Foolio thinks McVay is wearing on the Rams

[Elmgrovegnome]

Florio has always hated the Rams

At 3-3, the Los Angeles Rams are tied for first place in the NFC West with the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks. The division is very much there for the taking for the defending Super Bowl Champions.

But if the vibes feel off for a team that has a -22 point differential heading into the bye week, perhaps there's some reality to that perception.

As it appears to be a matter of when disgruntled running back Cam Akers gets traded, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk suggested Tuesday that he may not be the only one in the locker room who has been worn down by the intensity of McVay.


The Rams are all over the place. And you throw in this Cam Akers drama and again ... how do I put this delicately ... Cam Akers may not be the last to come to the conclusion that 'I've had enough of this'."

"PFT Live" co-host Chris Simms followed up on the statement, and got a little bit more out of Florio.

"I think the message is starting to become diluted. The whole Sean McVay schtick is starting to wear on some guys, I think. I don't know, but I think that it's starting to wear on some guys. So let's monitor whether or not they can hold it together. This is year six. Let's see. There's a chance Cam Akers will not be the last to want out of LA."

What makes this story so interesting isn't just that some players could look for a change of scenery, but it's that McVay himself has been pretty open about the fact that even though he's only 36 and has already guided the Rams to multiple Super Bowl appearances, he probably isn't going to stay in this job for a length comparable to Bill Belichick, Mike Tomlin or John Harbaugh.

McVay and general manager Les Snead did sign extensions through the 2026 season that were finalized in early September, but with an aging roster and very little in 2023 draft capital, you do start to wonder if he would look for an exit ramp if things go south the rest of this season.

He was at an entirely different point of his life, but Bill Cowher retired from the Pittsburgh Steelers just a season after leading them to a title in Super Bowl XL. He left the door open to eventually return to coaching, but has ultimately never left his job as a studio analyst at CBS. It would be hard to fathom McVay never coaching again if he left the Rams, but he's young enough that he could easily do TV for four or five years and then pick his next destination.

Again, as Florio said, it's just something to monitor.

 

[tklongball]

Florio is a shit-stirring, Asshole.

 

[Merlin]

I think McVay is changing. This is what happens when you go get a HC who just graduated from high school. And also Foolio is an asshole who hates the Rams and wants his 80s back.

 

[Juice]

You know what burns me up? The Florio drivel is just bye week fodder, but this guy makes an article out of it? Remember when the media was all just about the next game? They sound like drama queens.

Sorry. I thought it was an article. Still a drama queen.

 

[I like Rams]

I'm pretty sure this was going around a couple seasons ago as well. Not the locker room situations, but the "McVay to analyst" scenario. Oh well, if he did do that there's nothing we can do about it.

 

[André]

"Very little in draft capital".

They currently are projected to have TEN picks next year, including a second and a third rounder.

They are ok and this is a bullshit story.

 

[Angry Ram]

If the lawyer slime ball is right - which he's not - any player that can't handle Sean McVay can GTFO.

 

[Pancake]

Had enough of what? Getting paid millions to play a game. Fuck all of the cry babies if there really are any.

 

[Mojo Ram]

I’m not at all interested in the Will he retire or leave stuff.

I think the stuff about McV wearing on his players is more interesting. I’ve said before that preparation is one of his biggest strengths but sometimes also his weakness as things play out and unfold on gameday.

IMO his teams and some of the lesser players show an inability to free form in certain situations. To just go out and play football. McV is so incredibly organized and in full control of every aspect of the offense that sometimes, I feel that when things aren’t going well with a gameplan…he tightens the leash even more so than it already is and the players play much tighter and a little scared.

It’s hard for me to explain. We know McV wants high IQ players who can think and play the game like he does as a HC. That’s great but when none of that is working, many of these players seem to have been engineered(so to speak) to not bring anything else to the party.

This offense and McV in my opinion has trouble improvising on the fly when it’s time to throw the plan out the window. It was worse with Goff at QB.

I want to use the term robots instead of instinctive football players. That’s prob too harsh and an overstatement but helps me get my point across.

If I’m right, I could really see that kind of control wearing on some players who are more pure football players rather than “thinkers” with skills.

That’s just my observation. The pluses of what McV brings to the table outweigh the negatives by far. Preparation is huge in coaching obviously and McV has brought hugely successful results since coming in. Just the manner in which he’s been able to manage the entire thing is impressive.

I think he’s still growing as a HC and will only get better with time.

TLDR version: Lighten up with the gameplan and let your players have some fun as well as be football players.

 

[CGI_Ram]

Akers may not be the last to come to the conclusion that 'I've had enough of this'."

Had enough of what? Winning Superbowls?

 

[KJD_Ram]

lets see....who am I going to believe....Jalen Ramsey and Matthew Stafford or this fucking clown Foolio...?

 

[CGI_Ram]

Chris Simms gets whispers from somewhere. He usually is right about the gossip type stuff. So… there might be some locker room tensions going on. Winning changes all that, tho.

@Mojo Ram (or anyone) don’t you think guys like Kupp would tell McVay how to address player gripes if there were any?

 

[Kupped]

I’m not at all interested in the Will he retire or leave stuff.

I think the stuff about McV wearing on his players is more interesting. I’ve said before that preparation is one of his biggest strengths but sometimes also his weakness as things play out and unfold on gameday.

IMO his teams and some of the lesser players show an inability to free form in certain situations. To just go out and play football. McV is so incredibly organized and in full control of every aspect of the offense that sometimes, I feel that when things aren’t going well with a gameplan…he tightens the leash even more so than it already is and the players play much tighter and a little scared.

It’s hard for me to explain. We know McV wants high IQ players who can think and play the game like he does as a HC. That’s great but when none of that is working, many of these players seem to have been engineered(so to speak) to not bring anything else to the party.

This offense and McV in my opinion has trouble improvising on the fly when it’s time to throw the plan out the window. It was worse with Goff at QB.

I want to use the term robots instead of instinctive football players. That’s prob too harsh and an overstatement but helps me get my point across.

If I’m right, I could really see that kind of control wearing on some players who are more pure football players rather than “thinkers” with skills.

That’s just my observation. The pluses of what McV brings to the table outweigh the negatives by far. Preparation is huge in coaching obviously and McV has brought hugely successful results since coming in. Just the manner in which he’s been able to manage the entire thing is impressive.

I think he’s still growing as a HC and will only get better with time.

TLDR version: Lighten up with the gameplan and let your players have some fun as well as be football players.

Winning is fun. It's the most fun.

 

[Ram Ts]

One day I’d like to see what a pro franchise looks like that every single player loves the coach and is 100% happy with the situation (money, playing time, usage, etc.) - and continues that for multiple years. Good luck

 

[rdw]

Had enough of what? Winning Superbowls?

My thought exactly. What a tool.

 

[Mackeyser]

Florio can suck it.

To say he’s a shit stirrer is to insult shit stirrers. He projects his personal issues on people in a profession he’s never been in and knows almost nothing about.

 

[TheBunk]

Heard those same rumblings about Tomlin, Harbaugh, Reid, etc., in the past. Miss me with that mess.

 

[jrry32]

Yeah, guys are fed up with the HC who just helped them win a ring. Suuuuuure.

 

[Malibu]

This is a stupid take. Take Belivhick, Reid etc and give them our injuries we had in this 1st 6 games see how they do they would fair no better and rumblings would occur. Management likes McVay enough to reward him with a major contract and you never hear a bad word from the players.

 

[Ballhawk]

So the guy that is getting benched, for non production, wanting out of LA is a sign that the players are getting tired of McVay's
coaching? Right.