McVay’s future as Rams HC

[PARAM]

A legitimate question I have and in no way do I think this is the reason AT all, but for arguments sake.. if the Rams had a winning season and made the Playoffs, would he be considering taking time off?

Good question......

This all started last year right after the SB win. Will he take an easier job in the booth? The Rams extended him, either as incentive to stay or a thank you for staying. Surely they did not give him as much money as Amazon was prepared to give, so the 'incentive to stay' angle doesn't fit. Thank you seems more plausible. So, was it really transitioning to the booth or did he have issues last year?

He's coached the longest possible season twice in 6 years (at that time twice in 5 years). Sure Belichick has done that more than anybody else. Andy Reid is a close second. But those two guys aren't exactly the models of how to balance football and life. Belichick acts like a 12 year old when he loses. And listening to him talk when things are going right isn't like listening to Tony Robbins. To me, the guy has always seemed a little "off".

Reid has had family issues with his sons who have seemed to be crying for attention for years. Guns, heroin, DUI (way back in his Philly days) and finally almost killing a young girl in KC. Coaching in the NFL requires supreme focus on being successful with little room for anything else and most times that success doesn't happen. It's probably easier for older guys to live with that imbalance.

Steve Spurrier tried it the other way and that didn't even work temporarily. "IT'S HARD TO WIN IN THE NFL" may not be a statement about the X's and O's and Johnny's and Joe's. It takes a sacrifice we can only imagine. So I'm gonna give McVay a pass. He's young. He's reached the pinnacle of the sport. And maybe he's wondering if it's had an adverse affect on his life and he isn't sure he's prepared to accept that. We can ask, 'shouldn't he have known that?' but we know the right answer.

If he leaves, I wish him well and hope at some point he returns to the NFL. If he doesn't leave, I hope he doesn't burn out. It's fun to listen to him talk football. He's fun to watch when he's excited. And it's fun to watch him celebrate success. Which is why it's really hard to watch what's happening now.

Is he letting the franchise and the players down? Are you fucking kidding me? Obviously, with their reactions the answer is NO. Is he letting the fans down? Absolutely. Because we don't don't want to hear about stress or balance or even sanity. We just want to watch our team kick ass! It takes an event like the Damar Hamlin near death experience to even temporarily distract us. So maybe we should give him a little slack?

It's interesting to read all the different takes and I wonder if any will be accurate once things shake out. Just wanted to bring a little levity to the discussion.

 

[snackdaddy]

I don’t get the whole extended sabbatical concept.

Could he leave with a non-binding understanding that he could be re-hired (it’s happened before in Rams history)? I guess so.

You can’t just hold his place, though. What if the interim guy wins a Super Bowl or two. McVay just steps back in when his walkabout is done?

Is it fair to the fans to have an interim guy for one year? That is not all in. You pass on better candidates so McVay can take a year off? Myself, I'd be disappointed if the goal wasn't to hire the best available coach.

 

[NJRamsFan]

"But I want to be here right now" kinda sounds like "Jared Goff is the quarterback right now"

 

[thirteen28]

if he steps away he will feel immediately relieved.

but then after a couple of months pass and football starts again - he going to regret it

I hope someone is telling him this.

This will be him next year, especially watching Rams games.

 

[fearsomefour]

I wonder if he retires how long the Rams control him? Did he actually sign his contract extension.....did that actually get done?
I think he needs to take some things off of his plate.
That could be involvement with the D, play calling or just some of the prep work and game planning.
Either way, he can't continue to do this every year.
The thought of this angers me greatly.
The Rams have this unbelievable ability to fuck up good things.....no one to blame if he retires but....talk about being set up for long term success.
A 36 or 37 year old head coach with two titles already......thinking Tomlin sort of stay at the HC spot....not, gonna go full Martz on us and bail after a few years.
Make me want to vomit.

 

[Rams43]

I agree McVay has done that for better or worse. He understood some of the opportunities he received and passed it along to others. McVay is a class act, but sometimes one greatest strength become their weakness and my fear is McVay is going through this now.

My suggestion to the young coach is to delegate more, allow someone else to call the plays and just be part of designing the scheme. Alleviate that pressure and once you adapt you can always go back to calling the plays down the road.

Go get Frank Reich and allow him to call the plays, which will enable you to utilize your time more efficiently thus adapting especially now with you being pulled in multiple directions with family now. Then you can adjust and balance things better moving forward.

I think that that is some terrific advice, den.

We’ll see if McVay can see the wisdom there, too.

 

[bubbaramfan]

If he quits, what will he see when he looks in a mirror every time the Rams lose another game? What will he think of himself when he sees a video of the talking heads calling him a quitter at the time the team needed him the most?

 

[OregonRamsFan]

If he quits, what will he see when he looks in a mirror every time the Rams lose another game? What will he think of himself when he sees a video of the talking heads calling him a quitter at the time the team needed him the most?

He will see the youngest head coach to ever win the Superbowl. He owes us nothing.

 

[NJRamsFan]

He will see the youngest head coach to ever win the Superbowl. He owes us nothing.

