay will match up with another one of his key mentors, Kyle Shanahan, when the Rams travel to face the 49ers on Thursday Night Football. It accounts for the Rams' only nationally televised regular-season game.

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