MELBOURNE, Australia \u2014 The Los Angeles Rams are like the kid who doesn\u2019t study for the big exam, shows up at the last minute and hopes his natural talent and improvisational skills earn him a passing grade.<\/p>\n
And if that happens, it\u2019ll leave his twin, the one who studied for a week, did all his homework and painstakingly made all the necessary preparations, mad as hell.<\/p>\n
Welcome, Australian fans, to 49ers versus Rams, which, with all due respect to Jim and John Harbaugh, is the NFL\u2019s biggest sibling rivalry.<\/p>\n
The Seattle Seahawks might be the reigning champions of the NFL and the NFC West. They even smoked Super Bowl victory cigars inside San Francisco\u2019s home locker room in February. But the 49ers and Rams aren\u2019t nearly as obsessed with the Seahawks as they are with each other, largely because they\u2019re so similar.<\/p>\n
Rams head coach Sean McVay, of course, learned his craft under Kyle Shanahan in Washington. They became head coaches at the same time in 2017; they run the same offense; they compete for the same players; they hire the same assistants. They\u2019re the NFL versions of Cain and Abel.<\/p>\n
Which is why their divergent paths to the Southern Hemisphere stand out.<\/p>\n
The teams couldn\u2019t have taken more different approaches<\/a>. While the 49ers arrived one week ago and have done everything the league has wanted \u2014 visit coffee shops, attend a footie game, chat up Australian media members and otherwise make NFL inroads in a foreign land \u2014 the Rams haven\u2019t done nearly as much.<\/p>\n Their trip amounts to a pop-in. They had a media session and practice yesterday afternoon (Thursday, Melbourne time). They\u2019ll show up for today\u2019s three-hour contest at Melbourne Cricket Ground, then jet back to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat gives me confidence is I\u2019m not going to really make it a big deal,\u201d McVay said this week about the team\u2019s approach to the Australia trip. \u201cIt\u2019s, \u2018Hey, this is what the reality is. We\u2019ve got a long way to go, but let\u2019s be ready to rock when that three-hour window that we\u2019re allotted comes.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n In that way, a loss might not be such a big deal for the Rams. They didn\u2019t spend much time or many resources on the trip. They didn\u2019t even take Aaron Donald<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lose to the 49ers and, like the kid who blew off the exam, the Rams can easily explain it away: \u201cBro, I barely studied! What\u2019d you expect?\u201d<\/p>\n But if the 49ers lose?<\/p>\n Oof.<\/p>\n George Kittle, 49ers have enjoyed Australia visit<\/p>\n Matt Barrows<\/p>\n