For the first time in Sean McVay’s career as head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, he’s working with a starting quarterback not named Jared Goff, who was shipped off to Detroit this offseason along with a first-round pick (and his cumbersome contract) in a swap for Matthew Stafford.
If you’re wondering how the change at the sport’s most important position is weighing on the 35-year-old coach, have no fear; McVay seems to be having the time of his life with Stafford now in the fold. And as he continues to heap praise on his new starter, it’s been easy to pick up on a central theme of that praise: Stafford really understands the game from a mental standpoint.
You know McVay is really excited when he reels off a “bro,” a “dude,” and an “MFer” over the course of a single sentence. Via The MMQB’s Albert Breer…
“Bro, this dude’s a bad MF-er,” he said, laughing. “Whatever people say about him, as good as it can be, he’s even better than advertised. It makes sense to him. The guy’s ability to see the game, his ability to draw on his experiences, the feel that he has, it’s pretty special and unique.”
In an interview with NFL Network’s Omar Ruiz, McVay once again made it a point to highlight Stafford’s football intelligence:
“He’s just a wealth of knowledge. And being able to get his perspective with so much that goes on the quarterback position, it’s been really enlightening.”
It’s as if McVay had never coached a quarterback who could think for himself. Which, well, was kind of the case with Goff leading the Rams offense.
McVay famously pulled all the strings for Goff from the sideline. Back in 2017, there were clear examples of McVay assessing the defensive look from the sideline and then calling an audible as Goff stared blankly awaiting his new marching orders. And when a play required a quick adjustment after the snap, that’s when Goff usually played at his worst.
With McVay being the head coach and having so much on his plate on game days, it’s understandable that he feels a sense of refreshment that he’s now got Stafford on his side.
He doesn’t get a lot of credit for it from fans, but the former Lions signal-caller is seen by most experts as one of the better quarterbacks in the pre-snap phase of the game. And he’s also a decent improviser when things break down, though the confidence he has in his play-making ability — something that Goff didn’t really possess — can get him into trouble at times in Detroit.
But having to reel back an ultra-talented quarterback who, for the most part, understands what he’s doing is a lot easier than essentially playing Madden from the sideline because your quarterback doesn’t have command of the offense.
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