Rams new DC

The Rams are replacing Raheem Morris with Chris Shula to be their defensive coordinator. Shula, the grandson of legendary coach Don Shula, has spent the last seven seasons as a Rams assistant.

How are you feeling, #RamsHouse? pic.twitter.com/iReP1x5YHM

— ESPN Los Angeles (@ESPNLosAngeles) February 1, 2024

Chris Shula has earned this opportunity. 7 years patiently waiting for his shot to be Rams DC, he was apparently incredibly impressive in his formal interview. An in-house promotion that will be celebrated by all in the building.

— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) February 1, 2024

Rams promote Chris Shula to defensive coordinator

Jourdan Rodrigue and Mark Puleo

https://theathletic.com/5245646/2024/02/01/rams-defensive-coordinator-chris-shula/?source=emp_shared_article

The Los Angeles Rams looked in-house for their new defensive coordinator and promoted linebackers coach and pass rush coordinator Chris Shula to the role, according to a league source. The spot was left vacant after Raheem Morris took the head coaching gig with the Atlanta Falcons.

Shula, the grandson of legendary coach Don Shula, has been on Sean McVay’s staff since 2017. He started as an assistant linebackers coach with the Rams before rising to outside linebackers coach then linebackers coach then pass game coordinator and defensive backs coach. He got his start in the NFL with the San Diego Chargers in 2015.

Shula, who played linebacker, was teammates with McVay at Miami of Ohio.

The promotion will preserve some continuity for McVay’s staff, which has lost quarterbacks coach Zac Robinson, assistant head coach Jimmy Lake, defensive line coach Eric Henderson and assistant special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer, along with Morris, this offseason.

In 2023, the Rams’ defense buckled up down the stretch, allowing fewer than 20 points in six of their last nine regular-season games.

A changeup for McVay

McVay has not promoted internally for any of his coordinator positions until Shula, who has worked under Wade Phillips, Brandon Staley and Morris (Staley was also in strong consideration for the job, sources said).

It’s a jump for Shula, but it seemed clear McVay was trying to prepare his longtime assistant for the role with moves between defensive backs and linebackers jobs and a shot at calling the defense for a preseason game each year.

Until Shula speaks with media, we won’t know what his defensive philosophy specifically as a coordinator is — but hiring in-house like this does give McVay a lot of control over the system and Shula has experience in each of the last two variations of the Rams’ current scheme, initially installed in 2020.

Los Angeles Rams Transcripts – Defensive Coordinator Chris Shula – Tuesday, February 6, 2024

(Opening statement) “I just want to start by thanking the Rams organization, the Kroenke family, (Chief Operating Officer) Kevin Demoff, (VP Football and Business Administration) Tony Pastoors, (General Manager) Les Snead. It’s a first-class organization I’ve had an honor to be a part of for the last seven years and I can’t wait to continue the relationship with you guys. I want to thank (Head Coach) Sean McVay, one of my best friends in life over the last 20 years, someone who’s always believed in me and your belief in me has instilled in me to be the best version of myself each and every day and given me that confidence. I want to thank (former NFL Coach and Rams defensive coordinator) Wade Phillips, (former Chargers Head Coach and former Rams Defensive Coordinator) Brandon Staley, and (Atlanta Falcons Head Coach and former Rams Defensive Coordinator) Raheem Morris, Three d-coordinators that I worked under here with the Rams. Each of you guys did it in your own way and I learned so much from working under you and watching how you guys went about your daily process and your relationship with the players and the coaches and I’m going to implement that going forward. I want to thank all the players that I’ve coached over the years. I think back to my first year as a position coach having my own room with (Dallas Cowboys LB) Dante Fowler, (former NFL LB) Clay Matthews, (Cleveland Browns DE) Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, (Indianapolis Colts DE) Sampson Ebukam, those guys all the way to last year with (LB) Ernest Jones, (LB) Troy Reeder, (LB) Christian Rozeboom, and (LB) Jake Hummel. The reason I’m in coaching is because of the relationships with the players and that’s what it’ll continue to be going forward. Lastly, I want to thank my family. My wife Jen who’s at home with our two babies, Avery and Bryce, and also my parents, David and Leslie. Without your support I wouldn’t be in this position today.”

