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RockRam
Let me say up front that NONE of us know anything firsthand about the chemistry and pecking order within the Rams organization. So while I disagree with your assessment, it's only on my personal knowledge of management trees and structure and not on inside info.
The idea that somehow the brand new McVay who didn't even know where Thousand Oaks was made the draft picks and FA selections is ludicrous. It is Snead's department and job description to acquire personnel.
However......both when Fisher was here and now McVay, Snead always said that he saw his job as finding the guys the coaches defined. That is, unlike a Ted Thompson who decided the characteristics and attributes of players, drafted and acquired them primarily according to his vision of the team, and then assembled them and handed them over to the HC, Snead's approach was to go to the player supermarket with a shopping list given to him by the HC.
No doubt before Snead pulled the trigger, McVay was given a voice. And likely Snead explained to McVay why he thought such and such a player fit McVay's job description for that position. And no doubt why another and different player might even be a better fit but for reasons X and Y they weren't attainable.
It is utterly impossible for a 30 year old, never been HC to assume the jobs of HC and GM simultaneously and this is what you are claiming he did because job #1 of the GM is to stock the team with players.
In fact, when the sports media was still speculating WHY Snead wasn't fired along with Fisher, the consensus was that FA and the draft were looming and there was no way a new GM could walk through the door, change the personnel staff, and acquire players.
McVay in his first year, probably more than he ever will have to again, HAD to rely on Snead.
And the Rams struck Gold this year in FA, trades, and the draft. It couldn't have been much better.
I agree with a lot of things there.
First off, Snead was never really in trouble. When Fisher got fired in December Demoff talked about reviewing everything, including the personnel depts. and administration, but by the time January came, and before they even went looking for a head coach, Demoff THEN was directly saying that it was not a rebuild, which means they were fine with their overall personnel going forward (including Goff).
So the idea that Snead was ever in trouble was just a message board thing. It didn't exist in reality.
And in fact Snead was heavily involved in the coach search and you don't include a guy in a head coach search who is in trouble or on probation. That would have been just bad management.
Second off, you're right, it would have been a massive shift that would have put them behind to hire a new coach AND a new GM at the same time. That WOULD mean starting over.
Third off, with McVay, Snead officially has final say on personnel issues. Previously Fisher did. Having final say means that's the guy with the last word on personnel decisions.
Fourth off, you;'re right, no rookie head coach is going to come in and hire coaches, get his staff up and running, and install a new offense and defense AND suddenly overnight become a draft expert. Someone said it once---scouts scout 12 months a year, coaches scout 1 month a year.
Fifth off, the personnel process is the same now as it was before. The scouts become experts at what the coaches are looking for. That's a consensus process. A coach may know what he wants in a slot receiver but the scouts have to sort out which of the dozens of choices out there best fit that criteria. The Rams then rank their board consensus style. That is way before the draft, scouts and coaches go through a process of ranking players. When they draft comes they stick to their board. That's the exact same thing they were doing with Fisher.
Sixth off, this would NOT be a winning team if it lacked players. They have players because they drafted well. And of course were also good at undrafted free agency. By the time he started winning in 99, Vermeil had a total of 6 players on the entire roster who were there before he was. When Carroll started winning in Seattle in 2012, he had a total of 3 starters who were there before he was hired in 2010, and one of those 3 was the punter. THIS IS NOTHING LIKE THOSE 2 EXAMPLES. Basically they added a corner, Barwin, Whitworth, Sullivan, and the receivers. Counting 25 starters (including the 2 kickers and the returner) that means McVay inherited Tru, Joyner, Quinn/Longacre, Tree, Barron, Donald, Brockers, Saffold, Brown, Hav, Higbee, Austin, Goff, Gurley, Cooper, Zuerlein, and Hekker, They already had the basis of a solid defense, the best special teams in football, and already had their qb and RB. They would not be winning now if they DIDN'T have all of that.
You don't suddenly start winning in a 1 year turnaround unless you inherited a lot of talent. And you don't have a lot of talent if you've been drafting poorly.
So this idea that they were not good at personnel was bogus. Of course they were good at personnel (well except for some free agents). And the Rams saw that which is why they kept Snead.
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/09/2017 05:29AM by zn.
