Where do the LA Rams stand in terms of coaching staff today?

Defensive coaches

If there is a group of coaches that I am particularly more and more enthusiastic over, it's the group that are coming together for the LA Rams defense. The truth of the matter is that I have been growing more and more concerned over the Rams secondary. Even as the team drafted four new rookie defensive backs in 2022, the gains were partially neutralized by the inability of Robert Rochell to earn any meaningful time, the loss of Jordan Fuller to injury, followed by the outright release of his teammate Terrell Burgess.

All of these events pointed to a heartbreaking regression of promising players who suddenly stopped improving. With the action taken by the Rams already, you have to conclude that part of the contributing factors was the coaching that they had received in 2022. And that is where the excitement is kicking in for me.

If you had polled me before the season had ended with the question which coaching hire would make me feel better about the LA Rams defense this off-season, I would have listed Aubrey Pleasant as the top coaching hire, and Jimmy Lake as the runner-up coaching hire, as my two top wishes. But lo and behold, the LA Rams have hired both.

DL – Eric Henderson (interviewing for DC)
LB – Chris Beake
OLB – vacant - Chris Shula perhaps?
Secondary – Jimmy Lake perhaps?
DB Coach – Aubrey Pleasant
Defensive assistant – vacant

The truth of the matter is that the Rams have a lot of work to do. But with the team adding both Pleasant and I presume Lake to handle the Rams secondary woes, that should free up former Rams OLB coach Chris Shula to return to coaching the OLBs and get that positional group back on track. From that point the Rams defensive coaching staff merely needs to identify and hire those promising young coaches as assistants who can develop into larger roles in the future.

Has any of this helped? I have to admit that I feel better about the team having written this. I hope that after seeing the quality of coaches who remain and have joined the team, you feel a bit more confident as well.

Before anyone gets too stuck on the details, I have not made it a point to list everyone who was part of the LA Rams coaching staff in 2022 nor where those former Rams coaches are now settling in. Ultimately, the Rams coaching staff has two significant remaining vacancies: ST Coordinator and RB coach.