Sean McVay is taking some time to weigh his feelings regarding the road ahead with the Rams after a disappointing, frustrating 5-12 finish in 2022, just as he did following his team's Super Bowl LVI triumph last year.
"I think what I liked to do is be able to take the appropriate time," McVay said Monday. "Never gone through anything like this, but you want to make sure that you're considerate of the people that are affected. That's the most important thing and that's probably, you know, you want to be able to … the consistent conversations and dialogues that have existed with the people that I love and really care about, 'Hey do what you think is best for you and (McVay's wife) Veronika (Khomyn).'
"But that doesn't mean it takes away the empathy, the level of responsibility that I do feel for the people that would be affected as it relates to my decision moving forward, and so those are the things that you don't take lightly. You want to be able to make sure that you're intentional about taking the appropriate time, while also making a decision in a manner that's considerate of those people that would be affected."
It doesn't necessarily mean McVay is thinking about retiring for the broadcast booth just yet, but 2022 was especially trying for a coach who has built a reputation on working tirelessly toward football success. Injuries battered the title-defending Rams so much that by the time Thanksgiving arrived, they had little reason to believe they'd be able to get back to the playoffs.
The Rams also aren't situated to create a sudden turnaround. Los Angeles went all-in in pursuit of a Super Bowl title in 2021 and cashed in with its triumph over the Cincinnati Bengals. The cost, however, was hefty, requiring two first-round picks (2022 and 2023) to acquire Matthew Stafford. Their combination of win-now moves will also eat up almost all of their effective salary cap space for the next two years, and the players they acquired or re-signed -- Stafford and Aaron Donald chief among them -- aren't getting any younger.
There's no light at the end of the tunnel for the Rams, and after a trying season, it's fair to think McVay might just be too burnt out to continue. Having said that, the fire to continue coaching still very much exists within McVay, who became the youngest NFL head coach in the modern era at 30 years old when he was hired in 2017, and transformed the Rams from an afterthough into a perennial contender.
"Did I ever get the sense that you're looking at it like, 'This is your last play?' No, that was never the case," McVay said of Los Angeles' Week 18 overtime loss to Seattle. "I'm 36 years old. I have endless amounts of energy still. It's just a matter of how do you make sure that as you move forward you're able to do it in the way that's best for yourself, your wife, your family members and then when you are in a role of this magnitude, doing it the way that you're capable of and that's what I want to be able to answer 'yes' to. If you can those things, I think a lot of clarity can come with that."
McVay will take the days and weeks ahead to determine whether he can deliver the affirmative answers he described above. If he can't, another coaching job might open up in Los Angeles, home to a team that won a Super Bowl less than a year ago, but appears miles from getting back there soon.
