Rams are betting they can beat jet lag by ignoring it in wild 16-hour Australia gamble

Late Tuesday night, somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, the Los Angeles Rams will attempt to pull off their most ambitious play of the season well before head coach Sean McVay ever calls one.The strategy seems simple: Fly nearly 16 hours to Australia, cross the international date line, land in Melbourne Thursday (local time), check into the hotel, go to sleep and wake up and play an NFL game.California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.

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Never miss a story Meanwhile, the team’s opponent, the San Francisco 49ers have already been on the ground in Melbourne for days, acclimating to the time change.The Rams are deliberately doing the opposite.

Naturally, only one of these strategies will prevail.McVay and the Rams chose to remain in Los Angeles as long as possible before departing late Tuesday night for their season opener against their longtime NFC West rivals at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground at 10:35 a.m.Friday (local time), 5:30 p.m.

PT Thursday.The Rams’ theory is an assault on jet lag: Don’t give the body enough time to realize where it is.“We’ll sleep through the night, and then we’ll get there and have kind of a rhythm,” McVay said before practice Sunday.There is at least one significant perk: The 53 football players won’t be attempting to sleep upright in economy.“They’ve got full lay-flat beds,” McVay said.“All of our players have that.”The massive charter will allow everyone to fully stretch out and sleep, an important component of a travel strategy developed with the Rams’ sports medicine and performance staff.

McVay said the organization also consulted people from other sports and others experienced with similar long-distance travel.The Rams even tested elements of the plan beforehand.“It’s about keeping guys in their normal rhyt...