Referees, ranked contenders, a leaderboard, and even a commissioner are overseeing the entire operation. 

Welcome to the Los Angeles Rams shadow boxing league, where the competition is fierce, the trash talk is plentiful and the bragging rights might be worth more than the championship itself. 

Oh, and at the center of it all is the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, who also happens to be the undisputed champion of the league. 

What initially started as a harmless way to kill some time between meetings has blossomed into a full-fledged locker room phenomenon, bringing players together during a season filled with injuries, adversity and enormous expectations. 

Rams linebacker Grant Stuard is the self-appointed commissioner, who has turned a childhood-style game into something resembling the UFC. 

“We thought it’d be cool to get some organization going and get a league started,” Stuard told the California Post in an exclusive interview Thursday.

Stuard and teammate Matthew Caldwell helped establish a running leaderboard that now features a top 10, position-group rankings and honorable mentions. Even injured players have found their way onto the board.

But at this point you’re probably asking yourself the same question we did:

What exactly is shadow boxing?

Despite its name, nobody is throwing any actual punches.

Two players stand face-to-face. One points up, down, left or right while the other simultaneously moves his head in a direction, hoping to avoid looking where his opponent points.

If the movements match, the attacker scores. Players alternate turns, attempting to anticipate each other’s reactions and string together successful moves.

It’s part reflexes, part mind games and entirely addictive. Throughout the season, easily over half the Rams locker room has participated. And because NFL players apparently can’t compete at anything without turning it into its own organized sport, Stuard has established official rules.

Ranked matches are best-of-three and require a witness or referee. Matchups involving the top three competitors require two officials.

“If it’s a top-three ranked match, you need two refs,” Stuard explained. “You have to have some standards of what’s acceptable play.”

The rankings operate similar to the UFC’s weight class rankings. An unranked player can challenge a ranked contender, and if the higher-ranked player accepts and loses, the leaderboard gets reshuffled.

Throughout the past several weeks rankings 2-10 have been erased more times than a toddler’s Etch A Sketch, but one name has remained untouchable at the top of the leaderboard.

Myles Garrett.

The best defensive player in the NFL today is also the reigning, defending, and undisputed king of the Rams shadow boxing league. 

We’ve watched Garrett compete several times inside the locker room, and the results have been downright embarrassing for his challengers. Every matchup ends with Garrett victorious. 

His reaction time is ridiculous, his anticipation uncanny and his ability to read opponents almost unfair.

“He has a great combination of reactive defense, but also very accurate offense,” Stuard said. “He picks up on mannerisms and patterns.”

Rams linebacker Shaun Dolac, who recently challenged Garrett himself and lost, agreed.

“He’s just quick,” Dolac told the California Post. “He’s got the reaction time. He’s got everything. He’s got the moves.”

But the real victory isn’t your name on the leaderboard, it’s the unattended byproduct that comes from the competitions and excitement around the league itself. 

Instead of retreating into their phones between meetings, players are challenging teammates, laughing, talking trash and building relationships that extend beyond their position groups.

“It’s another way of competing other than on the field,” Dolac said. “It’s a way to kind of decompress as well.”

Stuard echoed that sentiment.

“You’re not just sitting around on your phone. You’re still interacting with each other.”

The shadow boxing league joins playing cards, grounding walks, and date nights as ways to develop off the field chemistry and team bonding. There’s also a precedent for this translating into something meaningful.

Last season, the Seattle Seahawks embraced their own shadow boxing craze, with players crediting the game for helping build relationships across position groups. That connectedness became part of the culture surrounding Seattle’s eventual Super Bowl championship.

Nobody should confuse shadow boxing with blocking schemes or defensive adjustments. The Rams won’t win a championship because Garrett can outmaneuver a teammate in a pointing contest.

But championships aren’t built exclusively on Sundays, either. They’re built through trust, relationships, and the willingness to fight and play for the guy standing next to you.

And for a Rams team that stumbled out to a 2-4 start before battling back to 4-4, those connections matter. 

Stuard also revealed that the Rams shadow boxing league is about to get even more serious. The commissioner is planning a tournament next week, potentially featuring seeded matchups, wild cards, and first-round byes based on the rankings.

What is this, the College Football Playoff?

If and when the tournament takes place, Garrett’s championship crown could finally be on the line.

Good luck to whomever draws that matchup.

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