NFL Analysts are blind to Coach McVay giving Rams a winning edge

Since hiring Sean McVay to assume the reins of head coach of the LA Rams, the team has skyrocketed to a record of 70-45, has competed in the NFL Playoffs in five of seven seasons, fought to a 7-3 record in postseason competition, appeared in two Super Bowls, and has a 1-1 record when playing for the Lombardi Trophy.

And yet, with each new season, NFL analysts, pundits, and so-called experts refuse to acknowledge the simple fact of life in the NFL.

Winners win.

The LA Rams are not the only team to have better-than-expected success. Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid is coming off two consecutive Super Bowl victories and is incredibly and consistently successful. He boasts a lifetime record of 332-181-1. He also holds a playoff record of 34-21. Despite his recent success with the LA Rams, Coach McVay has a ways to go.

The point here is not to measure which NFL head coach tops the list. Rather, the goal is to place the appropriate focus for future projections of an NFL team correctly on the most vital variable in the equation: The NFL team's head coach. While injuries can have a dramatic effect on a temporary basis, the most consistent factor for a team's ability to win in the NFL is directly related to the team's head coach.

And the LA Rams have one of the best in HC Sean McVay.

If you examine the team's history, Coach McVay has consistently won with:

• 4 different offensive coordinators
• 4 different defensive coordinators
• 4 different special team coordinators
• A myriad of different positional coaches
• Nearly 200 different players (estimated by 1/3rd roster turnover each year for eight seasons)

And yet, just like the Eveready Bunny Rabbit, the Rams just keep on winning and winning. How can that be possible?

Simply stated? Coaching makes a difference. And for the LA Rams coming off a 5-12 record in 2022, and a 10-7 record. So how is it that so many projections for the Rams show a slight regression? Well, they are ignoring the most vital variable that dictates how successful an NFL team will be.

2022 was a throw-away data point for two reasons. The Rams won Super Bowl LVI despite being a rather beat-up team. Those injuries carried over and became an epidemic in 2022, forcing the team to burn through all of their resources just to field a competitive team. But the greater anomaly is that HC Sean McVay was himself burning out. The plummet from celebrating a Super Bowl victory to trying to scrape and claw for a win, any win, was too much torque for him to absorb so quickly.

Ultimately, Coach McVay had to step away from the game and the team, reorient himself to his professional goals, and return in 2023 to lead the team higher and further than anyone thought possible. Now, he is back for another season, and he is as refreshed and fit as ever.

I love the Rams chances to surpass their 2023 success in 2024. I trust the fact that Coach McVay continues to give this team a winning edge. Perhaps NFL analysts will learn not to discount him going forward.