Tag: Sean McVay

Sean McVay shares encouraging update on Stetson Bennett after 1st week of workouts

It’s early, but Sean McVay likes what he’s seen from Stetson Bennett in the first phase of the Rams’ offseason program

It seemed like Stetson Bennett’s tenure with the Los Angeles Rams might end after just one season when Sean McVay couldn’t say whether the former Georgia Bulldog would be with the team in 2024. However, Bennett trained in Dallas during the early part of the offseason and is now back at the Rams’ facility for workouts, which is a major step in the right direction after he missed his entire rookie year while on the non-football illness list.

Bennett just wrapped up his first week of offseason workouts and while it’s still very early in the process, McVay is encouraged by what he’s seen from the second-year passer. During his pre-draft press conference on Tuesday, McVay said Bennett has had a “good look in his eye.

The Rams still have not said what caused Bennett to miss his rookie year but he seems to be in a good place now as he prepares for his second season in the NFL. He won’t be Matthew Stafford’s backup considering the team signed Jimmy Garoppolo, but he has a chance to be the No. 3 quarterback on the depth chart.

If the Rams are confident Bennett will stay on the right path, it could prevent them from drafting a quarterback early.

Rewatch Cooper Kupp’s draft call from the Rams 7 years ago

It’s been 7 years since Cooper Kupp got the call from Les Snead and Sean McVay about being drafted by the Rams

When Cooper Kupp was drafted 69th overall in 2017, no one predicted he’d become a future Offensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl MVP. The Los Angeles Rams had high hopes for him, but even they didn’t know he’d be such a star in the NFL.

It was seven years ago that the Rams drafted Kupp, the first year with Sean McVay as their head coach. After turning in the card with Kupp’s name on it, Les Snead and McVay gave the Eastern Washington product a call to let him know the good news.

The Rams shared that video from the 2017 draft on Twitter this week, reminding everyone of the moment Kupp was drafted by Los Angeles.

Rams ‘badly wanted’ Sam Howell before Commanders traded him to the Seahawks

Sean McVay reportedly wanted Sam Howell before he was traded to the Seahawks.

For about 10 weeks last fall, Washington Commanders’ fans believed they’d found a franchise quarterback. Despite the chaos around him, Sam Howell had some impressive moments throughout the first half of last season.

Unfortunately for Howell and Washington, it all came crashing down as the Commanders lost their final eight games.

Some of it was Howell’s fault, some was due to the talent around him, and a lot of it was coaching. When you add it all together, it meant big changes were in store for the Commanders.

After firing Ron Rivera, Washington hired Adam Peters as the new general manager, and the changes began. The Commanders hired Dan Quinn as head coach and were busy during the early stages of free agency upgrading the roster. Washington traded Howell to the Seattle Seahawks during that first week of free agency. In return, the Commanders swapped multiple draft picks, including landing Seattle’s third-round pick (No. 78 overall).

Seattle GM John Schneider was relieved to come away with Howell, admitting multiple teams were in contention for the 2022 fifth-round pick.

We’ve now learned the Los Angeles Rams were one of those teams.

In an appearance on the PuckSports podcast, NFL Network’s Mike Garofolo revealed that the Rams badly wanted Howell behind Matthew Stafford.

“They [Seattle Seahawks] outbid the Rams, who I know that there was a strong feeling from the Rams coaching staff that they wanted Sam Howell badly,” Garofolo said.

“They really liked him, so the Seahawks were able to outbid them. So that’s good. You got him. You also kept him away from a team that really could have used him as a potential successor there.”

Rams head coach Sean McVay wanted Howell, which should tell you something. Also, the Denver Broncos were reportedly among the teams interested in Sam Howell. Regardless of what you think of his work in Denver last year, Sean Payton is a future Hall of Fame head coach.

That’s two of the NFL’s premier offensive minds wanting to work with Howell.

There were hot takes from a segment of Washington’s fan base that said Howell couldn’t play. McVay, Payton and Schneider all wanted Howell. He can play. Whether it’s as a long-term starter or a high-end backup, Howell will be in the NFL for a long time.

With Stafford entering his 16th NFL season in 2024, perhaps McVay viewed Howell as the potential heir apparent.

Sean McVay mentions Quentin Lake as a young building block on defense

Quentin Lake is a rising player for the Rams after emerging as a dynamic defender in the slot last season

The Los Angeles Rams went from fielding star-studded defenses year after year to now deploying a unit filled with young, up-and-coming players. Gone are the days of Jalen Ramsey, Bobby Wagner, Leonard Floyd, Marcus Peters and now Aaron Donald.

