Rams vicious NFC West Division rivalry opens to international audience

It was clear from the final 2025 NFL standings that the Los Angeles Rams are competing in the toughest NFL division by a mile. And the projections for 2026 indicate that the competition will be just as heated, as some oddsmakers project three NFC West Division teams at 10.5 wins or better.

That sets the stage for a showdown that everybody anticipates as a clash of NFL superpowers to open the 2026 NFL season. And that game will be hosted halfway around the globe, in Melbourne, Australia.

The San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams are slated to debut as the first NFL football game to be played in Australia. It just so happens that the NFL could not have made a better matchup, as both teams have legitimate shots at showing up in Super Bowl LXI

After two seasons as the arguable runner-up to the Super Bowl, Los Angeles is girding up its loins for another gauntlet run to the postseason. To be competitive, general manager Les Snead must spend wisely in both the free agency market and the upcoming NFL draft. That won't be an easy task, as the team will need instant contributors.

Snead has already indicated a willingness to go all in with Matthew Stafford's return.

Rams face another frequent flier season ahead

The LA Rams return a top-scoring offense, a defense that showed some promise in 2025, and a special teams unit that is under severe pressure to improve rapidly. Los Angeles has already made some impressive coaching hires, giving fans solid reasons to feel optimistic.

Still, there is that demanding 2026 schedule. Despite playing just eight away games, the LA Rams face another frequent flier season, with travel miles projected to top over 20,000 miles. Los Angeles is fortunate in that it faces a second-place team's schedule in 2026. The first-place team's schedule in 2025 was absolutely brutal.

Some fans may not appreciate this concept, but that season opener holds a significant bearing on the eventual NFL playoffs. A loss to San Fran to open the season essentially places LA two games behind. The loss not only counts on the standings, but it affords the Niners the tie-breaker advantage.

Fans realize that impact far too late in the season. If all things are created equal, it's the tie-breaker that determines which teams compete in the postseason. Those subtle differences should not be ignored, no matter how early in the season they are determined.

A playoff game to open the 2026 NFL season? It won't get any better for the folks Down Under than this. Hopefully, a season-opening victory will make it all worth it for Los Angeles as well.

As always, thanks for reading.