Wade Phillips talks McVay, Stafford, and the Rams

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MachS

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Wade on The Herd this week, and while the whole segment isn't on the Rams there are some great gems in this. He talks about studying Stafford this year, his fit in McVay's offense, and talks about the culture McVay has created in Los Angeles turning a decade plus losing franchise into a winner. There has been a lot of McVay bashing around here in the past months and it's been absolutely ridiculous IMO given where we were prior to his arrival. Listen to a future hall of fame coach in Wade compare McVay to John Wooden. Worth a listen.



View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm5QgCAGsm4
 

Merlin

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Thanks for putting that up always love listening to Wade. That man knows a thing or two.
 

XXXIVwin

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Agreed that the McVay bashing is ridiculous. McVay is 43-21 in 4 years with the Rams, including 4 winning seasons, 3 playoff runs, 1 NFC Championship. Four years prior, Rams went 24-40, zero winning seasons, zero playoff appearances.

Setting up a culture of John Wooden? Yes please.
 

den-the-coach

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I don't bash McVay because as Ram fans, we've endured the reigns of Scott "Milquetoast" Linehan, Steve "Napoleon" Spagnuolo & Jeff "Offensive" Fisher. I'm happy to have Sean McVay and an aggressive front office, with hope, we can get back to the big dance and win a few because I'm not getting any younger.
 

Flint

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I don't bash McVay because as Ram fans, we've endured the reigns of Scott "Milquetoast" Linehan, Steve "Napoleon" Spagnuolo & Jeff "Offensive" Fisher. I'm happy to have Sean McVay and an aggressive front office, with hope, we can get back to the big dance and win a few because I'm not getting any younger.
I hear you, this was the best time of the year cuz we had hope that this year’s high draft pick would turn things around. Sadly the list of 1st round busts is just as long as the awful head coaches.
 

Memento

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Huge fan of Wade. Love the guy, and I wish we could've won it all with him.
 

WarnerToBruce

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I don't bash McVay because as Ram fans, we've endured the reigns of Scott "Milquetoast" Linehan, Steve "Napoleon" Spagnuolo & Jeff "Offensive" Fisher. I'm happy to have Sean McVay and an aggressive front office, with hope, we can get back to the big dance and win a few because I'm not getting any younger.
I also don't bash McVay and am very happy he is our HC.

But I also feel Wade got a raw deal, as if the move to Staley saved the Rams last season. "Thank God Wade is gone!" I don't buy it.

I had trouble with lack of aggressiveness at times in his defense, and the propensity to give up big plays at the WORST time, but I had similar issues with Staley. At the end of day, Staley and his pursuit of his HC position, let us down in our biggest game of the season. On the other had, Wade's defense played well enough to win us a Super Bowl if it were not for our anemic offense. I really didn't see much of an upgrade.

At the end of the day, it is the HC's call about who he is comfortable with. But Wade left with the stigma/narrative of being washed up, which to me just isn't fair.

My $0.02.
 

Rams43

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I also don't bash McVay and am very happy he is our HC.

But I also feel Wade got a raw deal, as if the move to Staley saved the Rams last season. "Thank God Wade is gone!" I don't buy it.

I had trouble with lack of aggressiveness at times in his defense, and the propensity to give up big plays at the WORST time, but I had similar issues with Staley. At the end of day, Staley and his pursuit of his HC position, let us down in our biggest game of the season. On the other had, Wade's defense played well enough to win us a Super Bowl if it were not for our anemic offense. I really didn't see much of an upgrade.

At the end of the day, it is the HC's call about who he is comfortable with. But Wade left with the stigma/narrative of being washed up, which to me just isn't fair.

My $0.02.

‘I’ve got a different take, 85.

Wade was getting kind of stale, for lack of a better word.

Not good at in-game adjustments, much less halftime adjustment.
Didn’t seem to tailor his schemes to best attack opposing team weaknesses, rather had a ‘our guys can beat your guys straight up’ mentality.
Wade never used Ramsey as imaginatively as Staley. Such a missed opportunity.
Wade seemed too content with mediocre ILB for my tastes.
Wade didn’t see the Darious Williams potential that Staley did.
Wade’s D’s could be wildly inconsistent.

I dunno...