(On his reaction when he found out he’s now the Defensive Coordinator) “It’s a great question. I was elated. It just felt like a lot of the times, all the hard work you put in and the journey… I’ve always been someone that I’m just so focused on my role and obviously I’ve had a lot of different roles within this organization and just so focused on doing a great job because all you want to do is give the players that you coach and put them in the best position to succeed. I just want to continue that going forward. You just think about the journey of starting out as a GA (Graduate Assistant) at Ball State, at Indiana, all the guys you’ve coached with and worked with over the years, and the fact to be put in this position… it’s a role I take extremely seriously and I can’t wait to get rolling.”

(On all the roles he’s previously held at the Rams and how that will help him succeed in this position) “Yeah, that’s a great question. I think it organically happened just kind of over the years. I think I alluded to Sean’s belief in me earlier and the ability to move around and work with all those spots and just kind of some of the nuances of each position. I think when you’re coaching, some stuff you don’t know until you actually get in there and coach a specific position. To be able to know some of the problems that the coaches have to work through, to work with the coaches on those problems, and kind of become a problem solver for the players and become a resource for the players, it’s all those experiences of coaching those positions are stuff I’ll draw back on.”

(On his takeaways working with former Rams Defensive Coordinators Wade Phillips, Brandon Staley, and Raheem Morris) “Yeah, they all were obviously unique and coached it and did it their way. I think working under Wade Phillips, he’s a legend and his track record speaks for itself. I think with him he always said that listening is a skill and he let his coaches coach. Sean always says about Wade, ‘The genius was in the simplicity.’ He let his coaches coach and the players knew exactly what they were supposed to do and that allowed them to go out to play at the best of their ability. With Brandon when he got here, I just loved how innovative he was. I loved how he was always hungry to learn. He was always watching different stuff. He knew everything that was going on around the league and he always wanted to get better. Then with Raheem, to me it’s all about the relationships and I think everyone in this building has a special relationship with Raheem. Seeing the way he goes about the joy and the daily process of how he goes about his work. Those are the main things that stick out for each of those guys.”

(On if he anticipates sticking with the same base scheme in the upcoming season) “I think that’s a work in progress. There will definitely be elements to it. I think we’ll use a lot of the same structures. The same three-four structure and some of the same core beliefs, but it’s all about the players. We’re going to do whatever the players can execute at a high level where they can go out and play fast and play confident and whatever the offense gives us, we’ll be able to have answers to and they can go be the best versions of themselves.”

(On what he learned in the preseason when he had the opportunity to call the defense and what the process between now and the preseason will look like for him) “Yeah, I thank Raheem for having that experience. In order to get experience at something you obviously have to do it and there’s always going to be ups and downs being a first time play caller. I think just from having that preseason stuff, I call it like some of the gray downs where some of the stuff it’s not quite black and white and you have to be decisive with it. You always have to be thinking a play ahead. You always have to be thinking a drive ahead and just kind of getting reps at that. I’ll always be thankful to Raheem for that.”

(On what his defensive identity and philosophies are and how he wants that identity to manifest as a coordinator) “Yeah, my defensive philosophy is it’s about the players and it goes back to… I remember somebody asked my grandpa this question, ‘How has the game changed since he was coaching?’ He had been retired for a bunch of years now at this point and to me, it’s a simple game. It’s relentless pursuit of the ball, it’s getting off blocks, it’s tackling, and it’s taking the ball away and defense hasn’t changed over that over the course of time. That’s what this defense is going to be about. Now, we do want to keep an element where we want to have an identity, but we also want to have an element of unpredictability where we want to keep the offense guessing. But that’s all going to be within the realm of whatever our players can execute at the highest level and what they do best. It’s always going to be about the players and they are what is going to make this thing go.”

(On balancing his defensive philosophy and developing players as a coordinator) “No doubt. And it is about what the players could learn and what the players know. I think trying to teach conceptually on the back end, we’re teaching techniques to everybody the same. I think that would help out a lot but also you got to have smart guys that can handle it and we were fortunate in 2020 and really over the last three or four years where we’ve had those types of players. I think that obviously as we go through free agency and the draft and bringing our own guys back, we’ll see the type of team we have and what we can execute at a high level. And it’s got to be something… offenses present so many issues these days. When you call defense, we have to be confident to adjust that defense to whatever the offense presents. That’s what we’re going to look to do as we build this scheme here this offseason.”