Sean? Please come back bro we need you

 

[RAMSinLA]

If he steps aside it will be because he doesn't see the Rams as a winning organization for years to come and that's what scares me. Players move for rings and now coaches are too.
He is following Miller's lead. Can it be that simple? sure it can.

 

[Allen2McVay]

If he steps aside it will be because he doesn't see the Rams as a winning organization for years to come and that's what scares me. Players move for rings and now coaches are too.
He is following Miller's lead. Can it be that simple? sure it can.

Von Miller was a free agent. McVay is not.

He won’t be free to coach elsewhere until his extension expires, unless the Rams are compensated.

 

[T-REX]

I’m not sure if this has been brought up but is this organization going to go through another Dick Vermeil situation with McVay stepping down, taking a year off, then coming back with another organization? It seems eerily similar to me.

View: https://media.giphy.com/media/S9crjCfQXC78ST61iv/giphy.gif

 

[Dodgersrf]

I'm going to try to scribble a James Hetfield parallel and see how far it goes.

Hetfield at 38 was insanely successful and in the middle of putting together a new album in 2001 when he abruptly left the band for rehab. Alcohol was an issue, but life imbalance was a big problem:


It looks like McVay, 36, is facing the same thing - football rules everything in his life and everything else is second (see Wickersham article), but that doesn't make sense anymore (see picture of wife). He's risking losing one or the other and he's stated on the record that he still wants football.

Hetfield leaving the band in the middle of putting together an album caused bitterness. As I recall from the Some Kind of Monster documentary, Lars was a total dick about James' rehab, saying many of the things that people are saying on this board about McVay.

Asking for professional help was difficult:


I'm guessing McVay actually saying he needs therapy is going to take some work - he's in a machoism world.

Hetfield described the rehab and dealing with balancing his life:


McVay needs to learn to remove himself from football.
After 5 months, Hetfield rejoined the band and they finished the album. There were severe restrictions on his workload that just would not work for McVay, so it could take much longer than 5 months to find a solution for McVay, if one exists.

The band also had a separate performance coach/therapist named Phil Towle. The dude tried to help out with writing lyrics which looked cringey in the documentary. Towle got tons of ridicule for that and other stuff, but the band openly credits Phil Towle for saving them and keeping them together. Among Phil Towle's clients is Dick Vermeil

----------------------
Bottom line: McVay's issue isn't burnout, it's balance. Get him professional help, find a solution, then see if he can fit back in.

Links:

METALLICA's JAMES HETFIELD: 'I'm Not The Most Social Guy You'll Meet'

Paul Liberatore of the Marin Independent Journal conducted an interview with METALLICA guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield ahead of the band's performance tonight (Friday, September 11) at a benefit in Northern California. A few excerpts from the chat follow below. On METALLICA's first hometown...

blabbermouth.net

LARS ULRICH Opens Up About JAMES HETFIELD's Return To Rehab, Says METALLICA Is 'In A Very Healthy Place' Right Now

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich has opened up about what it was like seeing James Hetfield re-enter a treatment program to work on his recovery from alcohol addiction. The METALLICA frontman went back to rehab in September 2019, forcing the postponement of the band's tour of Australia and New...

blabbermouth.net

Mentoring Human Excellence

philtowle.com

Good post.

 

[Dodgersrf]

I'm a bit surprised, we haven't heard anything from Snead regarding this.

 

[AZRams]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdVYYTQqb8w


May be right, may be wrong but thought it an interesting take. Especially about the telling his assistants look for work (lived that scenario in the late 90s).

"Just saw 'em knockin' down Miller Lite and smokin' Cancer Rockets!"...priceless.

 

[ottoman89]

I'm a bit surprised, we haven't heard anything from Snead regarding this.

Working the lines with the Saints to get a deal done for S. Payton.

 

[GroundPounder]

If he quits, what will he see when he looks in a mirror every time the Rams lose another game? What will he think of himself when he sees a video of the talking heads calling him a quitter at the time the team needed him the most?

He'll look at his super bowl ring. He'll find comfort in that like a lot of us fans do: Knowing that no matter what happened this year or what transpires in the future we won the SB last year. Who gives a $#!T if we suck for the next 20+ years....WE WON THE SB FOR THE 2021-2022 SEASON!

 

[thirteen28]

Working the lines with the Saints to get a deal done for S. Payton.

Maybe he's gonna trade the rights to McVay to the Saints for the rights to Payton

 

[ottoman89]

Maybe he's gonna trade the rights to McVay to the Saints for the rights to Payton

We lose that deal 10/10 times. Haha.

 

[Kupped]

If he quits, what will he see when he looks in a mirror every time the Rams lose another game? What will he think of himself when he sees a video of the talking heads calling him a quitter at the time the team needed him the most?

I think what he sees in the mirror right now is the point.

It seems that now, when he looks in the mirror, he sees a guy who's accomplished everything at a professional level and who is disappointed in how he feels or doesn't feel about it.

He seems to be a guy who wants to look in the mirror and just be happy with himself and football success won't define that for him.