Fired Head Coach Could Persuade Sean McVay to Stay With Rams: Insider

If Sean McVay does give coaching another round with the Los Angeles Rams, he’ll be coaching against a brand new Arizona Cardinals head coach in 2023 after the rival Cards fired Kliff Kingsbury after four seasons.

However, Kingsbury could hold the key in McVay staying on with the Rams, wrote The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman on January 9.

“Something to keep an eye on with the Cards firing Kliff Kingsbury: Heard some talk this weekend in coaching circles that IF Sean McVay stays with the Rams, Kliff may come back to LA (he was on staff at USC for a quick minute before the Cards hired him) joining the Rams staff,” Feldman tweeted.

It’s the latest scenario involving the future of McVay — whose name has been mentioned once again for potential broadcast opportunities, per Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports on January 5. The next day, McVay told the media that his focus was on coaching the Rams. He also avoided answering questions about his coaching future after the Rams’ season finale overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

“I’m not thinking about that right now,” McVay said after the 19-16 defeat.

---

Rams Still Facing Possibility of Losing Current Offensive Coordinator

There’s already added uncertainty involving the Rams’ coaching staff as movement could be taking place in the coming weeks.

During the season, the Rams lost running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples to Arizona State and offensive assistant Jake Peetz to the University of Nebraska. Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, meanwhile, has been targeted by the Denver Broncos as an interview candidate for their vacant head coaching position, according to a January 9 tweet from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

And the Rams could lose another prominent member of the staff: offensive coordinator Liam Coen.

Heading into the Rams’ season finale, Coen addressed a January 5 report by ESPN’s Chris Mortensen with the L.A. media about possibly heading back to the University of Kentucky to retake the offensive reins there.

“I have not made a decision quite yet. The focus has been to truly put everything into this and this opportunity to be around these guys,” Coen said, adding that he was close to the Rams players. He said at the time that he would use days following the Seahawks game to evaluate the future.

Coen was offensive coordinator for the Wildcats in 2021 when they went 10-3 overall and ranked 21st overall in average yards per play.

---

Not the First Time Kingbury Got Mentioned With the Rams

Though Kingsbury and McVay were division rivals for four seasons, they are known to be close friends off the field.

And Kingsbury revealed during a 2018 interview on “The Dan Patrick Show” that he had been close to joining the Rams.

“I really have a ton of respect for Coach McVay and what he’s done. Great dude who treats people the right way, innovative on offense, high energy,” Kingsbury said. “I would’ve loved to see, on a daily basis, how he does things and would’ve tried to contribute anyway I can. But just felt like this was the right spot for me at the right time.”

Now, Kingsbury is unemployed and the Rams face uncertainty surrounding the intentions of both McVay and Coen.

0 Comments