(On carrying forward what he learned as a position coach to a coordinator) “Yeah, I think it’s just alignment with the position coaches and I think it’s the types of guys we want. (Head Coach) Sean (McVay) hits that in our team meeting. We want guys with great football character. We want guys with physical and mental toughness. We want guys that, when we call their college coaches and all the people that worked with them in college and in high school and stuff like that, they were team captains. They were guys that the coaches just sang their praises and all those types of things we take into account. When Sean defines, what is a Ram? We want to bring those guys that we don’t just develop them here, we want to onboard those types of players so they just fit seamlessly in the culture. Just like we did last year with a (NT) Kobie Turner, with a (OLB) Byron Young, certain guys like that. We want to continue to bring in guys like that going forward.”

(On what excites him about the current group he’ll work with) “It’s just a bunch of young and hungry guys.(DB) Quentin Lake was a guy I’ve had the ability to be in the position room with him coaching DBs his rookie year when he was injured. You got (DB) Russ Yeast back there. you got Kobie Turner, you got Byron Young, you got (NT) Bobby Brown. You got a young bunch of guys that have experience last year. Obviously, you got (LB) Ernest Jones, somebody who is really special to me and somebody that I can’t wait to continue work with. And calling in the plays to him will be something in practice and in games will be really fun to do. So it’s just a bunch of guys that love football. When guys that love football and want to get better and when you have a bunch of coaches that all they’re focused on is trying to get what is the best way we can get these guys to play their best. When the players understand that and you have great relationships with them, we can go a long way.”

(On what he learned from having a young team on the defensive side of the ball last year) “How important is it for the coaches to be aligned. I think last year our coaching staff, and it started with, Sean and obviously to Raheem where we were so aligned and in our beliefs and whether it’s myself working with (Defensive Backs Coach) Aubrey (Pleasant) and (Secondary Coach) Chris Beake in the backend and us being aligned with whatever our communication was amongst the line, the secondary and the linebackers. And then working with (Former Defensive Line Coach) Eric Henderson and (Asst. Defensive Line Coach) AC Carter with the D-line adjustments and the front adjustments and just being kind of aligned and clear and everything that we expected with every defense. I think we had a great offseason last year and that led to a great training camp. I think it all starts just a daily process. You’re so focused on the process that we’re not even worried about the results, not worried about the games. We’re just focused on today and right now and just being present.”

(On his interview process with McVay and what that was like) “Yeah, he kind of laid out some of the things that he wanted to discuss in the interview. So we were able to kind of get some of those things ready and it wasn’t just me and Sean. There were some other people in there. And that really started the discussion of just talking football and what the defensive philosophy was, the different structures we wanted to utilize. What are the core coverage concepts we want to do going forward? How do we want coach tackling? How do we want takeaways? A lot of different things like that that you would have in a standard (interview) for a defensive coordinator position. I wouldn’t say it was any different just because me and Sean are so close. I think we could separate that when it came to the interview.”

(On if he had the chance to interview with the Miami Dolphins) “No, I did. I spent a day down in Miami, spent a day with (Dolphins Head Coach) Mike McDaniel. It was a good time down there. It was really good to spend time with them. But then, yeah, pretty soon after that, (I) came to an agreement with the Rams.”

(On if he’s had the chance to speak with DT Aaron Donald) “I haven’t yet. Obviously, I have a great relationship with Aaron Donald. I’ve been here. I’ve been in the D- line and the rush… I’ve run some rush plan meetings. Obviously been with him since 2017 but look forward to reaching out to him and figuring out the best way for him to go forward and get the most out of him as we continue to build this.”

(On what his grandfather would think about him becoming a defensive coordinator) “I think he’d be proud. I’d like to think he would think I did it the right way. I’ve always been someone that’s just so focused on the task at hand and your specific job at that time. I’m never really looking at the next job or what’s going to come next or what’s going to happen next year. I just focus on building relationships with the coaches and the players, working as hard as I can to provide clarity for the players so that they could play their best, and working in continuity with the coaches and I’d like to think he’d be proud. A lot of the lessons I learned from him, the discipline, the accountability that you have that you show to your players by being prepared, by leaving no stone unturned in your preparation so that they go out and make it feel confident when they take the field. I’d like to think he’s looking down right now proud.”

