Rams To Hire Kliff Kingsbury

As the coordinator carousel spins, Kliff Kingsbury was connected to a few of the jobs that opened up this offseason. But it looks like the recent Commanders OC will land in a popular spot.

The Rams are planning to add Kingsbury to their offensive staff, ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Peter Schrager report. It does not appear this is for the OC job Mike LaFleur vacated, though the ESPN duo does not specify what position Kingsbury will take on Sean McVay‘s staff.

This staff has been a launching pad for upward mobility, and Kingsbury has seen a recent Los Angeles stopover reignite his career as well. Kingsbury moved back onto the coordinator radar after coaching quarterbacks at USC in 2023.

McVay’s staff just sent three-year OC Mike LaFleur to the head coaching ranks. Prior to that, McVay OCs Matt LaFleur and Kevin O’Connell landed HC jobs, as did quarterbacks coach Zac Taylor. Previous McVay OC Liam Coen is now a head coach, and McVay-era Rams DCs Brandon Staley and Raheem Morris enjoyed HC chances as well.

McVay’s recent comments on his OC situation point to an internal promotion. The 10th-year HC said (via Stu Jackson of the team website) the Rams have “great candidates in-house.” Pass-game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase is the top candidate to become the next Rams OC, having pledged to stay in Los Angeles after losing out on the Browns’ HC job. Scheelhaase received more HC interviews than Mike LaFleur did, and it should be expected he will become McVay’s fifth OC.

As for Kingsbury, Schrager notes he and McVay have been in talks for more than two weeks. Kingsbury, 46, was in the mix for the Giants’ OC job; once that went to Matt Nagy, a clearer path back to L.A. formed. Kingsbury’s stay with the Trojans lasted just one season, when he coached Caleb Williams. It reignited his career, leading to a host of OC interest in 2024. Based on the interest of the past three offseasons, his four-year run as Cardinals HC and McVay’s history of losing staffers to promotions elsewhere, Kingsbury should be expected to receive extensive HC interest again in 2027.

Kingsbury opted to stay in Washington after his first season as Commanders OC produced a stunning NFC championship game berth. But an injury-plagued Jayden Daniels second season brought disagreements between Kingsbury and his bosses. Adam Peters was said to have issues with Kingsbury, while Dan Quinn looked to have lost some faith in his play-caller as well. This led to a dismissal. Kingsbury then interviewed for the Ravens and Titans’ head coaching jobs. He later circled back to both teams as an OC candidate, interviewing for the Giants’ OC position as well.

The former Texas Tech HC’s only two NFL jobs have been on the HC and OC levels, which will make this an interesting fit. But McVay and Kingsbury have been friends for a while, making it unsurprising the two will link up for at least one season. Kingsbury’s six combined seasons of HC/OC experience at the NFL level stands to help the Rams, who have an advantage when it comes to recruiting assistants due to McVay’s stellar track record of sending them up the league ladder.

It will be interesting to learn Kingsbury’s role. It is possible he takes Scheelhaase’s pass-game coordinator position if/once the latter is promoted to OC. Neither will call plays, as McVay operates in that role. But Scheelhaase is 11 years younger than Kingsbury, making for an interesting dynamic.

This hire also could set up a 2027 scenario where McVay loses two offensive assistants to HC jobs. That has not happened yet, and it is rare when a team hires a non-coordinator for a head coaching job. Taylor’s move from QBs coach to Bengals HC is one of the exceptions, however.