Rams Near Deal To Spend Part of Training Camp With Cowboys In CA

Rams may spend part of training camp in California

By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/rams-report/rams-may-spend-part-of-training-camp-in-california/article_76693aeb-913a-55b1-b18b-aa28c7c79780.html

The Rams, who may be moving permanently to Los Angeles in 2016, may be spending several days of training camp this August in southern California.

According to a Dallas Morning News blog, the Cowboys are close to finalizing a deal to have the Rams visit them for several days at their summer training camp home in Oxnard, Calif., about 60 miles north of Los Angeles.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke plans to build a stadium in Inglewood, Calif., and the NFL says it’s possible there could be one or two teams playing in the Los Angeles area in 2016.

According to Rams executive vice president of football operations Kevin Demoff, coach Jeff Fisher is hoping to scrimmage another team during the team’s 2015 training camp.

Demoff confirmed that the Rams have talked to the Cowboys about holding joint practices in Oxnard, but that nothing was finalized and there is a chance that no joint practices would be held at all.

Demoff said there also has been some “very initial” discussion of potentially holding joint practices with the Indianapolis Colts.

Whether the Rams practice in California will depend in part on the finalized preseason schedule, which could come out as early as Tuesday when the regular-season schedule is announced. The Rams open their 2015 preseason at Oakland, with the game expected to be played sometime in the Aug. 14-16 range (a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday).

If the joint practices with the Cowboys take place, they would likely be held for a few days after the Oakland game.

In his first three seasons with the Rams, Fisher did not hold joint practices with another team. But he did so frequently during his long tenure with the Tennessee Titans, including twice against the Rams: in 2000 at Western Illinois University when the Rams trained there, and in 2008 at Tennessee’s training facility in Nashville.

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Rams, Cowboys discuss training together in California

By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/17780/rams-cowboys-discussing-training-together

EARTH CITY, Mo. — West coast fans of the St. Louis Rams might be getting an earlier opportunity to see their team than even they expected.

The Rams, who are currently one of three teams pegged for a potential return to Los Angeles as early as 2016, are in the midst of discussions with the Dallas Cowboys to spend some time scrimmaging against each other during the preseason. The Cowboys train in Oxnard, California, about 65 miles from Los Angeles.

While nothing has been finalized yet, those talks have centered on the Rams staying in California after their preseason opener against the Oakland Raiders for a handful of practices against the Cowboys before traveling directly to Tennessee to play the Titans on Aug. 23. Dallas opens its preseason slate in San Diego. The first group of preseason games is scheduled to take place between Aug. 13-17.

Whether those talks are finalized or not will depend largely on how the schedules of the teams lay out. The NFL will announce dates and times for all games Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET.

It’s been common practice on the Dallas side to have other teams help break the monotony of camp by coming in for scrimmages during training camp. The Cowboys have practiced against San Diego and the Raiders in recent years.

While the potential of the Rams playing near the Los Angeles area is sure to draw the ire of some St. Louis fans, the bulk of the movement on this front stems from Rams coach Jeff Fisher’s desire to get his team some work against a different team this preseason.

The Rams have also had discussions with the Indianapolis Colts about training together. Training with either team would represent a departure from the first three years under Fisher when the Rams have trained alone at Rams Park.

Of course, the possibility of the Rams training in the Los Angeles area would raise some eyebrows given what’s currently going on in the market. The Rams left Los Angeles for St. Louis 20 years ago and are now rumored to be on their way back.

Rams owner Stan Kroenke is part of a group that plans to build a new 80,000-seat football stadium in Inglewood, California. That project will be presented to NFL executives and the six-owner Committee on Los Angeles Opportunities this week in advance of next month’s owners meetings in San Francisco.