DC Chris Shula delivers a modern NFL miracle turning lead into defensive gold

Do you believe that you get what you pay for? If so, then this article about the LA Rams defense, and what first-year defensive coordinator Chris Shula continues to inspire the group to do is nothing short of a modern-day NFL miracle. The Rams are not the first team that a casual NFL fan thinks of when it comes to stalwart defenses, but don't let that dissuade you from digging past the young inexperienced veneer. Well, grab your crowbar and claw hammer, and let's rip off that veneer.

The Rams defense needed time to coalesce. This was simply a group of veterans and rookies thrown together with a common theme of 'affordability,' And even the presence of former Rams veterans like CB Darious Williams and S John Johnson III only sanded the edges off a secondary that was reconstructed to DC Chis Shula's meticulous specifications. With a new defensive coordinator, the Rams defense accepted a new set of goals.

Those new goals were to terrorize opposing quarterbacks, and to create turnovers.

Of course, every plan good or bad must overcome hurdles. And the first hurdle for every NFL team is the question: How do we pay for that? After all, the LA Rams have a lot of money invested in the offensive side of the football. Per Spotrac.com, the Rams have the most expensive offense in the NFL in 2024 with an estimated cost of over $174 million. The inverse must therefore also be true, and in the case of the Rams defense, that proves to be the case. The Rams are spending an estimated $32.67 million on the defensive side of the football.

While the Rams hired Chris Shula to be their new defensive coordinator, he had several legs up going into his first NFL season as the engineer of the defensive playbook. For starters, he worked with legendary Rams defensive coaches like Wade Phillips, Brandon Staley, and Raheem Morris on the Rams coaching staff. But there is much more going for him.

Because he was on the coaching staff, he had first-hand knowledge of what each defensive coordinator wanted to do with the defense, and how it worked out. He also built an extensive database of challenges and solutions for the defense at any given point of time.

But even more than that, he possessed an intimate working knowledge of the Rams roster, including the strengths, weaknesses, and coachability of every player on the team. So when the front office reached out to Shula to determine the specifications for his players to optimize the type of defense he wanted to run, he was able to share incredible details. That allowed the front office to add talented players on the cheap by loading up on rookies in the 2024 NFL Draft.

To the tune of less than $33 million in 2024.

That is phenomenally cheap. So how are the Rams getting golden defensive production out of lead priced players? Ah, that's the miracle after all, isn't it?

How do the Rams create QB pressure?

The first challenge for this defense is how to manage creating pressure on opposing quarterbacks in a season after All-Pro defensive tackle Aaron Donald retired. It is common knowledge that Donald delivered unstoppable pressure, but his ability to attract the focus of opposing offensive linemen freed up teammates to make plays.

The Rams struck gold in the 2023 NFL Draft. Not only did the team land a pair of top-notch pass rushers in Round 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft in former Tennessee OLB Byron Young and Wake Forest NT Kobie Turner. Not only did the Rams rookies deliver, but they forged a strong friendship in 2023 that compelled them to strive even higher.

Having that experience from 2023, the Rams engineered a similar situation in the 2024 NFL Draft by selecting both OLB Jared Verse and DT Braden Fiske in the 2024 NFL Draft. While the scenario appeared organically, the team had to trade up in Round 2 to be in a position to select Fiske. As NFL Draft analysts sneered and scoffed, I applauded the move.

Their presence on the Rams' defensive front has been outstanding. The young players have been ramping up a pass rush that continues to improve each week. In the Wild Card Round of the 2025 NFL Playoffs, the dam broke and the Rams Unleashed the Kraken on Vikings veteran QB Sam Darnold.

Is pressuring the quarterback enough, though? After all, at some point the Rams defensive front hand to convert chasing quarterbacks into sacking quarterbacks. That point never quite seemed to happen in the regular season. But it did happen in a loud and proud way in the NFL Playoffs with 9.0 quarterback sacks against the Minnesota Vikings. That tied a modern NFL record for most quarterback sacks in a playoff game.

So one goal has been accomplished.

How about those turnovers?

The LA Rams also learned that 2023 was hindered by the teams inability to created turnovers. The team ended the regular season with a net turnover mark 0f (-3). That is not a great foundation for success in the NFL Playoffs. That became another objective for the team's offseason efforts, spearheaded by Rams GM Les Snead.

The Rams had only turned the football over 18 times in 2023, tied for sixth-best in the NFL. So the strategy to fix the negative turnover mark was best aimed at improving the 15 turnovers created by the defense. And a quick peek into the turnovers in 2024 reveals that this defense created 20 turnovers this season, while only turning the football over 14 times. So how did the team manage to pull that off?

Well, the team forced seven fumbles and intercepted 13 passes. Leading the team on that front are rookie defensive backs Kamren Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough, both with four interceptions apiece. And each rookie converted one of those interceptions into a pick-six.

Similarly, both rookie OLB Jared Verse and Braden Fiske recovered two fumbles apiece. But it was newly signed veteran defensive back Kamren Curl who ran a fumble recovery back for a touchdown. That's 21 points off the defensive side of the football. Add a safety by OLB Byron Young, and a blocked kick return for a touchdown by veteran TE Colby Parkinson, and you get the image that the Rams have hit the jackpot on that front as well.

No, Rams DC Chris Shula is not the only defensive coordinator to face challenges in his first season as a defensive coordinator. He is not only the first defensive coordinator in NFL history to overcome those challenges. But he is getting golden production from the cheapest defense in the NFL. We put the Rams' young defense on watch early in the season, much to the chagrin and negative feedback from some fans. We even doubled down on that claim by Week 8.

You needn't take my word for it. Examine the statistics for yourself. The Rams run to and through the playoffs if fueled by a defense that is playing lights out. And that only sets up this team for success for years to come.

He may not be among NFL head coaching candidates in 2025. But you can bet he will be one of the hottest names sought out in 2026.

As always, thanks for reading.

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