Rams players salute Ferguson

ST. LOUIS -- Five Rams players used the team's pregame introductions to offer a show of support for nearby Ferguson before Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders.

As the offense was introduced, Rams tight end Jared Cook and receivers Kenny Britt, Stedman Bailey, Chris Givens and Tavon Austin stopped near the tunnel and raised their hands in a nod to the fatal shooting of teenager Michael Brown by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson on Aug. 9.

Earlier this week, the Rams spent time lamenting the fact that there wasn't much they could do to help right now with the unrest in Ferguson.

Multiple players and coach Jeff Fisher spoke during the week about trying to offer a three-hour or so distraction from what's happening in their community.

"It's just such a difficult situation," Fisher said Wednesday. "We had an opportunity to get involved in August with the three football teams and the organization has done some other things. Hopefully, as soon as things settle down then we'll get back involved. As we talked as a group, it's our community, it's their neighbors. Everybody cares deeply about what's going on and hopes things can get settled as soon as possible."

On Sunday, the Rams offered a few other small ways to offer support.

The Rams players, coaches and staff also locked arms during the National Anthem in a sign of support for the community.

In addition, the Rams took some steps to reach out to those affected by the unrest. The team hosted small business owners who lost their businesses to fires and volunteers who helped the ensuing cleanup efforts at the game.

The Rams also planned to play a series of public service announcements featuring Fisher and some players discussing how to build a stronger St. Louis.

Leading up to Sunday, there had been some speculation that the Rams-Raiders game might be moved from the Edward Jones Dome because of the unrest, but the game went on as scheduled with additional security in place.

According to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter, the team did, however, explore some contingency plans that included the possibility of playing Sunday or Monday night in nearby NFL cities such as Indianapolis.