There are a lot of reasons to believe the Rams are in for another painful season in 2023. Bobby Wagner, Leonard Floyd and Jalen Ramsey are all gone, and in free agency, the Rams have made no additions to the roster. In other words, they look worse on paper than the 5-12 team from a season ago.
But there are also reasons for hope, starting with Sean McVay and Matthew Stafford – both of whom are back in Los Angeles for at least the 2023 season. They also have Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald still on the roster, who are among the best players at their respective positions.
FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd believes the Rams are poised to bounce back in 2023, primarily because the tandem of McVay and Stafford is the second-best of any coach-quarterback combo in the NFL.
"Take Reid and Mahomes out… Stafford and McVay are number two."
— @ColinCowherd isn't ready to sell his Rams stock pic.twitter.com/O39361kJ6G
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) April 3, 2023
“It’s a head coach-quarterback league,” Cowherd said Monday. “Quarterback is probably 60% of it, coach is probably 40% of it. Brady-Belichick, Reid-Mahomes. People have just decided that the LA Rams off a bad season are done. Well, Arizona’s a tire fire in their division, the NFC’s weaker, San Francisco doesn’t quite know who the quarterback’s gonna be – they’re all young – and Seattle, I don’t think is going to duplicate a Geno Smith magical year, not to that level. But if you look at what wins in the NFL, it’s a wealthy, non-meddling owner: check. A dominating defensive line presence: check. A great weapon, Cooper Kupp, who was getting MVP consideration: check. An offensive coach: check. And a star quarterback: check.
“Outside of Andy Reid and Mahomes, let’s take them off the board, what is the best – (the Rams) also have 11 picks, so they’ve got a chance to find some gems in the draft – what is the best quarterback-coach combo in the NFL? … Stafford and McVay are No. 2. They are.”
Cowherd isn’t too far off base. Winning in the NFL typically does start with the quarterback and head coach, and Stafford and McVay are a fantastic pairing. The problem last year is that the Rams’ offensive line was abysmal and Stafford missed time with injuries.
If Stafford can remain healthy and the offensive line can improve at least a little bit, the Rams will have a fighting chance in a weaker NFC.
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