The Rams House is often overrun by outsiders, especially when the 49ers come to town. They return on Thursday night.
Coach Sean McVay has his fingers crossed that Rams fans will show up.
“We certainly hope so,” McVay told reporters on Monday. “I think they’ve obviously got a great fan base. I blame my grandpa [former 49ers G.M. John McVay] for that, a lot of the success they had in their early years. But I’ve loved the home atmospheres we’ve had this year. I look at the Texans and yesterday’s game, I certainly felt our crowd. I thought it was an advantage and an edge to us and I’m looking forward to seeing as many Rams fans come out and support us on Thursday night. The 49ers always travel well, but I’m hopeful and optimistic.”
There’s no reason for Rams fans to not be excited about their team. The team is 3-1. They’re squarely in the Super Bowl window. They nearly beat the Eagles in Philadelphia.
The problem is far more fundamental than 49ers fans from San Francisco making the 385-mile trip to Inglewood on a work/school night. The NFL abandoned the L.A. market for 20 years. A generation of football fans grew up with the ability to pick a favorite team unrelated to geography.
Think of it this way. When the thousands of 49ers fans who grew up in L.A. learned that the Rams were returning, did they pivot to the erstwhile home team or did they adhere to their allegiances?
So when 49ers fans inevitably invade SoFi Stadium on Thursday night, plenty of them won’t be coming all the way from San Francisco. They’ll be making a short drive to the Rams House from their own house.