The Los Angeles Rams had been one of many greatest surprises within the NFL final season. Regardless of parting methods with a lot of high-profile gamers and most projecting them to be one of many worst groups within the league, Sean McVay led the Rams to a 10-7 document and a playoff berth the place they narrowly misplaced to the Detroit Lions within the Wildcard spherical.
Now, the franchise has an opportunity to construct on that success this offseason and have many means to take action. Clearly free company can be a giant half and there’s at all times the prospect for trades, however the Rams even have a primary spherical choose for the primary time since 2016.
Whether or not they maintain that choose or not is unclear and McVay acknowledged they’re at present determining one of the best plan of action.
“Oh that’s a giant if,” the Rams coach mentioned when requested about presumably having their first spherical choose this 12 months. “Right here’s what I might say, that’s precisely what we’re working by proper now. Determining one of the best ways to strive to have the ability to use these totally different avenues to create as aggressive of a group as we presumably can and attempt to enhance.
“I believe there have been a variety of optimistic steps final 12 months and also you do take a look at it from a situation of, alright, how will we correctly do this? How will we guarantee that we’re figuring out the varieties of gamers, whether or not that be through free company, there are clearly trades as a risk after which Les and his group do such an incredible job of being forward of the curve in regard to what the panorama of the draft seems to be like.”
The Rams did a tremendous job of including the appropriate gamers final 12 months, significantly by the draft. Third spherical picks Kobie Turner and Byron Younger led the group in sacks with 9 and eight, respectively, and Turner was named a finalist for Defensive Rookie of the 12 months. Within the fifth spherical, the group took Puka Nacua, who set NFL information for receptions and receiving yards by a rookie.
The work now for the Rams is to seek out these proper gamers who can proceed to enhance this group, and now that McVay’s teaching employees is ready, that work can start.
“We’re at all times just a little bit behind teaching clever since you get the teaching employees finalized, you get in right here, you consider our gamers at the beginning,” McVay famous. You determine these guys and actually we simply are within the midst of finalizing and ending that up. So we’ll do this, then we’ll begin to actually transfer our eyes in the direction of the Draft and free company and it’s an thrilling factor.
“There are a variety of issues that I believe can be unfolding and have fluidity to it and people can be issues that we’ll have a greater thought as we’re in a position to type of determine these issues after which probably be capable of handle a few of these with the pure schedule and the way it unfolds because it pertains to free company after which main into the Draft. As we noticed final 12 months, typically with some persistence, some issues can work out and are available to you. We’ll see if that finally ends up being the case as nicely.”
With one other sturdy offseason, McVay has the prospect to show this Rams from an thrilling playoff group to a real Tremendous Bowl contender far faster than anybody may have imagined.
Rams’ Sean McVay ‘humbled’ to be a part of NFL Competitors Committee
One thing else Sean McVay can be doing this offseason is being a part of the NFL’s Competitors Committee, which every year critiques all the aggressive points of the sport and proposes new guidelines or rule modifications based mostly on their findings.
In discussing his inclusion this 12 months, McVay mentioned that he was ‘humbled’ and ‘flattered’ to even be requested to be on the committee. The Rams coach added that he has at all times been intrigued about how he may transfer the sport of soccer in a optimistic course and is wanting ahead to contributing to that.