Now, the Rams are leaning on players such as Kobie Turner, Ernest Jones and Byron Young. In addition to those three standout defenders, Quentin Lake is a player fans should know heading into the 2024 season. He’s expected to play a significant role next season after emerging as the team’s top slot defender last year, recently earning some recognition from Sean McVay.

During an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio, McVay mentioned Lake as a young player the Rams can build around.

“Chris Shula’s going to do a great job leading our defensive unit,” McVay said. “We’ve got some young guys that we can really build around. Love what Kobie Turner did last year. Aaron really poured into him. Love the emergence of Byron Young. Ernest Jones is a special leader in the middle of our defense. I think Quentin Lake is a really special, emerging player. And then being able to add quality players on the back end like a Kam Curl, bringing Darious Williams back home. So we’re excited. We’re going to try to add some good players through this draft and we’ll see where we’re at.”

Lake joined the Rams as a sixth-round pick in 2022, primarily being viewed as a safety. Injuries limited him to only nine games as a rookie but he took his game to another level last season when the Rams moved him into the slot.

He excelled in that role, both as a run defender and in coverage. He earned a 71.2 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, helped by an impressive 84.6 tackling grade thanks to his missed tackle rate of only 3.8%.

With Williams and Tre’Davious White expected to be the starting cornerbacks on the outside, Lake has a golden opportunity to maintain his role as the primary slot defender.

He may not be a household name but Lake is in position to have a very good third season in the NFL.

Sean McVay is excited to see Steve Avila and his ‘amazing athleticism’ at center

Sean McVay is excited about Steve Avila moving to center, even if the second-year lineman is a bit nervous about the change

The Los Angeles Rams’ starting offensive line will look a bit different in 2024, even if there’s only one new player expected to step in. In addition to re-signing Kevin Dotson and tendering Alaric Jackson, the Rams signed Jonah Jackson to a three-year deal worth $51 million.

It was a surprising move considering he plays the same position as Steve Avila (left guard), but the Rams are opening a spot for Jackson by moving Avila inside to center.

Avila played both center and guard in college, but center was actually his primary position – and possibly even his better one. When McVay shared the news with Avila, he said the lineman was both excited and nervous about it.

“He’s like, ‘Man, I don’t know as much as Coleman.’ I said, ‘That’s okay! You don’t have to right now. Let’s just take incremental steps,'” McVay said, via Stu Jackson of the team’s official site. “He’s a guy that loves being in the building. And so, like I was talking about earlier, you don’t need to go from A to Z, let’s just take the incremental steps. Let’s continue to learn, with the right foundational understanding of what are we trying to get done? What are you looking at? What are the things that are important to be able to communicate?”

Avila played every single snap as a rookie in 2023, never coming off the field for an offensive play once all year. He played all of those snaps at left guard and had a lot of success, but playing center comes with more responsibility: protections, run-blocking assignments and identifying blitzers.

McVay is confident Avila can handle those duties, especially with Matthew Stafford being such an experienced quarterback, and he’s excited to see what the second-year player can do at his new position.

“He’s got an amazing athleticism for a big player,” McVay said. “He’s got great contact balance, you can see his ability to take second-level angles of departure, fit second-level blocks, play in space. That was one of the things that I went back and evaluated. I think he’s got the natural ability to play on the left or the right side of the line, be another lefty center for us.”

McVay: Signing Jonah Jackson, moving Steve Avila to center ‘came together last minute’

The Rams didn’t plan to sign Jonah Jackson and move Steve Avila to center until Coleman Shelton voided his deal, which set things in motion

Things don’t always go according to plan in the offseason so teams are forced to adapt and adjust. That’s what the Los Angeles Rams did when Coleman Shelton decided to void his contract and become a free agency.

The Rams still wanted to bring him back but he left to join the Bears and the team had just spent $48 million on right guard Kevin Dotson. So they began looking elsewhere and saw Jonah Jackson on the market.

Sean McVay told reporters at the annual league meetings this week that the Rams’ plan to sign Jackson and move Steve Avila to center came together at the last minute.

“Hey, Kevin’s at right guard, Jonah played left guard, and oh by the way, this stud rookie left guard that you had, he was an excellent center at TCU,” McVay said, via Stu Jackson of the team’s site. “And when you want to try to be able to improve and push the envelope with the interior parts of the offensive line, it really wasn’t part of the plan until you realize, wow, we might be able to get Jonah Jackson, and if we did that, even went back and started watching – and this all came together last minute – TCU, and you say, you know what, he did a great job at center, there’s a lot of work.”

