This just in: LA Rams DC Wade Phillips won’t be back

Despite an improving defense, LA Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips is out. Who’s in?

The Los Angeles Rams have reportedly informed defensive coordinator Wade Phillips that he would not be back in 2020. This has been been building after a disappointing 9-7 season kept the Rams out of the NFC playoffs just one year after competing in Super Bowl 53.  In fact, there have been plenty of rumors that Phillips was on shaky ground throughout the end of 2019.

Wade Phillips confirmed the news on social media on January 6, 2020.

Some point to the struggles of the Rams defense in several notable games in 2019 as justification for the decision:
Gave up 55 points on a September 29 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Followed that up by surrendering 30 points when losing to the  Seattle Seahawks  on October 3
Suffered an embarrassing 45 -6 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving day
Gave up 44 points to while losing to a  struggling Dallas Cowboys December 15
Allowed 34 points to  division rival San Francisco 49ers in loss December 21.

Was this truly warranted?  While the defense had huge swings, the defense allowed 364 points, good for 17th in the NFL.  That is actually an improvement from the previous season, when the Rams allowed 384 points or 20th in the NFL.  Conversely, after scoring 527 points in 2018, 2nd best in the NFL, the Rams offense plummeted to 394 points, or 11th in the NFL.

This seems to suggest that the focus is not immediately upon fixing the offensive woes, but in deflecting some attention to the Rams defense. While the defense certainly had opportunities in 2019 to help the team, this move seems to overemphasize the defense’s role in the downturn of the team’s fortunes.

As the smoke clears, the Rams now have a major hire facing them at the start of the 2020 offseason.  We’ll look at defensive coordinator prospects in the next couple of days