The Los Angeles Rams have been one of the most popular teams to pluck coaches from and this hiring cycle was no different.
Head coach Sean McVay saw several key members of his staff leave, though the loss of former defensive coordinator Raheem Morris will hurt the most. Morris finally got his chance to be a head coach again as he accepted an offer with his former team the Atlanta Falcons.
Morris will be tasked with leading the Falcons back to the playoffs, though the organization has a long way to go before it operates like the Rams. When reflecting on his time in Los Angeles, Morris noted how jealous he was to see Les Snead and McVay work so closely and openly together, via Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team:
“When I got there, one of the first things I told Sean, just noticing how he moved and the daily rhythm and routine and things that we’d done was, ‘Man, I am jealous of you and Les Snead’s relationship,’ Morris said. “I said, ‘To watch you guys collaborate and move in silence, be able to talk about everything, have your communication ongoing, have your communication consistent, honest, open. All of those things that you do with each other, that is the next step.’
“The maturity level that you get from that and being able to watch that and also talking to one of your really good friends while you’re winning a championship, having the ability to go through some hard times that following year, having to start off with a really young team and start with your fundamentals, start with your physicality, start with controlling the ball, start with some of those pillars, I thought was a really cool process. It was a really cool learning experience for me. There was no more fun than helping one of your best friends in the world, one of the people that you care about and winning a championship with an organization that is 100% in it.”
Morris will likely try to do his best to replicate that sort of relationship with Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot, but that’s going to take years of working together.
Rams hire Chris Shula to replace Raheem Morris as defensive coordinator
The Rams and McVay reportedly interviewed several candidates for their vacant defensive coordinator position, but they wound up promoting pass-rush coordinator and linebackers coach Chris Shula to fill the role.