McVay said moving Avila to center “was never really part of the plan” until Shelton became a free agent, so the Rams planned to keep him at left guard – a position Avila played every single snap at last season.

Now, though, Jackson steps in as the starting left guard, Avila moves to center and Dotson remains the starting right guard. That’s a massive trio on the interior of the offensive line, one that should do a better job of keeping Matthew Stafford upright and clearing running lanes for Kyren Williams.

Jackson may have been pricey ($51 million for three years), but he should be an upgrade for the Rams after letting Shelton walk.

Sean McVay is a big reason Jimmy Garoppolo picked the Rams: ‘Sealed the deal’

Jimmy Garoppolo picked the Rams in free agency, in large part because of the chance to play for Sean McVay

Jimmy Garoppolo became a free agent this offseason after being benched by the Las Vegas Raiders last season, hitting the market as a likely backup option for several teams. Despite the fact that he was no longer viewed as a starting quarterback, Garoppolo did say this week that he “had a couple different options,” which suggests the Rams weren’t the only team interested.

There were a lot of things that drew Garoppolo to Los Angeles, but it sounds like the primary reason was Sean McVay. Getting a chance to play for a brilliant coach like McVay was a big plus for Garoppolo, especially having spent time in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

“It was a combination,” Garoppolo said of what was appealing about the Rams. “Obviously good players all around, that’s a big part of it. Talking to Sean on the phone, him just running me through offense and things that he had in mind. It really became appetizing and I know a lot of the coaches here so a lot of familiarity in that aspect. Then having played against the Rams a lot in my career, I’ve seen a lot of good things from L.A.”

Garoppolo has never played for McVay before but he’s familiar with some of the coaches on his staff, including offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur and senior assistant Jerry Schuplinski. That will help make Garoppolo’s integration into the organization easier, but it’s McVay’s coaching ability that has the veteran quarterback particularly excited.

“Real excited, real excited,” he said. “We’ve talked a bunch after games. Last year when I was with the Raiders, got to practice here against the Rams. We talked after a couple of those practices. He’s always just been a very perceptive guy. He sees a lot of things, sees it very well, sees it for what it is and that’s a big part of how I got here. I think he had a vision, talked me through it, really just explained what he saw my role as, and just his football knowledge. I’ve heard it from so many different players and coaches, but to be here firsthand and get to experience it, that’s what I’m really excited about.”

McVay, ever the recruiter, talked to Garoppolo on the phone during the free agency process and that’s what really sold the former 49ers quarterback on the idea of playing for the Rams.

“There were a couple different options, but once the Rams came in, started talking to Sean on the phone and really picking his brain, that was a cool moment,” he said. “That was when it really started to click. I was like this is becoming more and more real. Obviously love the area, starting to experience it a little bit being out here, can’t really beat this at all. But it’s just a bunch of those little things coming together. I think talking to Sean on the phone really sealed the deal though.”

Garoppolo steps in as Matthew Stafford’s backup, bringing plenty of experience and knowledge to the Rams’ quarterback room. It’s only a one-year deal and there’s a chance he never gets on the field, but he saw what Baker Mayfield accomplished in a short period of time in 2022, which led to another starting job with the Bucs in 2023 and a contract extension this offseason.

“I mean, what Baker (Mayfield) did, that was tremendous, incredible,” he said. “Sean’s a phenomenal offensive mind and a lot of the guys around here are and I think that played a big part in reinventing, whatever you want to call it, a quarterback, having good people around you. It’s not all going to be done by you. You got to have the people around you to put you in a good position, call the right plays, all those little things. And yeah, I saw this opportunity and I got excited. It just seemed right.”

Sean McVay reveals how and when Aaron Donald told him he was retiring

Sean McVay knew shortly after the Rams’ season ended that Aaron Donald was retiring after the all-world defender said two words to him

In the back of most fans’ minds throughout the season, there was the thought of Aaron Donald possibly retiring. His three-year contract was structured as a two-year deal, with the possibility of Donald returning for a third season in 2024 to earn an extra $30 million. He also flirted with retirement after the team’s Super Bowl win two years ago, so the end of an era seemed near.

Like fans, Rams coach Sean McVay had a feeling all year that Donald’s retirement might be coming after the conclusion of the 2023 season. It didn’t take long after the season for No. 99 to let his coach know that he was riding off into the sunset.

McVay told Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated that he learned of Donald’s plan to retire the day after the Rams’ loss to the Lions in the wild-card round. Donald only needed to say two words to McVay to get his message across.

“I’m full,” Donald told McVay.

