THE Minnesota Vikingsled by quarterback Sam Darnold, will face theLos Angeles Ramsled by the quarterback Matthew Staffordduring Week 8 of the NFL season, Thursday, October 24, 2024 (10/24/24) at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
How to watch: Fans can watch the match for free via a trial of Amazon Prime.
Here’s what you need to know:
What: NFL, week 8
WHO: Vikings vs Rams
When: October 24, 2024
Or: SoFi Stadium
Time: 8:15 p.m. ET (7:15 p.m. CT)
TV: FOX 11 (Los Angeles)
LIVE STREAM: Amazon Prime
Here’s a recent NFL story from the AP:
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Sean McVay has developed a healthy coaching tree during his eight seasons with the team. Los Angeles Rams. Five of his former assistants became NFL head coaches, while several others were poached for bigger college and pro jobs.
One of the largest branches of that tree looms before McVay for the first time Thursday night when Kevin O’Connell directs his Minnesota Vikings (5-1) at SoFi Stadium.
O’Connell won a Super Bowl ring as McVay’s offensive coordinator with the Rams (2-4). He also learned many of the things he needed to succeed in Minnesota, where he made the Vikings a winner while putting USC product Sam Darnold in position to finally reaching his potential in the NFL.
O’Connell realizes the debt he owes to his horny ex-boss on the other side.
“He’s one of my closest friends in this league,” O’Connell said. “I have so much respect for him, for the way he runs this organization, for his leadership, for his football intelligence. He’s as good as it gets. I have nothing but love for him and we will always be like this.
O’Connell’s Vikings just took their first defeat of the season in Detroit last weekend, but they still look like Super Bowl contenders. McVay’s Rams don’t appear close to being in contention for their third season after their championship run, but they’re getting by an encouraging victory against Las Vegas.
“I’m not surprised,” McVay said of the Vikings’ success. “I thought he did a great job in various situations. … Kevin is a guy that has had tremendous influence and impact as a coach here. I’m happy for these guys.
McVay has always expressed his desire for his assistant coaches to advance in their careers. His top assistants typically emerge from the Rams with a deep understanding of what it takes to manage the myriad moving parts of an NFL team.
“That’s one of the things that probably made me feel so prepared for this job was his willingness to allow me to be a part of things like maybe at other places, offensive coordinators are not part of it,” O’Connell said. “I got to see a lot, learn a lot, ask a lot of questions – probably one too many for his liking.”
Kupp’s return
Super Bowl 56 MVP Cooper Kupp is expected to return from a four-game absence due to an ankle injury, and the Rams badly need his help. Their offense has struggled without top options Kupp and Puka Nacua for Matthew Stafford, whose 154 passing yards last week against Vegas were his fewest during his four-year tenure with the Rams.
Kupp has been in trade rumors this week, and it wouldn’t be shocking if the decidedly unsentimental Rams front office moved a beloved player who has been a franchise mainstay since 2017. But Kupp will at least get one game more in front of his home. fans against the Vikings, whose pass defense ranks 30th in the NFL with 260.3 yards allowed per game.
Respect for the recipient
When O’Connell arrived in Minnesota, the first question Justin Jefferson asked him was, “How is Cooper Kupp so open?”
Kupp’s success during the 2021 season was an important part of the Rams’ title run, and one of the reasons the Vikings hired O’Connell was his sense of game design and playmaking. passes to Jefferson. O’Connell and Jefferson continually talk about ways to beat the double teams that frequently present themselves to Jefferson, but the first step when they were introduced three years ago was a challenge for the precocious receiver.
“It was pretty much, ‘You have to learn the whole offense, you have to learn every position, you have to be connected to this concept, if you want to be one of the best receivers you can have.’ I want to be,” Jefferson said this week. “Since that day, I was definitely dialed in. I wanted to be wide open, even though I’m doubled and tripled. It’s all just part of it. of the system, it’s all part of the process.
Thursday evening lights
McVay has a history of doing well on a short week: his Rams went 6-2 in Thursday night games over his first seven seasons — and one of those losses was a blowout of the Week 1 against Buffalo in 2022. Its only Thursday loss on short rest was a one-point comeback victory in 2019 by Seattle.
Coming home
Darnold will enjoy the familiar sights of his home and the chance for his friends and family to be present in SoFi, but the nostalgic feelings will end there.
Darnold, who played at San Clemente High School in south Orange County and again at USC before being the third overall pick of the New York Jets in the 2018 draft, only played ‘only once in Southern California since he turned professional. It was 2020 without fans, when the The Jets improbably beat the Rams in one of McVay’s most embarrassing defeats.
“We’re just going there for a business trip, mostly for a short week, but it will be nice to see some family members and stuff before and after the game that I haven’t seen in a while ” Darnold said. . “I don’t have everyone coming here every weekend to come watch us play, so it would be nice for them to make a short drive to come watch me play.”
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Cayden Steele can be contacted at [email protected]