(On what he learned from his father and grandfather about what it takes to be a successful leader of professional players) “All the stories you hear about my grandpa, and just like you said, it wasn’t like I was living in Cincinnati when my grandpa retired from the Dolphins, but you just hear so many stories of some of the former players that go back and how tough he was on them and then it’s like you go back and the relationship that he had with them because they knew he had their best in mind. And I think it’s just the accountability that he put on himself to try to get them to play their best. And then with my dad, it’s the discipline. It’s the discipline of how you go about your daily process. My dad’s a routine-oriented guy and I’d like to think I’m the same way. You come up with a plan for the day, you execute that plan to the best of your ability, and you move on to that next day and that’s really what I’ve learned from them and it’s just been an honor to be a part of family and something that I take a lot of pride in.”

(On what it’s like trying to establish himself and create his own identity with his last name) “You know, it’s something that when I was a young coach, I was almost a little embarrassed about because I didn’t want people to think I got into certain positions because of the last name so I think that was some of the motivation. I always had a little chip on my shoulder to kind of work extra hard to show that I earned whatever role I got or whatever. And then it’s kind of evolved into something where now it’s so cool where you go and travel around and play different games and see different coaches or different people that work in media and stuff like that that dealt with my grandpa and just all the nice things that they say and the stories that they tell and all that type of stuff. It’s something that initially when it started out I was a little bit reluctant to kind of…I might not say my last name when I introduce myself to now it’s something I’m extremely proud of and I take a lot of pride in just because of not only my dad and my grandpa, but my uncle as well and the character that they have and the types of coaches that they were, and the types of human beings that they were. It’s something that I’m very proud of.”

(On how the elevated position going into free agency and the draft will change his approach to the offseason) “I mean, obviously, it’s just a different role. You’re not looking at a specific position in the draft, you’re looking at all positions. You’re coaching all your coaches. You’re tied into everything. You’re really setting the tone of each day how we want to go about attacking what we want to do scheme-wise, what we want to do, what types of players we want to onboard, who do we need, where are our needs, evaluating our current roster. So I mean there’s just so many things we can’t wait to attack and can’t wait to just start this journey going forward, but it is a different role and then something I take very seriously.”

(On why his relationship with McVay has worked when a lot of times working under a good friend doesn’t work out) “I think our philosophies have always been aligned and our passions have always been aligned and we love football and that’s always been something that we’ve always kind of shared from when we were freshman together at Miami, Ohio. But we also loved working hard and we loved the process behind it so we always kind of shared that. And then, I think more importantly than that is we love investing in the relationships, whether it’s with the coaches, with the players, with our friends. We understand that character and relationships in life are… As going forward, you might not necessarily remember the wins and losses and all that type of stuff, but your character that you had and the relationships that you develop are the things that’ll last and I think we’ve always been aligned in those beliefs. Sean doesn’t necessarily want perfection. Sean wants intent. He wants why’s. He wants you to work hard. He wants you to have great character and I think when the intent is pure behind what you’re doing, it’s going to work. And there’s obviously going to be ups and downs and that’s not to say that me and Sean have never had a disagreement or we’ve never had an argument, of course that’s not the case. But I think the intent behind what each of us wants is pure and that’s why we’ve been able to continue this relationship as great friends and as great friends working together and coaching together.”

(On where they’re at with the defensive line coach opening and what he sees in Chargers Interim Head Coach Giff Smith which was reported a few days ago) “We’re still working through that. It’s something that obviously the types of coaches we want to bring are going to be coaches that first, fit in great with the staff. So they first have to be great people and then we want to bring in coaches that have great experience, not just something that we’ve always thought it was coaches leaving here, but we can have a benefit of guys having some different experiences. It kind of brings a little different perspective of something to us to compare it to and see if it fits in with the philosophy of what we do here at the Rams, but still working through filling out the coaching staff.”

(On if he’s going to call the defense from up in the coaches booth or down on the field) “That’s a great question. My anticipation is probably down on the field, but I had never called it from up top before but that is something we’ll definitely look into. Obviously, that’s a long way away but it is something I’ll definitely consider and definitely look into and if (LB) Ernest (Jones III) hears it better and if that’s the best way to get the players playing the best, then I’ll do whatever it is to make these guys play their best, so I’m open to both.”