I guess I could say this. Wade was good, but Staley was VERY good. Staley brought younger, fresher thinking to modern day D strategies. Seeing the value in Leonard Floyd for this D is another good example.
 

snackdaddy

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‘I’ve got a different take, 85.

Wade was getting kind of stale, for lack of a better word.

Not good at in-game adjustments, much less halftime adjustment.
Didn’t seem to tailor his schemes to best attack opposing team weaknesses, rather had a ‘our guys can beat your guys straight up’ mentality.
Wade never used Ramsey as imaginatively as Staley. Such a missed opportunity.
Wade seemed too content with mediocre ILB for my tastes.
Wade didn’t see the Darious Williams potential that Staley did.
Wade’s D’s could be wildly inconsistent.

I dunno...

I guess I could say this. Wade was good, but Staley was VERY good. Staley brought younger, fresher thinking to modern day D strategies. Seeing the value in Leonard Floyd for this D is another good example.

I'm not as worried about losing Staley as some other fans are. I still think McVay had a bigger hand in the defense that we know. I remember hearing he wanted to have to have a more influence in the defense than he had when Wade was there. He's a pretty smart cookie. He was confident enough to hire a first time DC. Someone who would make it easier for McVay to have more input with the defense.
 

MachS

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  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #12
Wade was getting kind of stale, for lack of a better word.

Not good at in-game adjustments, much less halftime adjustment.

Wade’s D’s could be wildly inconsistent.

Yea no one can really argue with the move to Staley now, after finishing #1 on D last year. And I agree I think Wade's defenses were up and down at times, but regardless of that they stepped up big time in the playoffs and played their best football when it really mattered. The 2018 playoff run they were pretty great. And they were especially great in the Super Bowl. Wish we would've finished that game off for Wade because his unit deserved it.

But I love Wade's point of view regarding the McVay culture though and thought it was funny how he laughed when Cowherd asked him if McVays offense was complicated. A lot of analysts try to paint it as a simple system because everything looks the same and plays off each other. But based on Wade's response it's definitely not an easy or simple system. All that said I trust McVay's hires and am excited to see Raheem Morris' defense this year.
 

WarnerToBruce

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‘I’ve got a different take, 85.

Wade was getting kind of stale, for lack of a better word.
...
I would like to say "Agree to disagree" but it's not like I disagree with you strongly enough for that. Most of what you say is true, and there was improvement after moving to Staley. I'm just uncomfortable with the narrative of WP being obsolete, when he recently had his D playing very well in the Super Bowl.

Maybe it's just I'm old, so it's a solidarity thing :)
 

PARAM

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‘I’ve got a different take, 85.

Wade was getting kind of stale, for lack of a better word.

Not good at in-game adjustments, much less halftime adjustment.
Didn’t seem to tailor his schemes to best attack opposing team weaknesses, rather had a ‘our guys can beat your guys straight up’ mentality.
Wade never used Ramsey as imaginatively as Staley. Such a missed opportunity.
Wade seemed too content with mediocre ILB for my tastes.
Wade didn’t see the Darious Williams potential that Staley did.
Wade’s D’s could be wildly inconsistent.

Wade had Ramsey for 10 games in 2019. "He never used Ramsey as imaginatively as Staley"? Sure but the two defenses were starkly different.
At CB in 2019 Wade had Talib (5 starts), Peters (6 starts), Ramsey (8 starts), Hill (9 starts), Robey-Coleman (3 starts), DWill (3 starts) and Long (0 starts) in the defensive backfield. Wade had 6 different guys start at CB and the playing time DWill got in 12 games under Wade allowed the Rams to let Robey-Coleman go in the off season. So, I don't know if the statement "Wade didn't see the DWill potential Staley did" is actually true. And they obtained DWill under Wades watch in 2018.

As far as the one in the middle of those 2 highlighted lines, Wade used Corey Littleton (a guy many Ram fans rue getting away) Reeder (8 GS) and Hager (4 GS) at ILB.:shock: Two our of three ain't bad. But then he also used Mark Barron a lot previous to that and in 2019 played 6 DBs a lot.
 
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badnews

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Hmmm.

He's my favorite Rams HC ever and obviously among the very best in the league... but he shouldn't be immune from criticism, if its deserved.
I wouldn't let some non Rams fans rip on him without defending McVay, but here? Among die hard Rams fans? I'm okay if not everyone loves every choice he makes.

