LA roaring to 4-4 is a testament to McVay’s greatness
The L.A. Rams roaring back into the NFC West chase is a testament to Sean McVay, and he deserves to be in the Coach of the Year conversation for his efforts. However, the Rams coach is probably unlikely to earn his second career COY nod and that is shameful.
Depending on where you look, various outlets have pegged coaches like Dan Campbell, Mike Tomlin and Dan Quinn as the favorites to win the hardware in February. All three are deserving of the award as each of their teams currently sit atop their respective divisions.
Although, none of them have faced the adversity McVay has for much of the season, particularly in the early stretch.
LA saw its top two wideouts miss time for several weeks and injuries had plagued the offensive line. On top of that, the Rams’ young defense was struggling to find its form which was to be expected. Los Angeles truly appeared dead in the water following a 1-4 start, only to win three straight and are within spitting distance of first place in the West. Now that the Rams are seemingly back as players in the NFC playoff picture, McVay deserves his flowers, but as I said earlier, he won’t get them.
The reason is that the COY award typically goes to the coaches who have surpassed expectations. Quinn very clearly fits that description as he has guided the Commanders to a surprising 7-2 start, and has done everything possible to rid Washington of the stink Dan Snyder left behind.
As for Campbell and Tomlin, it was expected that their teams would be contenders to some degree. Detroit has one of the best rosters in the NFL and could very well represent the conference in the Super Bowl. Imagine reading that sentence a decade ago. Campbell helping mold the Lions from a laughingstock to a force of nature is an admirable feat. Tomlin on the other hand, is allergic to sub-.500 football and his team is once again built for another early playoff exit in January. Sorry Pittsburgh, I don’t have much faith in Mr. Dangerwich and nor should anyone else.
The Rams stumbling out of the gate was not McVay’s fault. LA had every chance to give up as the injury bug wreaked havoc on his roster. The team had every chance to think ahead to next year after that disgusting 31-point loss to the Cardinals. There was every chance for an exit strategy, but McVay worked his magic and refused to let the Rams quit on him.
There is still plenty of football left to be played, yet LA’s rebound the last few weeks is a testament to his greatness. The Rams stumbled to a 3-6 start in 2023, until McVay led them to a 7-1 finish in the season’s second half to claim the NFC’s six-seed. A Sean McVay-coached team is never out of it and Sunday’s overtime win over the Seahawks is proof of that.
For any voters that are actually paying attention, they know the NFL’s best coaching job is happening in Hollywood — Jim Harbaugh you can take a seat.
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