Whenever the Los Angeles Rams have made a big move while trading away draft picks, the media has consistently pushed a narrative that the bill will come due and the bottom will fall out. However, while the Rams had a down year in 2022 after they won the Super Bowl, the Rams have been in the playoffs in each of the last three years. In fact, they were back in the NFC Championship Game last season.
The Rams are almost certainly pushing their chips into the middle of the table this year by trading for cornerback Trent McDuffie and edge rusher Myles Garrett. However, that also doesn’t mean that they aren’t looking to sustain success. This is a team that’s done it once by building their roster this way and certainly believes they can do it again.
Still, the media continues to push the downfall narrative. After the disastrous 2022 season, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio went as far as to say, “There’s a growing sense that he will step down. He won a Super Bowl and now he’s facing a multi-year rebuild that he just doesn’t want to be a part of.”
Instead, McVay returned to coach in 2023 and the Rams bounced back from a 3-6 start to make the playoffs. Many in the media didn’t expect the Rams to be good during that 2023 season. Led by McVay, the Rams ended up proving a lot of people wrong.
There may have been some doubts when it came to McVay wanting to return in 2023, but it was more of a ‘come to Jesus’ moment where he put things in perspective. On a recent Bussin’ With The Boys podcast, McVay noted that he almost quit, but a conversation with his wife changed his perspective.
“I almost quit coaching,” said McVay. I couldn’t handle losing. It was almost like a scarlet letter…I remember explaining the situation to my wife. ‘You know, maybe I’ll step away, it’s going to be a really tough upcoming season…She was like, ‘You know, that never really sounded like the leader you wanted to be.’ And I was like ‘boom. It hit me like a ton of bricks.”
Sean McVay on wanting to quit after the 2022 season —and how a conversation with his wife forced him to have a tough conversation with himself.
https://x.com/_willcompton/status/2056735401407037575?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
While a part of McVay might have wanted to quit coaching after the 2022 season, he’s also in a much different place now. He has two kids and has learned to manage his work life and personal life. McVay is still one of the youngest coaches in the NFL, but has almost a decade of head coach experience at this point.
However, the media continues to push the narrative that McVay doesn’t want any part of a rebuild and isn’t in it for the long haul. Once Stafford retires, McVay will also step away. The major plot hole in that is that McVay just played a big role in the Rams drafting their quarterback of the future in Ty Simpson.
“They are so all in on this year that the only assumption that I can make is that Sean McVay is Outta here after this year,” said Bomani Jones on The Right Time Podcast. “He can’t plan to stay there for very long because the bill is gonna come due on this.”
Bomani reacts to the Rams trading for Myles Garrett 👀
https://x.com/righttimebomani/status/2061583078879858947?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
When it comes to the Rams, they should be getting the benefit of the doubt instead of continually being written off after trading away first-round picks. This is a front office that has consistently shown an ability to draft talent in the later rounds.
The Rams are one of the most well-run franchises in the NFL. If a team like the Cleveland Browns mortgages the future for one player, the bill will almost certainly come due. That’s exactly what happened after they traded away multiple picks for DeShaun Watson. It’s a move that’s seen as the worst trade in NFL history. The Browns didn’t draft well and the bottom has subsequently fallen out.
It’s very possible that McVay takes a break from coaching at some point. Mike Tomlin eventually stepped away from the Pittsburgh Steelers after taking the job at just 36 years old. Sean Payton left the New Orleans Saints right before the bill came due a year after Drew Brees left.
McVay could eventually do the same, but it will be because he sees it as the best thing for him. It won’t be McVay running away from a rebuild. Both McVay and general manager Les Snead just signed contract extensions in February of this year. Those two are very clearly in it for the long haul.
With McVay and Snead in charge, the Rams have shown the ability to pivot and stay competitive. McVay isn’t trying to squeeze out one final run before everything collapses and then jumping ship. The Rams head coach may eventually leave, but it won’t be because he’s trying to avoid the consequences of how the team has been built.
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