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When news broke that Aaron Donald was going to retire from the NFL after a decade of borderline unparalleled dominance, it created a massive problem for Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams.
Sure, they had multiple quality players on the roster already in Byron Young, Bobby Brown III, and Kobie Turner, and added a few more rushers in the 2024 NFL draft to help ease his absence, with both Braden Fiske and Jared Verse looking like certified studs at their positions, but losing Donald? A certified Hall of Famer at just 33? Gosh, that’s a tough pill to swallow.
Well, on his final media session before Week 16, McVay explained how he accomplished the feat, which, needless to say, required a group effort to get it done.
“I think it’s always a collaborative effort and really like you said, you never replace somebody like him. I think the ‘one-of-one’ term gets thrown around loosely. He’s really one-of-one. He made a tremendous impact on a lot of guys who are in their second year or their third or fourth year, that are key contributors. I think you wanted to be able to say, ‘Alright, based on the different phases, what do we want it to look like to try to be able to complete that group?’ You’re expecting, like what he’s done, Kobie Turner to be able to take that step just by the way that he works and the way that he impacts and influences his teammates. Bobby Brown III has been outstanding. I really think he’s done a great job. I can’t say enough about the job that [Run Game Coordinator and Defensive Line Coach] Giff Smith has done as well in terms of developing those guys along with [Assistant Defensive Line Coach] AC Carter,” McVay told reporters.
“Then you say, ‘Alright, do you have the ability to add a player like a Braden Fiske who you really like that has some traits and some mental makeup that are similar to what you love about an Aaron or some of these guys that are really disruptive from the interior and then you get a guy like Tyler Davis.’ I’ve been really pleased with that group and I think they’ve only gotten better. [Desjuan] ‘Des’ Johnson has done some really good things for us. I also think [Outside Linebackers Coach] Joe Coniglio establishing and helping those guys on the edge really continue to develop. I look at the front as kind of a whole, even though you have your interior defensive linemen. And what you’ve seen from Byron Young, what you’ve seen from Jared Verse and Michael Hoecht has been really impressive. I think it’s an ongoing deal, but it was about how can we maximize this group and figure out how do they play together? I think they’re coming together at the right time.”
You know, while the plan had no guarantee of working, and the Rams’ defensive ceiling is still up in the air, considering the ages...
