LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sean McVay had to smile when he was asked how he managed to tear the plantar fascia in his left foot while running to call a timeout.
“I’m telling you it was because of the pure twitch that I still have,” McVay said with a laugh Wednesday.. “It just snapped. ... I did have to hop down there. I got the damn timeout, even on one leg.”
The Los Angeles Rams' longtime boss got injured last Sunday during his team's 33-19 win at Tennessee, but he won't need surgery or a walking boot before
he leads the Rams across the country to face defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia this weekend.
The 39-year-old McVay works out regularly, but his career as a receiver at Miami (Ohio) ended in 2007. He says he had felt previous pain in the band of tissue that runs along the sole of the foot from heel to toes.
“It had been bothering me for a little bit where I was a little bit restricted, and then I went to just explode down the sidelines for a timeout, and that thing popped in my heel,” McVay said. “It was temporarily painful, but it actually feels a lot better now. It’s a positive that I tore my plantar fascia. That’s a good thing, because it accelerates the healing. There’s no issues for me.”
The Rams (2-0) know they have more than enough issues to address as they prepare to face the Eagles (2-0), who beat Los Angeles twice last season on the way to the title. McVay hesitates to label the matchup as a measuring-stick game because it's only Week 3, but he knows the importance of the moment.
“I think it’s a fun narrative,” McVay said. “Every week when you get out there and you go play in this competitive league, every opportunity you have is a measuring stick. Is this a great challenge? You’re damn right it is. I have tremendous respect for their coaches and their players. They’ve gotten after us. They’ve gotten the results that they wanted. You can see it’s a combination of a lot of great things that they have going there.”
NOTES: DT Braden Fiske (oblique) and OG Steve Avila (ankle) didn't practice, while TE Colby Parkinson (shoulder) was limited. None of the three has been ruled out for Sunday, McVay said.
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