“I’m just like, And you should be. You have every right to feel that way,” McVay told Breer on Sunday. “What an amazing thing. The words won’t do justice to the way that he so eloquently articulated it to me and just put it in a way that, as a human being, all you’re really looking for is to be at peace and to be happy. He was full. And, man, did you feel that. You’re just so happy because he earned it too.”

Even with Donald’s retirement being a possibility after the 2023 season, his decision came as a huge surprise last week when he announced it on social media. He accomplished just about everything a player could in the NFL: He won a Super Bowl, three Defensive Player of the Year awards and Defensive Rookie of the Year. He was the single-season sacks leader in 2018, leads all Rams players in career sacks with 111 and made the Pro Bowl 10 out of 10 seasons.

Donald may not be suiting up on Sundays anymore, but McVay hopes he’ll stay close to the team, similar to the way Andrew Whitworth has.

“I’m hopeful that he’ll be around a lot,” McVay said. “He’s welcome. I think the way that he lives on is you continue to honor his legacy and use him with the stories that you can tell to these guys. Fortunately, a lot of these guys have seen it, so when you reference it, they’ve seen it and you can use that as an example. His legend will never go away. There are stories upon stories. There’s evidence on the film. I think the things that resonate the most are usually storytelling when you’re really trying to paint a picture or teach a lesson.”

The Rams will miss Donald a ton, both on the field and off it. But maybe he’ll stick around and visit practices this summer to help the younger players on the team who are trying to fill his void. That’d at least make his retirement a bit easier to swallow.

Sean McVay will ‘forever cherish’ his time with Aaron Donald: ‘He is truly one of one’

Sean McVay praised Aaron Donald following his retirement announcement, calling him “truly one of one”

There are a lot of players who are fortunate to have played alongside Aaron Donald as a member of the Rams. He helped make everyone around him better, including both pass rushers and players in the secondary.

He also made his coaches look better each and every week because of how absolutely dominant he was on the interior, wreaking havoc on the opposing offense no matter what the defensive play call was.

That’s part of what makes Sean Mcvay so grateful to have spent the last seven years coaching Donald in Los Angeles. After Donald announced his retirement from the NFL on Friday, McVay shared a statement on the three-time Defensive Player of the Year and what he meant to him.

“The great players in our league elevate the people around them and Aaron has modeled the way for our team as long as I’ve been with the Rams,” McVay said. “He’s an elite competitor, someone who leads by example in a way that’s authentic to him, and an exceptional teammate who inspires everyone around him to be the best version of themselves. As great of a player he is, he’s an even better person. He is truly one of one and epitomizes everything that’s right about sports. I will forever cherish the memories we’ve made and will always be grateful for how he poured everything into this game and into our team. He’s meant a lot to me personally and to my family.”

The Rams don’t reach the Super Bowl in 2018, McVay’s second season as a head coach, if not for Donald. They also don’t win it all in 2021 if not for Donald, who sealed the victory over the Bengals with some quick pressure on Joe Burrow in the final seconds of the game at SoFi Stadium.

McVay and his defensive coordinators maximized the impact Donald could have on a game by moving him around the defensive line and doing their best to get him one-on-one opportunities, but Donald was going to feast on blockers no matter the play call.

He was one of a kind as a pass rusher and run stopper, and there will never be anyone like him – the exact sentiment Les Snead shared on Friday.

“There will never be another Aaron Donald,” Snead said.

No, there will not.

Rams do a ton to reinforce their offensive line with Kevin Dotson, Jonah Jackson deals

The Rams re-signed guard Kevin Dotson and acquired guard Jonah Jackson in moves that tell you all about Sean McVay’s state of mind.

The Los Angeles Rams have the wherewithal to put an explosive offense on the field, and they’ve done a lot to keep Matthew Stafford healthy and throwing all those deep balls. On March 7, they re-signed guard Kevin Dotson to a new three-year, $48 million contract, and on Monday, they agreed to terms with former Detroit Lions guard Jonah Jackson.

Not only does this set the Rams up with a dominant guard tandem; it also allows second-year man Steve Avila to move from left guard to center. Avila played 1,076 snaps at center for TCU from 2019 through 2022.

As for Jackson, the 2020 third-round pick out of Ohio State allowed two sacks and 27 total pressures on 480 pass-blocking snaps. Wrist and knee injuries gave Jackson a bit of an abbreviated season, but when he was on the field, he was on point far more often than not — not only as a pass-blocker, but as a stand-alone run-blocker and puller in Detroit’s highly complex run game. The Rams have moved a bit from their formerly preferred inside/outside zone to more gap concepts of late, and Jackson is a nice fit.