Despite their reputation as one of the most high-powered groups in the league, the Los Angeles Rams experienced quite a drop-off on offense during their disappointing 2019 NFL season.
Their production had been a far cry from the numbers they enjoyed during head coach Sean McVay’s first two years in Los Angeles. In fact, he had been dubbed a wunderkind on offense for the immediate turnaround he led upon his arrival.
Unfortunately, that was hardly the case this time around after some changes in personnel led to their fluctuating performance. While there were a number of issues that factored into their downfall, it seems the lack of continuity may have been their biggest undoing.
According to Rich Hammond of the Athletic, McVay feels he must get back to what helped them enjoy success in the first place:
“I think there’s an excitement about the opportunity to respond and to get better and to use each year as a new year,” McVay said. “I would say for myself, personally, even if you say it, do you really believe it? I think now, having three years of experience to really draw on, if you really believe it, then you don’t take for granted the foundational things that we did do in Year 1. Really putting in the time to develop and cultivate the relationships.
“I think in some instances when I look at myself, I’ve gotten away from that, not necessarily just last year, but really for two years and we might have had better results going to the Super Bowl.”
McVay elaborated on the importance of building the rapport with his players like the did when he first arrived:
“But if you said, ‘Are you really dedicating the time that you want to, for the expectations that I have specific to what we want to be able to do with your player interactions, the real foundational relationships, being present with the coaches and bringing a consistent juice and authentic energy and excitement about what the day brings?’ Those are the things I’m hopeful that will not just be said now, but those are things that I can feel good about — ‘Hey, we’re in Week 9, Week 12, Week 13 in the season and because of the people that you’re around, that’s what enables you to feel that way and be excited about attacking the opportunity and really the blessing that you have to be in this role.’”/blockquote>
McVay’s comments are interesting in that developing strong chemistry with his players had been a point of emphasis for him after being hired as the youngest head coach in the NFL. As he continued to garner more coaching experience, it appears his efforts in keeping up with the players may have fallen by the wayside.
Players like left tackle Andrew Whitworth indicated that the Rams may have overlooked the importance of losing two veteran offensive linemen and replacing them with far younger, more inexperienced options. McVay could have been able to foresee this outcome had he gained a better pulse of their importance to the team.
McVay has never passed up an opportunity to hold himself accountable for the shortcomings on offense. Now that he has brought in an almost entirely new coaching staff to help spark a potential resurgence in the 2020 NFL season, the onus will ultimately fall on him to make it work as the primary holdover.
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