After a disappointing 2019 season in which the Los Angeles Rams finished 9-7, someone had to be a scapegoat and to this point, it has been the coaching staff.
Rams head coach Sean McVay has made wholesale changes to his staff this offseason as defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, special teams coordinator John Fassel and running backs coach Skip Peete all will not be returning.
He has already found a replacement for Phillips, hiring former Denver Broncos outside linebackers coach Brandon Staley to be the new defensive coordinator in addition to adding former Washington Redskins offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell to the same position on L.A.’s staff.
One coach who has seemingly been in limbo all offseason in linebackers coach Joe Barry. He was a candidate to take over as defensive coordinator before Staley was hired, and it was then reported that USC had interest in hiring him to that position.
While it seemed more likely that Barry would leave than stay, it appears that will not be the case as Lindsey Thiry of ESPN is reporting that he has signed a new contract to remain with the Rams:
Per source, Joe Barry has turned down an offer to become USC's defensive coordinator and has signed a new contract to remain Rams assoc. head coach and LB coach.
— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) January 17, 2020
This is obviously good news as Barry has a ton of NFL experience and has done a solid job developing linebackers like Cory Littleton in recent years.
Barry has been coaching with McVay since their days with the Redskins, so the latter likely prioritized keeping the former in the organization despite all of the turnover on the coaching staff. Barring any other changes, McVay will still need to find replacements for Fassel and Peete to complete his staff for the 2020 season.
