Coach Sean McVay feeling super about Rams despite unanswered questions

Coach Sean McVay feeling super about Rams despite unanswered questions

Rams are projected as Super Bowl contenders, but are they really? Sean McVay likes what he sees, but there are questions that need answering, especially after so many departures on defense.

www.latimes.com

Coach Sean McVay feeling super about Rams despite unanswered questions​

His team’s offseason program complete, Rams coach Sean McVay plans to vacation in New York, Greece and Monaco before training camp begins.

“I’ll be able to live a little, enjoy myself — and then I’ll come back stressed and ready to roll,” McVay joked.

When the Rams report to UC Irvine in late July, the pressure will be on McVay.

The Rams ended the Jared Goff era by trading the quarterback — and two first-round draft picks — to the Detroit Lions for quarterback Matthew Stafford. General manager Les Snead gave Stafford the potential deep threat the team denied Goff last season by signing veteran receiver DeSean Jackson.

Those additions, combined with players such as receivers Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp, and defensive stars Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey, could make the Rams one of the favorites to contend for a berth in Super Bowl LVI, which will be played Feb. 13, 2022 in SoFi Stadium.

McVay said he embraces expectations.

“This job is about pressure day in and day out,” he said. “I think that’s what you want. If you start avoiding pressure, if you don’t like it, this is not for you.”

The Rams have made the playoffs three times in four seasons under McVay. They lost in the NFC wild-card round in 2017, advanced to the Super Bowl in 2018, missed the postseason the next year and advanced to the divisional-round last season.

McVay and Snead are banking that Stafford, a 12-year veteran, will provide the missing piece for another Super Bowl run.

“He’s one of those guys that I think is a true igniter,” McVay said of Stafford. “He makes everybody around him better.

“I feel like I’ve become a better coach in the few months that we’ve been able to spend together and we’re looking forward to do a lot of good things together.”

Throughout offseason workouts, Rams players said they were embracing high expectations.

“Last time we were picked to go to the Super Bowl, we went,” Woods said. “So, I think that’s a good thing. ... We’re a loaded team. We have all the parts. We have all the pieces to get where we need to go.”

Stafford, the receiving corps and the continuing emergence of second-year running back Cam Akers are reason for optimism about the offense. But the line is in flux after the departure of coach Aaron Kromer and center Austin Blythe. Kevin Carberry replaced Kromer. Austin Corbett could move from guard to center to replace Blythe. Left tackle Andrew Whitworth will turn 40 during the season.

Donald and Ramsey anchor a defense now under the direction of coordinator Raheem Morris, who replaced Brandon Staley. Can lineman A’Shawn Robinson fill the void left the departure of Michael Brockers? Who steps up to replace the talent and leadership of safety John Johnson, now earning millions from the Cleveland Browns?

Those are just a few of the questions that might be answered during training camp when the Rams begin preparing for their Sept. 12 opener against the Chicago Bears.

McVay will continue to hold out starters from preseason games. The Rams might add depth to the roster this summer in preparation for joint practices with the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders, and preseason games against the Chargers, Raiders and Denver Broncos.

Whitworth, a 15-year veteran, said big expectations are “a good thing” for a team accustomed to winning. Whitworth pointed to last season’s wild-card playoff victory over the Seattle Seahawks as a “culture-type win.”

“We didn’t go into that game with any expectation other than win, and it really didn’t matter whether it was the playoffs or the next game on the schedule,” he said. “And I think that’s where you really started to see a culture and franchise that just expects to win.

“And, hopefully, we can keep that mentality and that culture strong.”

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Exactly. Did anyone hear that Kirk Cousins was being micro-managed in Washington? How about RG3? How about John Wolford last year?

Maybe McVay felt he had to micro-manage Goff and play Geppetto with him because Goff couldn't figure things out on his own, and it was the best way to get the best play out of him. No one complained in '17/'18 when Gurley had 40TDs and McVay was in Goff's ear up until the 15sec mark in the play clock. Goff played well. But as soon as the running game wasn't the driving force of the team and Goff was asked to carry this offense, he immediately showed he couldn't do that. Which is why he leads the NFL in turnovers since 2018. Why his play deteriorated even further last year in 2020 is an unknown. My guess is his confidence was completely gone because his body language on the field and in post game interviews was horrible. And he regressed back to making unforgivable rookie mistakes.



Why do this unless you HAVE to? It makes no sense that Goff could do everything on his own but McVay still chose to micro-manage him. Why would he? Everyone saw Goff before McVay arrived and how completely lost he looked. The blame McVay gets for Goff being a bad QB is the most hilarious thing about this forum. So using that thought process, that means McVay stopped micro managing in 2019/2020 right? Because Goff turned into a very below average QB.

Perhaps the kid just lost the biggest game of his life in dramatic fashion, and not only did he not improve the following year in 2019 as most hyper-competitive natured athletes would respond, but instead he regressed big time and withered away in cowardly fashion. Maybe that's why Goff is no longer on this roster. Losing the super bowl should have motivated him to work harder than ever and come back with a vengeance in 2019. Not go into a depressed shell for 2 seasons and turn the ball over more than any other NFL player. It just shows his mental weakness.

Yep. People look for excuses, or like to point fingers. It is what it is. Sometimes trying to read too much into things to find an excuse just is making up stories to make them feel better.