Los Angeles Rams likely headed to China for 2018 “home game”

For some reason, the NFL seems determined to play a regular season game in China in 2018, and the Los Angeles Rams will reportedly be the home team.

Talk about a different kind of hard knocks. The Los Angeles Rams haven’t even moved into their new digs yet in California and the NFL already wants to move one of the team’s upcoming home games far away. As in China. ESPN Insider Adam Schefter was Johnny on the spot, as always:

Word of a possible NFL regular season game in China broke a few days ago thanks to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports, who also reported that the NFL is eyeing Germany for a game in 2017. As for a venue in China, that’s apparently no problem, as SB Nation reminds us that Beijing National Stadium, better known as the Bird’s Nest during the 2008 Summer Olympics, is among one of several sites that could host an NFL-sized crowd.

That’s assuming, of course, that there’s enough interest in American football for the Chinese to fill up a stadium. But if there’s one thing everyone should realize about the NFL by now, it’s that it wouldn’t consider a move like this unless it was convinced it was a can’t miss proposition.

Lost amid the early coverage is this question: Why the Rams? Though all involved will no doubt tow the company line when the 2018 season rolls around and talk up the China game as an unbelievable opportunity/experience, it’s not going to feel like that for the players when they actually have to travel to play the game. It’s true that the Rams are representing a huge market that is physically close to China, relatively speaking, and that the team’s new stadium won’t be ready by 2018.

But it still feels almost … punitive to make the Rams give up a home game so early into their relocation. Nothing is set in stone yet, so it’s possible the NFL will make some other team take the China adventure instead, but as it stands now, this is looking like the most curious of the league’s recent decisions.