How Sean McVay handles this latest challenge might expose something deeper

Everyone knows the cliches about a captain going down with his ship. But in the case of the 9-3 Los Angeles Rams, the latest challenge and resolution for head coach Sean McVay poses both a profound fork in the road for fans. It seems that Coach McVay has come down with an illness. But there are no days off in the NFL, so he is planning to fight through nausea, aches, and fevers/chills to coach his team.

The question is whether that is truly what's best for the team?

Now don't read more into this than is intended. If a player was ill, they would sit this one out. And for a coach wearing headsets and calling offensive plays, this is certainly a different realm altogether. It's commendable that after a humbling but oh-so-close loss, Coach McVay is manning up to stay in charge of the team at a critical point of the season.

How desperate is LA for a win? Well, the team needs just one more victory to match the total wins for the past two seasons (10). But the NFC West Division has the 9-3 Seattle Seahawks and the 9-4 San Francisco 49ers in hot pursuit. To win the division, Los Angeles realistically needs 13 or 14 wins. To ensure a playoff berth, 12 wins seems about right.

Is Sean McVay making the right decision in Week 14?

Nobody is questioning Coach McVay's passion and dedication to the team. Need more cliches? The buck stops here, Walk the talk, Taking ownership, Stand behind it. When it comes to the job of head coaching an NFL team, everything that happens ultimately falls on that role. Whether warranted or not, successes or struggles are toe-tagged to the head coach.

Coach McVay is the ultimate figurehead of the Los Angeles Rams. Win or lose, he does not shrug the responsibility, nor does he make it a point to throw players under the bus. He is the type of coach that professional athletes love to play for, because he has their backs.

But having said that, he does struggle with delegation. He calls the offensive plays, a role that many head coaches have delegated to offensive coordinators. That is not to say that McVay is a ruthless dictator whatsoever. He loves to collaborate, and it's that mentorship that has proven to incubate head coaches all over the NFL.

While he doesn't delegate the offense, that has not stopped other NFL teams from attempts to graft the McVay-inspired offense into their own organizations. But what about true empowering his coordinators?

2025 has been a season of firsts for this offense. For the first time, offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur seems to be making a large impact. He favors complex running plays and multiple tight end formations, both of which are on full display in Los Angeles this season.

LaFleur does not call the offensive plays and is not expected to for LA anytime soon. After all, if he can't take over those duties when McVay is under the weather, then he is likely never going to. That has to at least trigger the question in fans' minds: Is that the right message to send?

As always, thanks for reading.