Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams suffered a noteworthy blow ahead of the 2026 offseason, losing offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur to the Arizona Cardinals as their next head coach. It is the fourth full-time OC the Rams have lost under McVay.
McVay and the Rams did not waste much time finding his potential replacement.
Moreover, McVay landed a relatively unconventional option to fill the void that LaFleur had filled for the past three seasons.
Sean McVay, Rams Add Former Commanders Contributor
GettyWashington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury looks on against the Denver Broncos.
“Former Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury is joining the coaching staff of the Los Angeles Rams,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on X on February 6, less than one week after LaFleur’s exit.
Kingsbury is an unconventional hire for McVay and the Rams, but it has been well-received.
Not because he was an OC in his last stop, or the success they had in his first season before an injury-plagued 2025 campaign sunk his stock in Washington.
The Rams have hired former OCs in LaFleur (New York Jets/2021) and Kevin O’Connell (Commanders/2019). Instead, Kingsbury could be the first former head coach to fill the OC role under McVay, having led the Cardinals from 2019 through 2022.
Moreover, Kingsbury was a highly-regarded play-caller in his own right.
He would not have that responsibility with the Rams, where McVay will continue to dial in the right looks on offense. That is not Kingsbury’s concern at this stage of his career, though.
“At this point in his career, Kingsbury wants to continue growing as a coach and learn more about what it takes to be a head coach in the NFL again — including all the inner workings of the job that people don’t get to see,” Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reported on X on February 6.
“There’s no better place to do that than in LA.”
Schultz noted that “Kingsbury and McVay are close and have previously discussed working together for a full season,” but an official title remains unknown.
Peaks & Valleys Define Kliff Kingsbury’s Coaching Career
GettyWashington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury examines is play sheet against the New York Jets.
Kingsbury, a sixth-round draft pick of the New England Patriots in 2003, finished his tenure as the Cardinals’ head coach with a 2-7 record against McVay and the Rams.
His offenses in Arizona and Washington have finished in the top 10 three times. Unfortunately for Kingsbury, they have finished 21st or worse in his three other seasons in charge of the offensive operation.
Kingsbury’s groups have finished 22nd, seventh, and 22nd over the past three seasons.
More concerning is that Kingsbury’s offenses have only cracked the top 10 in scoring once during his time in the NFL, ranking fifth in 2024 but 14th on average.
Again, that is less of a concern in whatever role he ultimately holds with the Rams, where he would take on something more like an administrative role. He would also get to see first-hand how McVay has managed to keep the Rams’ offense as high-flying as it has been.
Rams’ Consistency Remarkable
GettyLos Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay reacts before a game against the Seattle Seahawks.
The Rams have ranked in the top-10 overall offensively in seven of McVay’s 12 seasons, with an 11th-place finish to boot.
They have been in the top 10 in scoring six times, again with an 11th-place finish on his resume.
McVay’s Rams offenses have led the NFL in scoring two times and in overall offense once. They checked both boxes this past regular season. Having the MVP in Matthew Stafford helps, but even he has credited McVay’s play-calling, and that bodes well for Kingbury with the Rams.
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