I think McVay won't play guys until they know their role inside & out. While other teams/coaches tend to play guys earlier.
From memory McVay wants players to know their position. He insists that they know everyone else's roll in each play Here a seach on that I'll post part of the answer and the link. Kupp and Puka had a greater understanding of the option routes etc...to where the QBs could trust they would be where they are suppose to be.
Sean McVay’s offensive system heavily prioritizes "conceptual learning" rather than memorizing individual route tracks. Because his scheme relies heavily on illusion—making different plays look identical before the snap—players are required to know the entire structure of a play, what the defense is trying to do, and how every moving piece connects. [
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The information and quotes below from key Rams figures illustrate this high standard of playbook accountability:
The Core Philosophy: "Conceptual Football"
Former Rams All-Pro offensive lineman
Andrew Whitworth famously summarized McVay’s coaching strategy by calling it
"conceptual football." He explained: [
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"It’s not just about running your assignment. It’s about understanding exactly how to attack a team, understanding what the guys next to you are trying to achieve, and mastering the game situationally."
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McVay designs his playbook around concepts where the same formation can layer into a multitude of completely different plays. If a receiver doesn't understand the blocking scheme or the tight end doesn't understand the vertical stretch concept, the entire standard falls apart. [
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Cooper Kupp on Learning "The Why"
Former Rams star wide receiver
Cooper Kupp has spoken extensively about how McVay pushes his skill players to think like coordinators. Reflecting on how he had to change his approach to the playbook under McVay, Kupp noted: [
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"I owe so much to Sean... he challenges you to constantly know the 'why' behind defensive strategies, not just what they are." [
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Kupp mentioned that despite feeling highly knowledgeable after high school and college, working under McVay made him realize he initially
"didn't know anything" about the broader geometric concepts of the game. To thrive in the offense, players must learn every single position's role across entire series in the playbook rather than just isolating their own letter position (X, Y, or Z) on a diagram. [
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