Los Angeles Rams: Wade Phillips a Master of Quick Turnarounds
By Erik Lambert
Expectations are high for the Los Angeles Rams in 2017. Their coaching staff got a major revamping during the offseason on both sides of the ball.
Sean McVay becomes head coach. His primary mission is to do anything possible to make quarterback Jared Goff a success for the team. Given his track record in Washington with Kirk Cousins, it’s reasonable to feel good about the chances of that happening. The greater buzz though has to do with McVay’s hire for defensive coordinator.
Wade Phillips has been coaching in the NFL since 1976. He’s been around the game for a long time and watched it grow. In that span he’s become one of the most respected coordinators in the game with a long track record of success. So it must be encouraging for fans when they hear him state his high expectations for the Rams defense this year as he told ESPN.com.
"“I have a good feeling about this team. Again, we’re only in shorts and we haven’t done anything live game-wise, which we’ll get to. I feel good with where we are right now. Comparatively to the teams that I’ve gone to in the first year, I think they’re right on par with those teams. And a lot of those teams did well.”“I couldn’t be more pleased with the guys’ attitude, No. 1, and also the ability we have,” Phillips added. “I think we have a lot of talented players. They’re working hard to get better, and I think we will show that in the fall when we start playing, start practicing together. We don’t make many mistakes, and they’re real aggressive and they play well as a team.”"
First-year boosts are a Phillips trademark
As it turns out no coach has mastered the art of immediate defensive turnarounds quite like Phillips has. Ever since he first became a coordinator back in 1981 he’s been doing it. Leading up to present day eight teams that he ended up coaching for saw immediate benefits from his arrival.
- 1981 Saints: 28th to 11th
- 1989 Broncos: 22nd to 3rd
- 1995 Bills: 17th to 13th
- 2002 Falcons: 30th to 19th
- 2004 Chargers: 27th to 18th
- 2007 Cowboys: 13th to 9th
- 2010 Texans: 30th to 2nd
- 2015 Broncos: 3rd to 1st
This bodes well for 2017. The Rams finished 9th in total defense last year, though they did rank 23rd in points allowed. Smart money says Phillips will get a good feel for the personnel he has and know exactly where to employ their strengths and hide their weaknesses. At age 69 he’s been doing it long enough to trust the process.