LA Rams Sean McVay-Jay Gruden combination is huge for NFL

Gruden and McVay mean business

I’m not suggesting that the decision to pare down to a functional 53-man roster will be exclusively Jay Gruden’s decision. But I can certainly see how Gruden and his third-party objectivity could aid the team in any either-or tiebreakers. And because he and McVay have a long-standing trust, Gruden’s recommendations would certainly carry weight with Sean McVay.

It was the Gruden-McVay combination that deployed a fullback in the Washington offense for two seasons, and then ended that role and emphasized multiple tight ends in its place. It was the 2015 efforts of Gruden-McVay that earned Washington a playoff berth, a feat that would not be repeated until 2020.

Right now, the Rams appear to have an uphill climb to restore the effectiveness of the rushing attack. To cure what ails the running back room, the team can re-emphasize tight ends, repurpose some of the team’s bigger wider receivers into a tight-endish type role, reintroduce a fullback/power back role, resuscitate the running-back-by-committee approach, or simply start from scratch.

Necessity is the mother of invention

Is doing nothing at all on the table? Perhaps, but after the Rams were forced to manage veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford’s throwing arm work through OTAs and training camp due to pain, the team will not be interested in a pass-heavy offense by design.

One of the most fascinating things about the LA Rams organization is simply the fact that the team seems to be about two-three years ahead of the latest NFL trends. And it just feels like McVay has reached out to his former boss and mentor to write the next chapter of NFL offensive innovations.

What might that be? Who knows? But I can tell you one thing, any combination of Sean McVay and Jay Gruden means business is about to be booming for the LA Rams.