Mcvay fires special teams coordinator after loss to Seattle

[NoGain]

Says who? Like, can you point to objective evidence somewhere that indicates it's a bad idea?

@Torc - Adam Schefter also said special teams blunders have played a role in three of the Rams' four losses this season.

Okay. You win.

 

[ivotuk]

The NFL is a business and way too much money is at stake to let the time of year affect whether to let someone go or not. The NFL is not a charity, Christmas being nigh upon us should be, and is, irrelevant. Firing their ST coach doesn't feel like scapegoating or an inappropriate move to me.

He should have been fired a long time ago, but I think McVay's arrogance kept him around.

 

[hox]

Shout out to Jay Harbaugh. Was critical of him last season, but he's been great this season.

 

[Sperrydogg]

...and this is nothing like scapegoating. This is a ST coach wasting multiple opportunities to correct problems. It's not a 'good old boys' club with a 'just do your best' mantra. The team has moved on from multiple fan-favourite players who weren't getting it done, and coaches are held to the same high standard.

Yeah you can tell by McVay’s subdued reactions on sideline that it’s probably a low stress kinda jobsite….

 

[Sperrydogg]

The NFL is a business and way too much money is at stake to let the time of year affect whether to let someone go or not. The NFL is not a charity, Christmas being nigh upon us should be, and is, irrelevant. Firing their ST coach doesn't feel like scapegoating or an inappropriate move to me.

Feels like an I’m really effing pissed kinda move

 

[Sperrydogg]

We'll soon see. Sure glad it's not us! Our ST has been surprisingly awesome for the most part this season.

Yeah we have capitalized on the rules multiple times and scored and usually do pretty well with field position.

 

[Torc]

Says who? Like, can you point to objective evidence somewhere that indicates it's a bad idea?

@Torc - Adam Schefter also said special teams blunders have played a role in three of the Rams' four losses this season.

I'm WAY too lazy and not being paid to research the results of firing a unit coach in-season. Not sure how you'd even measure that. On a pragmatic level - when you fire a coach during the season you have to be able to replace that coach with someone who is an improvement, and you have no access to other teams' staffs to do so. That means either promoting someone in your organization or finding someone who is currently unemployed to fill the role. In the Rams' case, they're promoting their assistant special teams coach. I guess time will tell.

As far as special teams blunders....sure. The Rams' special teams allowed a 58 yard punt return. I notice the defense allowed a 55 yard run by Kenneth Walker. I bet defensive errors played a role in 4 of 4 of the Rams losses this season. Opposing teams scored over 30 points in 3 of the 4 Rams' losses this season. Again, I'm too lazy to research how many of those points were directly attributable to the special teams, but surely the defense has some culpability too. I mean, if they'd been taught to jump on a loose ball even if they're not sure it's live, we might not be having this discussion.

And I'm not necessarily trying to be objective. I'm being entertained by watching a rival team flail around and saying that it LOOKS LIKE scapegoating to an outside observer (meaning myself).

 

[Torc]

One funny note I saw in a facebook comment... The Rams won the first game against the Seahawks because of their special teams. If the punter hadn't landed a punt behind the 1 yard line, it's probably a touchback and the winning field goal try is 20 yards closer.

So McVay fired the guy whose unit basically won the first Rams vs. Seahawks game.

 

[Jegpeg]

While it is late in the season to fire him this isn't just a case of scapegoating him for a single loss.

The Rams special teams have been terrible all season, you can make a case for firing him earlier or waiting until the eand of the season but like Grubb has not been good enough to keep his position:

Rams special teams rankings:

• 31st Punt Return Net Avg Yards
• 28th Opponents Punt return Avg Yards
• 29th Field Goal %

https://www.lineups.com/nfl-team-rankings/special-teams

 

[pittpnthrs]

It had to be something more than just the game results (runbacks happen sometimes). Their special teams were ranked #2 in the league. This is something personal and must have been brewing for sometime now.

 

[pittpnthrs]

It had to be something more than just the game results (runbacks happen sometimes). Their special teams were ranked #2 in the league. This is something personal and must have been brewing for sometime now.

My bad, was looking at the wrong list. They are middle of the road.

 

[flv2]

While it is late in the season to fire him this isn't just a case of scapegoating him for a single loss.

The Rams special teams have been terrible all season, you can make a case for firing him earlier or waiting until the eand of the season but like Grubb has not been good enough to keep his position:

Rams special teams rankings:

• 31st Punt Return Net Avg Yards
• 28th Opponents Punt return Avg Yards
• 29th Field Goal %

https://www.lineups.com/nfl-team-rankings/special-teams

Blackburn is the 4th ST co-ordinator to be fired by McVay in 9 years. He had been on the hot seat since the 2023 season. He wasn't fired because of 1 play or 1 game. A change was already almost inevitable at the end of this season. The game was on Thursday Night. It would have been reviewed by all staff on Friday. The team announced a change on Saturday morning. It doesn't look like a knee-jerk reaction.