July 2020 brings LA Rams to training camp, are they ready?

LA Rams News: Training camps for NFL teams being in July 2020. Will the LA Rams be ready?

The LA Rams are just one of 32 NFL teams about to shift gear to overdrive in preparation for the 2020 NFL season. That 2020 NFL season with so many questions about how it will be played, how will fans observe it being played, or even if it will be played?  Yes, that one. A season with so many questions to be answered, one that we’ve pushed all concerns to the back of our minds and pressed on in the belief that it will all work out.  We’ll soon find out whether that is true.

We’ve made it this far, and that is a long and arduous journey in itself.  NFL teams had literally transformed overnight from hands-on coaches and players in close proximity to the new long-distance virtual meetings and training camp. Gatherings brought unacceptable health risks to individuals and communities. So social distancing became the rule. Protective face masks became the rule.  Self-quarantine became the norm.  How could an NFL team reacquaint, learn the new offensive and defensive playbook, and orient 30-50 new players to the team?

Virtual theory to virtual reality

That’s quite a challenge right out of the gate, isn’t it?  Not only was the ask about connecting 2,880 players, but interconnecting 90 players per team to coaches, team resources, partition the roster between veterans and rookies, newcomers and returning players, offense and defense, position assignments.  But the NFL information technology (IT) departments were up to the task. Team meetings were conducted in virtual reality. Most teams enjoyed the full bells and whistles that go with online education and seminars as well.

While it was all theory, chalkboard, video demonstrations, and discussions, that can only take a team, and a player hoping to land a limited roster spot on that team, so far. And the NFL squeezed the virtual meetings option to its fullest, connecting with veterans and rookies alike, as the team reacquainted both the coaching staff and player changes to everyone. The 2019 LA Rams are no more. Viva La 2020 LA Rams!