Days before their divisional round matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams edge rusher Jared Verse made some comments about his feelings towards Philly fans. Although some agreed with Verse's comments, Eagles players clapped back with their own comments on the Rams' standout rookie defender. And with Rams head coach Sean McVay sitting back and watching it all unfold, he had his rookie's back, per Gary Klein of The Los Angeles Times on X.
“Sean McVay on Jared Verse comments re Eagles fans: ‘He told his truth. I’m riding with the Rams.' ”
Now, while Saquon Barkley and Darius Slay seemed to have had differing opinions than McVay, it's pretty clear why.
McVay is Verse's head coach — and although he might not have fully agreed to what his rookie said behind closed doors — that wouldn't be the right thing to say publicly before a matchup this important.
Since becoming the head coach of the Rams in 2017, McVay has had an array of characters to keep in check, including Super Bowl champion Aaron Donald.
There were plenty of times that Donald did or said something that might not have been the best idea, but McVay stands behind his players. Now, obviously, if players are breaking the law or something along those lines, he doesn't necessarily back the actions, but he's shown to be a great player's coach.
Now, as the Rams look to play spoiler in the divisional round, there could be some added drama between both teams.
And with the weather expected to be around 31 degrees at kickoff, both teams could have players who aren't too excited about it. In fact, Australian native Jordan Mailata of the Eagles was miserable in the Wild Card round when they defeated the Green Bay Packers 22-10.
Something that isn't being mentioned enough during this whole Verse-Eagles beef is the fact that the Rams' rookie is actually from Pennsylvania, going to high school in Bloomsburg, PA, just under 150 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
So, given his past growing up in the area, it's something Verse feels very strongly about. Sure, some people might take it the wrong way, but it's playoff football. Emotions are high, causing Verse to express his true feelings about Eagles fans.
Maybe after he's been in the NFL a few years, he'll learn what not to say before a playoff game, but it's not inherently bad to smack-talk the opponent before a playoff game.
It might look bad if the Rams lose, but if they win, there probably won't be much said about it.