Rams expect to move into new Woodland Hills headquarters next week — probably
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams are set to move into their new complex next week. Probably.
They were supposed to start using the new facility in Woodland Hills, California, at the start of August. But hiccups putting the finishing touches on it meant the Rams returned to California Lutheran University for the past three weeks after the conclusion of training camp at Loyola Marymount University.
Barring any more snafus, the Rams should be moving in next week following a joint practice at the Houston Texans on Thursday and their preseason finale on Saturday
“We’ve been here before, so I wouldn’t rule anything out,” coach Sean McVay said after practice on Tuesday. “I have no idea. If Woodland Hills is ready to roll, then this will be the last day. If not, then we’ll be back here. I’ve sat here before and said, ‘Hey, it was great being here,’ and here we are again here.”
The nondescript, low-slung gray bungalows in Thousand Oaks have been the Rams’ home for eight seasons since returning to Los Angeles in 2016. It was always intended to be a temporary base of operations, but the less-than-glamorous arrangement took some getting used to.
Linebacker Troy Reeder remembers seeing it for the first time as a undrafted free agent in 2019, one of a few rookies being driven up in a van who were perplexed an NFL team could operate in such conditions.
“It’s funny because most of the guys did their research before, and there was like, ‘Wow, this is where we’re training? Like, where is everything?’” Reeder said. “You know, it’s not much to look at, but it didn’t take long to become home.”
After the Rams hired McVay in January 2017, the spartan accommodations didn’t seem to matter as much. Los Angeles made the playoffs in five of the past seven seasons, reached the Super Bowl twice and won the Lombardi Trophy in its home stadium in February 2022.
Reeder carved out his own solid career and is going into his fifth season in two stints with the Rams. He started in the Super Bowl victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
“It’s been all good for me, honestly,” he said. “Good memories.”
The major downside to being at the intersection of the Santa Monica and Santa Susana Mountains was that practice could be scuttled when the Santa Ana winds picked up in the autumn months. Reeder recalled working out on the basketball court in the California Lutheran gymnasium as a backup venue when gusts would exceed 40 miles per hour.
“I’ve seen these heavy goal posts blow across the field, the ones on wheels,” he said. “It’s pretty crazy. It’s a big, like, welcome to California.”
Moving to Woodland Hills will mean swapping strong wind for higher temperatures in the summer and early fall.
McVay held early practices this week to prepare for the intense heat of Houston, and they might be necessary in the often sweltering San Fernando Valley. He would prefer to continue holding morning walkthroughs and afternoon practices during the regular season, but would not rule out changes.
“It wouldn’t be in alignment with the teaching progression where you walk through some stuff, then you do it out in a full speed,” McVay said. “Would you ever say that you never couldn’t? I wouldn’t say that.”
Reeder doesn’t think it will be difficult to manage the heat.
“We do a pretty good job of preparing for hydration and different things like that,” he said. “I’d be lying if I said I’d be excited if it was 105 (degrees) versus 95, but to us, we got to get our work in.”
Reeder is also looking forward to an upgraded setup in Woodland Hills, although it is not the finished product. Rams owner Stan Kroenke bought nearly 100 acres to build a mixed-use development with residential, commercial and retail space alongside a permanent team headquarters.
This iteration is essentially an upgraded version of the temporary setup that currently exists in Thousand Oaks, but something new is better than nothing to players, coaches, executives and support staff.
“I think the excitement of being in a new facility with some new equipment, new stuff and more space will be worth the move,” Reeder said.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
By DAN GREENSPAN
Associated Press
