How many LA Rams coaches will be poached this year?

The LA Rams have been an incredibly competitive team, not just from the attention to detail by head coach Sean McVay, but from the ability of his entire coaching staff to coach up talented but raw rookies into NFL-caliber players. It’s that ability to deliver refined NFL players from raw and modest beginnings that have enabled the Rams to become perennial NFL powerhouses.

But now, one of the casualties of the Rams head coach Sean McVay trying to clear his head and figure out the next steps of his career is the fact that the Rams coaching staff, long the backbone of this team, has been given the green light to seek out their best coaching opportunities.

That’s huge, and it means a radical and complete change to the team in the 2023 NFL season no matter what McVay’s ultimate decision might be:

So who is riding the NFL coaching carousel right now? Two members of the LA Rams staff have already fled to higher ground.  You already know who they are, so I will simply list them below:

Coach I: Well, we already know that former LA Rams offensive coordinator Liam Coen has returned as the offensive coordinator for the University of Kentucky.

Coach II: Former LA Rams RB coach Ra’Shaad Samples has accepted a role on the Arizona State University coaching staff.

Rams coaches at risk of leaving

Okay, two coaches are gone. Who else is at risk of taking on a new role, perhaps as a promotion?

Risk I: Well, for starters, LA Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris is under consideration for the vacant head coaching roles with both the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos.

Just like the LA Rams’ loss of Personnel Executive Brad Holmes to become the GM of the Detroit Lions, if a team hires Raheem Morris to be their head coach, the LA Rams would be awarded two compensatory draft picks in Round 3, one in the 2024 and one in the 2025 NFL Draft. But the Rams must weigh that with their own intentions of perhaps defaulting to Raheem Morris to become the interim head coach of the LA Rams should McVay opt out of returning to resume his role for the 2023 NFL season.

Risk Assessment: Moderate

Risk II: Assistant head coach Thomas Brown will be interviewed by the Houston Texans for their vacant head coaching position. Even if he is not hired, he will undoubtedly be given multiple opportunities to become an NFL  offensive coordinator this year.

Risk Assessment: High

Risk III: Another positional coach who is at high risk of accepting a promotion with another team is LA Rams defensive line/defensive run game coordinator Eric Henderson. Coach Henny is not just extremely knowledgeable, but his gifts run deep in connecting with his players. He was even given an opportunity to call the defensive plays in the preseason, and the defense was incredibly effective whenever he wore the headsets.

One of the effects of Coach Henny leaving the organization could be negating any chance the team has of welcoming back defensive lineman Aaron Donald. Donald is very close to both Sean McVay and Eric Henderson, and the likelihood of his return in the absence of both coaches just seems very unlikely.

Risk Assessment: High

Risk IV: A final positional coach whose name has surfaced repeatedly in Rams rumors is the name of LA Rams quarterback coach and offensive pass game coordinator Zac Robinson.  In his time with the LA Rams, Rams head coach Sean McVay never hesitated to heap praise upon his positional coach, and that has carried over into an ever-appreciating reputation in NFL circles.

The LA Rams may be awaiting the decision from head coach Sean McVay over his own future. But positional coaches and coordinators are understandably motivated to seek a more stable employment situation, and potential promotion, for themselves. In the end, the NFL is a business. And like any business, when an employer is undergoing a restructuring, the best employees are the first to leave.

Risk Assessment: Moderate

So to answer the question posed in the headlines: How many LA Rams coaches will be poached this year? Too many.