How DC Chris Shula harnessed Michael Hoecht's passion for the NFL

There is no mistake about how many LA Rams have felt about former DT turned OLB Michael Hoecht. He has been one of the most controversial players on the Rams roster. But it hasn't been because he is a problem in the locker room. It's not even because he has been unwilling to do what the coaches have asked of him. The problem with Hoecht has been his willingness to do whatever the coaches have asked of him. The second problem has been how fans have reacted to it.

While any player in their right mind always says 'yes,' to any request from a coach when trying to make an NFL team roster, the ask for Hoecht went far beyond switching from the left side to the right side of the defensive front. Due to a lack of production at the outside linebacker position, the Rams coaching staff repurposed Hoecht from a hand in the dirt to a 2-stance outside linebacker.

And that is where he has remained since mid-season of 2022.

The thing is, Hoecht is an effective pass rusher, regardless of how he lines up. But with his size, he should never have been tasked with pass coverage. At least not at the level that offensive coordinators threw at him. In 2023, Hoecht was targeted 31 times. While he allowed 24 completions and just one touchdown, fans fixated on the horrific optics whenever Hoecht tried to stay close with a speedy wide receiver.

The problem was in the defensive scheme, not in the player.

How bad was it? Of the top pass rushers in the NFL in 2023, Hoecht was targeted on average more than three times over other outside linebackers. Even on the Rams roster, he was targetted twice as often as teammate OLB Byron Young.

So how has new Defensive Coordinator Chris Shula corrected that weakness?