Bashing him? Like by any normal definition of the phrase? I haven't seen that here, I don't think.
 

So Ram

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Yea no one can really argue with the move to Staley now, after finishing #1 on D last year. And I agree I think Wade's defenses were up and down at times, but regardless of that they stepped up big time in the playoffs and played their best football when it really mattered. The 2018 playoff run they were pretty great. And they were especially great in the Super Bowl. Wish we would've finished that game off for Wade because his unit deserved it.

But I love Wade's point of view regarding the McVay culture though and thought it was funny how he laughed when Cowherd asked him if McVays offense was complicated. A lot of analysts try to paint it as a simple system because everything looks the same and plays off each other. But based on Wade's response it's definitely not an easy or simple system. All that said I trust McVay's hires and am excited to see Raheem Morris' defense this year.

Not true. Go back & look at the last 9ers game.Look at his rotation without having Aaron Donald in instead Gaines & Smart.Why Tyler Rapp & Jalen RAMsey were caught on the line of scrimmage on a 3-17 is inexcusable.
The Rams stop Jimmy G they win.
—Going oldest to youngest DC was interesting. Wade’s contract was up & Mcvay has Wes still on his staff & just put him in charge of the passing game.
Aaron Kromer walked away Zak still on the staff. Will see what happens with Kromer’s future,but why Wade wasn’t rehired by any team & my never coach again is not on Sean Mcvay.If Wade is such an excellent coach he would have a coaching job.
Staley was hired away & is a Head Coach so your logic doesn’t fit the coaching box.

I get you like Wade.He was an excellent Rams coach & Mcvay will
Always be grateful to have had him on his staff. Without Wade imo he doesn’t get The Rams HC job.Kevin Demoff wasn’t going to hire him unless he had a DC with HC experience.They had a Great Run together.
 

XXXIVwin

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Hmmm.

He's my favorite Rams HC ever and obviously among the very best in the league... but he shouldn't be immune from criticism, if its deserved.
I wouldn't let some non Rams fans rip on him without defending McVay, but here? Among die hard Rams fans? I'm okay if not everyone loves every choice he makes.

Bashing him? Like by any normal definition of the phrase? I haven't seen that here, I don't think.
Just my personal opinion, but...

On the ROD board, I wish McVay were given the same level of respect as given to AD.

AD had a couple of clunker reg-season games this year. The first game against SF for sure, he was a total non-factor, and he had one other poor game (I don't remember which, Jets maybe?) as well. Against PHI he had only 1 assisted tackle, that's it. But does anyone dare criticize him? No! And frankly, I think that's appropriate.

AD is freakishly talented, absolutely elite at what he does, and the Rams are extremely fortunate to have him.

I would say the exact same words about McVay. Freakishly talented, absolutely elite, Rams are lucky to have him.

So yeah, it rubs me the wrong way when a vocal minority on here are so quick to criticize McVay. And the criticism has gotten louder each year. In 2017 there was no criticism at all-- the boy genius had rescued the franchise. In 2018, there were only a couple whispers here and there in the midst of a Super Bowl run. In 2019, the naysayers DEFINITELY showed up, including a lot of criticism about his commitment to the run game, whether or not he was predictable, etc. etc. And then in 2020 the criticism became even louder and more common. Don't even ask about the Game Day threads.... PLENTY of "bashing" going on there, for sure.

I dunno, I just think fanbases can get overly critical of a certain player or coach. I've checked out the Seattle forums, and their over-the-top criticism of RW is absolutely insane. He's half their team for cripes sakes, and yet a vocal minority not only takes him for granted, they're open to getting rid of him. RW seems slightly open to leaving Seattle now... maybe he can sense he is under-appreciated there? Just sayin'. I'd never want McVay to feel unwelcome as our coach. Rams are poised for ANOTHER championship run, yet some here can't seem to appreciate how lucky we are.

So again... just my take. IMHO, criticism of McVay should start like this: "Yeah McVay is the savior of this franchise, but..." Or something like that.

Yes, I do indeed believe that there are a few here who actually consider the prospect of moving on from McVay. And "with all due respect," those people are idiots. ;)
 

Loyal

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AD had a couple “clunkers of games?” It’s times like this that I loathe stats because they are misleading and some use them to measure things as though they are the end all, be all. Donald affects the game ALWAYS because what he does is sometimes hard to be measured. If he squeezes the pocket but doesn’t hit the QB, or causes the play to redirect from him, that’s not easy to measure. AD is a once in a lifetime DT, but is McVay a once in a lifetime HC? We’ll see. I hope he is.
 

