Rams line up quickly so Sean McVay can call audibles

Rams line up quickly so Sean McVay can call audibles

Michael David Smith

Rams line up quickly so Sean McVay can call audibles

New Rams coach Sean McVay is having a great year, and he’s doing it in part by calling audibles after his offense has already lined up.

As noted by Steven Ruiz of For The Win, Rams quarterback Jared Goff calls a lot of plays at the line of scrimmage, but it’s actually McVay who’s calling the plays, through the NFL’s coach-to-quarterback communication system. That becomes clear when you watch this NFL-produced video about Goff, in which viewers can hear that Goff is being told which audibles to call before he calls them.

The coach-to-quarterback communication system is turned off by a league official with 15 seconds remaining on the play clock, so the Rams line up quickly so that Goff, McVay and the coaches in the booth can scan the defense and still have time for McVay to relay instructions to Goff before the communications system is turned off.

It’s a smart way for McVay to guide his young quarterback. And it’s something we’re likely to see a lot more of — unless the NFL decides to change the coach-to-quarterback communication rules to prevent it.

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The ingenious strategy that allows Sean McVay to be an actual coach on the field

The ingenious strategy that allows Sean McVay to be an actual coach on the field

The most amazing development in the Rams’ historic offensive turnaround has been the evolution of Jared Goff. The second-year pro, whom many wrote off after a tough rookie season, not only looks like a different guy in the pocket, but he’s also taken command of the offense before the snap after not being very active in the pre-snap phase last season.

Here’s what Tony Romo had to say about Goff during the broadcast of the Rams-Saints game…

“Goff is doing a ton at the line of scrimmage. More than anybody I’ve seen in their second year in a long time — probably since Peyton Manning.”

Did Goff really transform into Peyton Manning over the offseason? Of course not. It’s Sean McVay who’s calling the shots before the snap. Credit goes to the Washington Post’s Mark Bullock for noticing this strategy during a “mic’d up” segment featuring Goff.

"You know how many points we're averaging per game? 32.9.
How many did we score today?" – @JaredGoff16 😉@RamsNFL #LARams#SoundFX pic.twitter.com/EHO4NvPDvW

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) November 16, 2017

McVay gets the Rams lined up quickly, leaving him enough time to assess the defense and call an audible (if necessary) before the play clock hits the 15-second mark. That’s when the headset communication between the coach and quarterback cuts off.

We saw a couple of examples of McVay working his pre-snap magic from the sideline against the Saints. Notice how McVay is still making calls with Goff at the line of scrimmage…

Goff relays McVay’s call to his teammates, and Todd Gurley finds himself wide open over the middle thanks to a great check by the coach.

McVay does it again on the next drive. This time for a touchdown…

https://streamable.com/2tuul

You can see McVay making his initial call, eyeing the defense for a bit then calling in the audible. Goff makes the change at the line before throwing a touchdown pass.

Old NFL coaches, like Bruce Arians for instance, complain that college coaches are doing all the work for quarterbacks when it comes to play-calling, leaving them ill-prepared when they get to the NFL.

“Seeing the guys coming out of the systems now where the coach holds a card up, the players line up, he kicks his foot and they play football,” Arians said, via Pro Football Talk. “The hardest thing for them is to get into a huddle and call a play. They’re stuttering, they’re stammering, the guys around them don’t believe in them. That’s that leadership thing. That’s the hardest thing for these young quarterbacks who play in these systems…they have to learn how to play quarterback at this level and sometimes that’s overwhelming.”

God forbid NFL coaches actually try to make a quarterback’s job easier. Instead of complaining about the college set-up, the Rams’ 31-year-old head coach found a way to bring it to the NFL and make life for his quarterback so much easier. That’s what good coaches do.

And McVay’s team is scoring more than 30 points a game with this strategy. It will only be a matter of time before other coaches follow suit.