Rams coordinators have a busy week not only preparing for the Bears, but also doing interviews, too
It’s a busy week for the Los Angeles Rams, who are preparing to face the Chicago Bears on Sunday in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs. It’s also a busy week for three of the team’s assistant coaches, adding plenty to their plates ahead of this weekend’s game.
Defensive coordinator Chris Shula has six head coaching interviews with teams across the league. Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur has two of his own. Even pass game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase has three interviews lined up with teams searching for a new head coach.
These will all be virtual interviews, so it’s not as if the coaches have to travel to the respective teams’ facilities, but it naturally will take some of their attention off of the Bears. Sean McVay has been through this dance before and he says he’s not worried “at all” about it distracting his coaches or the team before the Bears game.
“No, I’m not. I’m not at all concerned,” he said Monday. “I think these guys do a great job. I think they understand. I think the way that it’s set up and situated is there are times and at this portion of the interview process, it’s more a get-to-know-each-other. You’re not diving into you some of the depths that maybe the latter parts of these interview processes can entail. It’s a tremendous credit to those guys. They’re well-deserving. Like I’ve said, we’ve got a bunch of capable great leaders on our coaching staff, guys that elevate our players and our situation. I’m happy for them and I’m not at all concerned about it being a distraction because of how those guys are. In a lot of instances, I think them just being themselves will be the most appropriate way to handle it all because of who they are most importantly as people, but also as coaches with incredible capacity.”
Here are the 11 interviews lined up for the Rams’ assistant coaches this week, all of them being head coaching interviews. It’s easy to see how much attention and interest McVay’s coordinators are drawing, and understandably so.
Chris Shula
Mike LaFleur
Nate Scheelhaase
Shula seems like the strongest candidate for a head coaching position this cycle, given the job he’s done with the Rams defense the last two years. And he comes with a lot of coaching experience despite only being 39 years old.
Scheelhaase has been called the “wild card” by reporters such as Peter Schrager, being a 35-year-old pass game coordinator who has never called plays in the NFL or been an offensive/defensive coordinator. Will he really skip that step and go straight to a head coaching position?
Teams are at least expressing interest in him this year after he had two offensive coordinator interviews with the Bucs and Jags last year. Maybe this is the offseason he gets a head coaching opportunity.
As for the advice McVay gives his assistants going into these interviews, it’s pretty simple: be yourself and surround yourself with good people.
“I think the most important thing is be yourself,” he said. “I think in some instances you can sometimes be so scripted that it’s not natural. It’s like, what are your core beliefs? What are the things that are going to be in alignment that if this is what you want to be about, what are the things you want to stand for? What are your key and critical philosophies in each of the different phases? Then most importantly, who are you surrounding yourself with? What type of people does that really look like? What are some of your blind spots that you need to supplement yourself with people that can help you?”
