Yikes! LA Rams Coach Eric Henderson called one helluva game

Yes, the LA Rams are the defending Super Bowl Champions. Yes, the Houston Texans are a team that some expect to end the season in competition for the first overall draft pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. But this is preseason, the time of year when the LA Rams are working the depth of the roster hard to determine who can compete when the regular season arrives. But whenever you have LA Rams Coach Eric Henderson in the mix, you can bet that you will get fierce competition.

Case in point, that is exactly what occurred as LA Rams Run Coordinator and Defensive line coach Eric Henderson called one helluva game for the Rams against the Texans starting offense. He held them scoreless until a fatal miscue by defensive back Russ Yeast opened the door for a last-second score to close out the first half.

So that is a good thing, right?

Well, no actually. This is the same Coach who allows the LA Rams to select late-round drafted rookies and undrafted players, and coach them up to a nearly NFL Pro Bowl level. Now, he has video footage of calling defensive plays pitting his second and third-round defensive prospects against an NFL starting offense, and he nearly tossed a shut-out.

If the secret was not out earlier than this, it’s out now. Coach Eric Henderson is a helluva NFL coach, the best in the business, and he’s just showcased how good against a veteran head coach named Lovie Smith. How so? The Rams’ reserves played well against the Texans starters.

Rams News: Coach Eric Henderson is on the NFL shortlist for DC

Now, does anyone truly believe that Coach Henny will not get calls to interview for a defensive coordinator position next year? Let’s not kid ourselves. There is a very special quality about Coach Henderson. He makes the special seem ordinary. He is wearing a Super Bowl ring, but you can envision him laughing and sharing beers with the family over a backyard barbecue.

To young LA Rams defensive linemen, he promises NFL stardom. But, at a price. It’s a multi-year, nose to the grindstone, do anything and everything for your coach, your teammates, and your team. Grind it out, embrace the grueling struggle, and the glory of success will come. It’s not a promise to be undertaken lightly. It’s the promise that good things happen if you lock on to that goal and never let go.

The results speak for themselves. The LA Rams defensive front is more than All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald. In fact, each year a new young player seems to step out of the shadows into the NFL spotlight.

That’s the type of success that you don’t often find in the NFL. And after the game two preseason performance, this could be the last year for Coach Eric Henderson to shine on the LA Rams coaching staff. Does he deserve his shot to become an NFL defensive coordinator? You bet.

But he is one of the nicest, most gentlemanly, personable men you will find in the NFL. He deserves his shot. This year, I cannot see how he won’t get it.