XXXIVwin

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AD had a couple “clunkers of games?” It’s times like this that I loathe stats because they are misleading and some use them to measure things as though they are the end all, be all. Donald affects the game ALWAYS because what he does is sometimes hard to be measured. If he squeezes the pocket but doesn’t hit the QB, or causes the play to redirect from him, that’s not easy to measure. AD is a once in a lifetime DT, but is McVay a once in a lifetime HC? We’ll see. I hope he is.
Regarding that first 49ers game, I’m not going on just stats. AD had an off-night. I saw it, announcers saw it, plenty of ppl saw it. He just wasn’t generating much pressure at all that game. We all knew that was an aberration, hardly ever happens. As I said, I agree that criticizing AD seems pretty stupid because even when he’s off, the D has to account for him.

I don’t believe McVay is as good at what he does as AD. AD is in contention for best DT ever. But I definitely think McVay can be a Hall of Famer.

Maybe McVay won’t get that immunity from critics until after he’s brought home a championship.
 

PARAM

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Just my personal opinion, but...

On the ROD board, I wish McVay were given the same level of respect as given to AD.

AD had a couple of clunker reg-season games this year. The first game against SF for sure, he was a total non-factor, and he had one other poor game (I don't remember which, Jets maybe?) as well. Against PHI he had only 1 assisted tackle, that's it. But does anyone dare criticize him? No! And frankly, I think that's appropriate.

AD is freakishly talented, absolutely elite at what he does, and the Rams are extremely fortunate to have him.

I would say the exact same words about McVay. Freakishly talented, absolutely elite, Rams are lucky to have him.

So yeah, it rubs me the wrong way when a vocal minority on here are so quick to criticize McVay. And the criticism has gotten louder each year. In 2017 there was no criticism at all-- the boy genius had rescued the franchise. In 2018, there were only a couple whispers here and there in the midst of a Super Bowl run. In 2019, the naysayers DEFINITELY showed up, including a lot of criticism about his commitment to the run game, whether or not he was predictable, etc. etc. And then in 2020 the criticism became even louder and more common. Don't even ask about the Game Day threads.... PLENTY of "bashing" going on there, for sure.

I dunno, I just think fanbases can get overly critical of a certain player or coach. I've checked out the Seattle forums, and their over-the-top criticism of RW is absolutely insane. He's half their team for cripes sakes, and yet a vocal minority not only takes him for granted, they're open to getting rid of him. RW seems slightly open to leaving Seattle now... maybe he can sense he is under-appreciated there? Just sayin'. I'd never want McVay to feel unwelcome as our coach. Rams are poised for ANOTHER championship run, yet some here can't seem to appreciate how lucky we are.

So again... just my take. IMHO, criticism of McVay should start like this: "Yeah McVay is the savior of this franchise, but..." Or something like that.

Yes, I do indeed believe that there are a few here who actually consider the prospect of moving on from McVay. And "with all due respect," those people are idiots. ;)

I agree, anybody who is prepared to move on from McVay is an idiot (though I should add I haven't seen an opinion like that on any Rams board). He rescued the Rams from perenniel mediocrity. He's awesome.

However, he's the head coach of a multi million dollar NFL franchise and regardless of his talents and skills or the fact he rescued the franchse, he's subject to criticism as well as admiration.

I don't get the "appreciation factor". Sure he's appreciated......he's paid extremely well. Same goes for players like Russell Wilson. Why is there this idea some of these guys should be worshipped and any criticism is off limits? That's ridiculous.

Russell Wilson is awesome but sometimes he makes dumb decisions. Absolutely stupid. He deserves some criticism when he does. So does McVay. He makes some dumb decisions too and sometimes seems unable or unwilling to adjust when things are going south.

That doesn't mean he's unappreciated. Same goes for Wilson. They're big boys. They're paid extremely well. It comes with the job and they should "get that". However some fans don't. Maybe because they worry, if a guy gets booed or criticized, he'll want to go elsewhere.....as if they might not understand it comes with the territory.

What happens is sometimes fans believe a certain player or coach walks on water. Therefore it's blasphemous to criticize them.