Has there ever been a more lubricated pipeline to becoming an NFL head coach than to have at one time been in the same room as Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay?
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, Brandon Staley is now the latest Sean McVay revelation to turn a Rams assistant job into something bigger and brighter, as he is set to become the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers.
Staley is 38 years old and has just four years of NFL experience. Only one of those years has been spent as defensive coordinator, but now he’s the head coach of a professional franchise. His rise is almost unparalleled.
To get here, like McVay on the offensive side, Staley has brought fresh ideas to a league in which defenses have started to get a bit stale.
With experience as a defensive coordinator at the FCS and Division III level, he took an NFL graduate course under Vic Fangio in Chicago and Denver over three seasons before unleashing a tidal wave on the NFL as the Rams' defensive coordinator in 2020.
In terms of sheer numbers, the 2020 Rams defense was incredible. They led the league in expected points added (EPA) allowed per pass at -0.130 while ranking second in the same metric against the run at -0.186 EPA per play.
Overall, they allowed a measly -0.150 EPA per play over the regular season, ranking first in the league and making them one of only nine teams to finish the regular season allowing a negative figure.
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