The Arizona Cardinals are reportedly embarking on a mission to save their division rivals from the California wildfires.
The franchise is sending two of its team planes to Los Angeles to evacuate LA Rams players, their families, team personnel and pets and transport them to Arizona, according to ESPN.
Six dogs and two cats will join the human passengers.
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SoFi Stadium during a game between the Arizona Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams on January 3, 2021, in Inglewood, California. (Kevin Reece/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Cardinals are also offering their home field, State Farm Stadium, to the Rams for their playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings as wildfires continue to ravage Southern California. The Rams will also use the Cardinals’ training complex in Tempe.
The Rams considered staying one more night, but Tony Pastoors, the Rams’ vice president of football and business administration, said “hope is not a strategy,” according to the team.
The NFL announced Thursday that the game would be moved to Arizona.
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Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay reacts after a defensive stop during the first half of a game against the Arizona Cardinals on December 28, 2024, in Inglewood, California. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
Several wildfires, including the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire, have devastated communities in the Los Angeles area, including Pacific Palisades and Altadena. The fires burned nearly 30,000 acres during a windy spell in Santa Ana, with at least 130,000 people in the area under evacuation orders.
At least five people were killed in the fires and more than 1,000 buildings were destroyed.
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State Farm Stadium before a game between the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers in Glendale, Arizona on January 5, 2025. (Matt Kartozian/Imagn Images)
The Rams-Vikings game was moved “in the interest of public safety,” the NFL said in a statement. “The decision was made in consultation with public authorities, participating clubs and the NFLPA.”
Play will begin at 8 p.m. ET on Monday.
The Rams had an off day scheduled for Wednesday. THE Los Angeles Chargerswho share SoFi Stadium and travel to Houston for a wild-card game Saturday, limited the time players spent outside during practice due to poor air quality.
State Farm Stadium has played a similar role in the past. During the COVID season in 2020, the 49ers played three “home” games there. Before that, the Miami Dolphins and San Diego Chargers played in Tempe, Arizona at Sun Devil Stadium on October 27, 2003, due to wildfires in San Diego.
