Up next in Rams coaching search: Kyle Shanahan, Josh McDanielsBy Alden Gonzalez
LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Rams' coaching search hits the road this weekend for face-to-face interviews with candidates whose teams earned first-round byes. One of their stops will be Foxborough, Massachusetts. Another will be Atlanta.
The Rams are going big-game hunting.
On the list of scheduled interviews, among other names, are Kyle Shanahan and Josh McDaniels, the NFL's two most-coveted offensive coordinators. Shanahan, 37, is currently steering a top-ranked Atlanta Falcons offense and will also interview with the Denver Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars and San Francisco 49ers, doing two interviews Friday and two Saturday. McDaniels, 40 -- failed Broncos head coach, one-time Rams offensive coordinator and longtime Patriots assistant -- is expected to interview with the Rams, Jaguars and 49ers on Saturday.
The Rams' search, led by COO Kevin Demoff, is expected to take them to a coordinator, and ideally it would be a sharp, innovative, successful offensive mind such as Shanahan or McDaniels. The Rams have ranked dead last in the NFL in yards each of the last two years, but have recently invested top picks in key offensive pieces such as quarterback Jared Goff (No. 1 overall), left tackle Greg Robinson (No. 2), receiver Tavon Austin (No. 8) and running back Todd Gurley (No. 10).
The Rams need someone who can make it work, but they also need to sway the likes of Shanahan and McDaniels into believing it is achievable.
McDaniels might have soured on the Rams during a 2011 season in which the team finished 2-14. He's an Ohio native who has spent much of his life in smaller cities and might not have much interest in the bright lights of L.A. Shanahan, meanwhile, might be drawn to the possibility of coaching in Denver, where his father, Mike Shanahan, won back-to-back Super Bowls. The fact they already have a Super Bowl-caliber defense probably makes him think he can steer the Broncos into contention immediately.
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