McVay picks NFL coaches he’d like to hang out with...

Sean McVay picks NFL coaches he'd want to hang out with, including Bill Belichick

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Cameron DaSilva

Sean McVay is a pretty popular coach in the NFL. At least it seems that way from afar, having close relationships with Kliff Kingsbury, Zac Taylor and Matt LaFleur. He has a lot of connections across the league despite only being 35 and entering his fifth season in the NFL.

So when Peter Schrager – who McVay is hosting The Ringer’s “Flying Coach” podcast with – asked him to name the coach he’d pick to hang out with, the choice was tough. But before naming anyone else, McVay mentioned how good Bill Belichick has been to him during his career so far.

Here’s McVay’s answer from the podcast, which includes LaFleur, Kingsbury, Mike Tomlin and his own assistant, Raheem Morris.

“That’s a loaded question. You’re setting me up there. That’s like asking, ‘Who’s your favorite co-host of Good Morning Football?’ … I would say there’s guys that are a lot of fun to hang out with. It really depends on what type of fun you’re looking to have,” McVay said. “I’ll tell you what, this is one of the things that in the short amount of time that I’ve gotten the chance to do this, Coach Belichick couldn’t have been better to me. I’m telling you. Fun, engaging, he’s been great in the limited interactions that we’ve had.”

“Matt LaFleur is one of my best friends. So I’m gonna say you’d love to be able to go with Matt, but Kingsbury’s close by. There’s a lot of guys. You’re putting me in a spot that, it just depends what type of atmosphere we’re looking for. I got a defensive coordinator in Raheem Morris who’s about as much fun to be around as anybody. We all know how dynamic Mike Tomlin is. We’ve got a lot of potential options. You can’t go wrong, Peter.”

McVay and Belichick spent some time together at Super Bowl LIII and again last year when the Rams hosted the Patriots at SoFi Stadium. As McVay said, their interactions have been limited, but Belichick has made a strong impression on the Rams coach.

The two struck a deal involving Brandin Cooks back in 2018, and in the 2019 draft, the Rams traded the 45th overall pick to the Patriots for a package of selections.

So while Belichick has this hard exterior and never seems to have any fun, McVay has seen a side of him that fans and reporters typically don’t get exposed to.