LA Rams Won’t Commit to White House Visit if They Win the Super Bowl

NFL team will face the New England Patriots this Sunday, but after the game — well, things are up in the air

By Tom Joyce | January 30, 2019

If they win Super Bowl LIII this coming Sunday, it is possible the Los Angeles Rams will not visit President Donald Trump at the White House at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

When asked about a potential visit this week, members of the team would not commit to making the trip — leaving room for the possibility that they don’t end up going.

Related: The Five Most Memorable Super Bowl Moments of All Time

Rams head coach Sean McVay told reporters at a press conference the team is “undecided” on what they will do if they win Sunday’s big game.

“I think that the biggest thing is if we’re fortunate enough to win this game, then we talk about what’s next with regard to those steps, and that’s exactly how we’ll approach it,” the 33-year-old head coach said.

“The first thing is we have to win this game. And that’s going to be a great challenge for us, so that’s really kind of where we’re at.”

“We’re solely focused on trying to win the game against an excellent football team that’s been doing as well as anybody over the last handful of years,” he added. “The luxuries or some of the opportunities that are presented as a result of winning that are things that we will have to filter through as an organization after this.”

Players are not particularly committed to a potential White House visit, either.

Cornerback Aqib Talib said, “We got to worry about preparing for the game first.”

Related: ‘Harry Potter’ Star Is Not Happy About Tom Brady’s Trump Friendship

And defensive tackle Michael Brockers said, “I haven’t really thought about it. That will be after the game. We have to play the game first.”

In contrast, if they end up winning, the New England Patriots would most likely end up attending the White House once again.

Team owner Robert Kraft, head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady are all friendly with President Donald Trump.

And when the team won the Super Bowl in 2017, more than 30 players from the team paid the president a visit.

Skipping White House visits has become more common for athletic teams these days, though — the Philadelphia Eagles skipped a visit after winning the Super Bowl in 2018.

And the Golden State Warriors did not make the trip after winning the NBA championship in 2017 or 2018; many players have been vocally opposed to the president.

For more on this story, check out the video below:

Tom Joyce is a freelance writer from the South Shore of Massachusetts. He covers sports, pop culture, and politics and has contributed to The Federalist, Newsday, and other outlets.

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

Read more at LifeZette.com:
Tulsi Gabbard’s Campaign for the White House: Is It in Jeopardy?
Trump Warns Congressional Negotiators to Deliver a Border Wall
Nick Searcy: Gosnell’s Crimes Have Been ‘Legalized’ by the State of New York

Mentioned in this article: