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[Los Angeles Rams]

Rams could lose multiple coaches this offseason

It’s no surprise at this point when the Los Angeles Rams lose coaches in the offseason. Last year they lost Nick Caley to the Houston Texans as he became their offensive coordinator. The season before they lost Raheem Morris, Zac Robinson, Eric Henderson, and Jake Peetz. It’s been a never-ending cycle that head coach Sean McVay has had to manage and done really well.

That will very likely be the case again this offseason. With how the Rams defense is playing, Chris Shula is going to get head coach looks. Mike LaFleur has been the offensive coordinator with Sean McVay for three years and should get some interviews. Additionally, Nate Scheelhaase will get some consideration for offensive coordinator roles, especially if Shula or LaFleur get hired.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero recently released his top, young coaches to know list heading into the 2026 coaching cycle. Said Pelissero,

“It’s a good bet that one former Sean McVay assistant will get hired in any given cycle, especially when the Rams are rolling. And there are several logical candidates on staff this year. LaFleur — the younger brother of Packers coach Matt LaFleur — has been the Rams’ OC the last three seasons after a stint calling plays with the Jets. McVay calls the plays in L.A., but LaFleur is heavily involved. So is Scheelhaase, a former Illinois QB who coached at his alma mater and Iowa State for almost a decade before McVay hired him last year. Shula, the grandson of coaching legend Don Shula, has assisted his old Miami (Ohio) teammate McVay since 2017, spending the last two years as DC. It wouldn’t be a shock to see all three get interview requests in this cycle, with Shula perhaps the closest to being ready for the big seat.”

McVay typically likes to keep ideas his coaching ideas fresh. If LaFleur doesn’t get a head coaching job, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him follow his brother’s footsteps. When Matt LaFleur left the Rams, it was a lateral move as an offensive coordinator, but one where he got to call plays.

Regardless of the reputation that LaFleur had with the New York Jets, he hasn’t garnered any head coach interest the last two years. Three years removed from the Jets and with the Rams having a top offense this season, that could change.

In his Week 12 buzz article, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler mentioned Chris Shula as a potential head coach candidate. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini has also listed Shula as a name to watch.

It is always tougher for defensive coaches, but there’s no denying what Shula has done this season. The Rams defense certainly has talent, but nobody expected them to be inside the top five. The narrative coming into the year was that the Rams lacked talent on the back end in the secondary and Shula has gotten strong play from Emmanuel Forbes, Kam Kinchens, and Quentin Lake. Nate Landman has also had a career year in Shula’s defense.

While Shula could get looks, it is worth wondering how much the lack of success with other Rams defensive coaches will impact his canidacy. Rams offensive coaches have had success once they make the move to head coach. However, Brandon Staley failed with the Los Angeles Chargers. Additionally, Raheem Morris hasn’t done as well as expected with the Atlanta Falcons. Shula will be competing with Vance Joseph, Jesse Minter, Aden Durde, and potentially Lou Anarumo. Opportunities for defensive coaches are scarce and it’s possible only one gets hired.

Realistically, there will be between five and 13 head coach openings. Below are the teams that will or could be looking for a new coach:

• Tennessee Titans
  • Already looking.
• New York Giants
  • Already looking.
• Miami Dolphins
  • Can Mike McDaniel save his job with strong second half?
• New York Jets
  • Do the Jets give Aaron Glenn time?
• Pittsburgh Steelers
  • Will Steelers make a potentially needed change?
• Cincinnati Bengals
  • Do Bengals feel as if Zac Taylor is underperforming?
• Cleveland Browns
  • Has Kevin Stefanski’s time in Cleveland run out?
• Green Bay Packers
  • Do Packers feel like Matt LaFleur is getting the most out of that roster?
• Las Vegas Raiders
  • Pete Carroll hasn’t raised the floor as many expected.
• Arizona Cardinals
  • Has Jonathan Gannon earned another year?
• Atlanta Falcons
  • Do the Falcons clean house?
• New Orleans Saints
  • Will the Saints finally tear it down completely?
• Carolina Panthers
  • Has Dave Canales gotten the most out of Bryce Young?

Not all of those teams are going to move on from their head coaches as that would be almost half the league. However, those are jobs that could potentially come open and nobody would be shocked if they did. If the Dolphins move on from Mike McDaniel, Chris Shula would be an obvious choice there. He interviewed as a defensive coordinator there last season before getting the role with the Rams. Shula also has a family history with the Dolphins.

LaFleur and Scheelhaase may have more of an uphill battle to be head coaches, but could join another coaching staff. Scheelhaase nearly was taken by Liam Coen last offseason.

At the end of the day, it’s a good problem to have as the Rams are succeeding. At 8-2 and amont the best teams in the NFL, the league is going to try and replicate it. We’re still three months away from dealing with the problem, but it’s one that the Rams will most likely have when the time comes.

Source: https://www.turfshowtimes.com/los-a...usel-2026-chris-shula-mike-lafleur-candidates

 

[Los Angeles Rams]

What is the biggest reason for Emmanuel Forbes’ turnaround?

When the Los Angeles Rams lost Ahkello Witherspoon to a broken collarbone, putting him out for two months, there were legitimate questions on who would replace him. There were calls for the Rams to trade for a true top cornerback, but instead, the team opted to stand pat and stick with the status quo. The cornerback position was one of the biggest question marks for the Rams defense coming into the season and for that position group to be held down by Witherspoon was another problem entirely.

Last season, the Rams took on a reclamation project in Emmanuel Forbes and to say the immediate results were a mixed bag would be an understatement. Through the first four weeks of the season, Forbes ranked 67th out of 74 qualifying cornerbacks in coverage via PFF. He allowed 16.5 yards per reception in coveragem which was the eighth-most and a perfect 158.3 passer rating when targeted. Additionally, he had a missed tackle rate of 25 percent, which was also in the bottom-10.

After a lot of optimism during the offseason that Forbes may be able to turn it around, it became clear why the Washington Commanders moved onfrom the former first-round pick to begin with. Forbes had taken the place of Derion Kendrick, but without the penalties.

However, even during his struggles, there were glimpses of what was to come. Against the Tennessee Titans, Forbes gave up a big play along the sideline to rookie Elic Ayomanor. On the very next play, he came right back and got a pass breakup on an out-breaking route. Despite everything that Forbes has been through, it showed his ability to have a short memory and move on to the next play.

When it comes to cornerback play, scheme fit and confidence are very important. After the Commanders gave up on Forbes before the end of his second year, it’s fair to say that he wasn’t a scheme fit under Dan Quinn and he had lost a lot of confidence. The Rams spent last year and the offseason rebuilding that confidence.

The Commanders drafted Forbes as an off-coverage cornerback who excelled at breaking on the ball. However, in 2023, Ron Rivera and Jack Del Rio played a lot more man coverage. While Dan Quinn’s defense is infamous for its Cover 3 schemes with the Seattle Seahawks and Atlanta Falcons, with the Dallas Cowboys, he started incorporating a lot more man. That carried over to the Commanders.

#Commanders CB Emmanuel Forbes has had a bad couple days in Jersey.

First Garrett Wilson & now Jason Brownlee. #Jets get their first TD of preseason pic.twitter.com/fyk64jcNQq

— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) August 10, 2024

Forbes was drafted to do one thing and asked to do another. It simply became a bad match. The Commanders authored a pretty standard ‘how to guide’ on setting a player up to fail. It was the anti-Nnamdi Asomugha. From 2003-2010, Asomugha was one of the best man coverage cornerbacks in the NFL for the Raiders. When he signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as a free agent, they asked him to play a lot of zone coverage. Asomugha became one of the biggest free agent busts of the decade. The Commanders took Forbes as a off-zone corner and asked him to play press-man coverage.

There’s a reason why Forbes made my “Snead’s Snacks” list in 2023. He fit them schematically in addition to their archetype. The Rams run an off zone 3-4 defensive scheme, which requires cornerbacks to play very little press coverage. It allows Forbes to take deeper drops and cut down on the ball rather than being asked to win physically and play alongside or behind the wide receiver. With the Rams, he doesn’t need to press and can play on the ball where he thrives. Aubrey Pleasant also deserves a lot of credit for coaching Forbes to be more physical.

In this defense, Forbes is able to use his ball skills and football IQ while relying on the Rams pass rush to generate pressure and take advantage of mistakes. Forbes’ two interceptions this year equal the number that he had in his first two seasons combined.

With Forbes, the Rams currently have the number two pass defense via EPA per dropback. Comparatively, the Commanders rank 31st. Forbes has been one of the top cornerbacks over the past month and a half. Marshon Lattimore is the Commanders’ best cornerback and he ranks outside the top-30. Both Trey Amos and Mike Sainristil rank inside the bottom-15.

Early in the season, the Rams didn’t ask Forbes to be their number one cornerback and used him on a rotational basis. They spent time in the offseason and coached him up, building his confidence. When he struggled, they ‘soft-benched’ him as he played a season-low 27.9 percent of the snaps in Week 5 against the 49ers. It allowed Forbes to take a step back and reset. It also wasn’t a game that would put Forbes in position to succeed against a team that wants to force defensive backs to tackle.

Imagine being a 250-pound TE and bouncing off a 180-pound (soaking wet) Emmanuel Forbes like he's a brick wall. pic.twitter.com/uNtwhcYsQf

— Blaine Grisak (@bgrisakTST) November 18, 2025

The Rams inserted Forbes back into a large role in the defense and since then, he’s thrived. From Weeks 6-11, Forbes is the seventh-highest graded cornerback in coverage via PFF. His 33.7 passer-rating allowed when targeted ranks first. He’s been very good on the ball with three pass breakups and his 17 percent forced incompletion rate is inside the top-15, tied with Quinyon Mitchell. Forbes is never going to be a great tackler because of his size, but he’s been more willing in recent weeks.

There’s certainly a difference when going up against Cooper Rush and Sam Darnold. However, against the NFL’s best wide receiver in 2025, Forbes stepped up. He consistently lined up against Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Against Forbes, Smith-Njigba caught 3 of 5 targets for 30 yards for 1.5 yards per matchup. That was a season-low for the Seahawks wide receiver against a single player this season.

Bad franchises stay bad because they don't develop players.

Emmanuel Forbes has gained confidence over the last month and that was evident on Sunday.

It's not a bad ball from Darnold. Very good, tight coverage from Forbes in the end zone against the NFLs best WR in 2025. pic.twitter.com/hiv9JnZSmU

— Blaine Grisak (@bgrisakTST) November 18, 2025

The Rams have a history of taking on reclamation projects and getting them to succeed. They did it with Dante Fowler Jr. and in a sense Leonard Floyd. Baker Mayfield can certainly be added to that list as well along with Kevin Dotson and Austin Corbett. Forbes seems to be the latest.

Right now, Forbes is playing like someone that has confidence and that’s showing up on the field. While it’s still only a five-game limited sample size, the results are certainly promising. The Rams are playing Forbes in a role that fits his skillset and his talent has become evident in each passing week. Without Witherspoon, the Rams have asked a lot more of Forbes and he’s risen to the occasion. When Witherspoon returns, the Rams will have a very solid duo on the perimeter.

Source: https://www.turfshowtimes.com/los-a...rams-emmanuel-forbes-breakout-corner-analysis