LA Rams: 5 step plan for a perfect offseason

How do you follow up the LA Rams Super Bowl LVI winning season? After all, that is what has been asked of the team’s front office, hasn’t it? This was never going to be a situation where fans would kick back ala a ‘we just won a Super Bowl, who cares what we do?’ offseason, right?  The first win has only whetted the appetite.

But on many occasions, the LA Rams appeared to be on a collision course with a one-and-done scenario all along. The Rams traded for RB Sony Mitchell and OLB Von Miller and signed free agent WR Odell Beckham Jr., all of whom had contracts that expired at the end of the season.

In terms of controlling their assets for the long term, it was not just the new additions that were running out of time at the end of the 2021 NFL season. Long-time Andrew Whitworth faced retirement, and a host of LA Rams veterans were also facing expiring contracts. Behind it all, there was never a feeling of an encore. It was as though the LA Rams were solely and unshakeable focused on getting that Super Bowl win.

But as soon as it happened, everything changed. Behind the euphoria, the loud chants of ‘Run it back,’ the parades, and the Lombardi trophy tour, the LA Rams organization pivoted immediately from winning a Super Bowl to competing for the next Super Bowl. So what steps must the team take to line up for a run at Super Bowl LVII?  We have outlined the five-step plan for the perfect offseason for the LA Rams.

Step V: Extend GM Les Snead and HC Sean McVay

The LA Rams immediately found success from the moment that the team hired head coach Sean McVay. McVay and GM Les Snead illustrate just how the separation of power in a well-run NFL team should work. Unlike the power struggles that have derailed successful teams from remaining great in the past, the tale of Snead and McVay has been one of synchronization. So it only makes sense for the team to address revitalizing the contracts of both in the year after a Super Bowl-winning season.

The Rams have a long and storied history of success in the NFL. From Ray Malavasi, ‘Ground’ Chuck Knox, Dick Vermeil, to John Robinson, the Rams franchise has had periods of excellence in the NFL. But it’s clear that the combination of GM Les Snead and HC Sean McVay will end up among that group, if not atop the historical best, as long as the Rams keep them employed.

While it may be premature to do so, the combination of Snead and McVay has the potential to exceed them all. This is a combination that has managed to instantly flip a struggling team into a perennial playoff contender. In just five seasons together the LA Rams have:

1. Never had a season with a winning percentage below .500
2. Earned a playoff berth in four out of five seasons
3. Boast a 55-26 regular season record
4. Appeared in two Super Bowls
5. Have a 7-3 postseason record, and are 1-1 in Super Bowl competition

That’s quite an impressive run.

Sometimes, it’s simply impossible to gauge the height of a tree while standing at its roots. Nor is it easy to judge the length of the climb while standing at the foot of the mountain. Perhaps that is why Pro Football Focus’s latest NFL coaching ranking did not reflect LA Rams HC among their Top 10? It’s impossible to truly appreciate just how good the LA Rams organization leadership is in the midst of this run. But it is critical to ensure both Les Snead and Sean McVay remain in charge for the foreseeable future.