Sean McVay probably knew the way things were going anyway, but Super Bowl weekend, and the win his Rams capped it with, can mess with a guy’s emotions. So there lingered stray thoughts on what his future held, and whether he should consider the opportunities he’d be presented that would take the whistle off his neck.
That Tuesday, two days after he’d hit the highest of coaching highs, he conducted a wrap-up meeting with the team, and, right after, two heroes of the Super Bowl came to his office. Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp had something to say, something that was probably a little more than a request and little less than a demand.
The particulars of the conversation will stay between them. But the message, laced with some colorful language, was crystal clear:
“It was really when those guys came in, and I could see how genuine and authentic it was: ,” McVay said. “That was when I looked them in the eye and said, . And when you tell those guys that, you know, . I think more than anything, all the emotions that are released when you’re able to [win it all], and you’ve got other opportunities, it’s like, .
“But when you really sit down and think about it, the things I love most about coaching, and then the biggest thing I’d say, Bert, it’s the amount of people that would potentially be affected. … I love coaching. I love working with guys. I love being in the foxhole with the players and coaches. And you can’t mimic and emulate that in a media job.”
On Sunday, the 36-year-old McVay hit the practice field to kick off his sixth training camp as Rams coach. He did it in defense of a world title, and with a résumé unlike any coach his age has ever had in their mid-30s. He did it with a chance to keep building that résumé, and with a chance to, over the next couple decades, chase down the greatest ever to do the job.
But the reason he’s back, and will be on the field rather than in a booth above it in September, has little to do with any of that. And everything to do with guys like the two who burst into his office five months ago.
