[Elvis]

https://www.ocregister.com/2018/06/12/i ... ared-goff/

It’s another year and another new set of coaches for Rams quarterback Jared Goff

By Rich Hammond
rhammond@scng.com
Orange County Register
PUBLISHED: June 12, 2018 at 4:59 pm

THOUSAND OAKS — Pay attention to your coaches, Jared Goff. At least for 12 months or so.

In what is becoming an unofficial rite of late spring, the Rams’ quarterback is adjusting to a new set of advisors. For a third consecutive year, Goff has a new position coach and a new pass-game guru.

Zac Taylor is the Rams’ new quarterbacks coach, promoted in January to replace Greg Olson, who got hired as Oakland’s offensive coordinator. Shane Waldron is the Rams’ new pass-game coordinator, promoted to replace offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur, who left for the same job in Tennessee.

“It’s exciting. It’s fun,” Goff said after Tuesday’s minicamp practice at Cal Lutheran. “I think they’ve done a tremendous job. I have already learned a lot of Zac and learned his spin on things, and same with Shane. They both have their take on things and it’s different and I have enjoyed it.”

Not since his junior season at Cal has Goff returned to team with an intact set of quarterback-related coaches. That is, in part, a reality of life in the NFL. A coach’s life is transitory, and those who do their jobs well, such as Olson and LaFleur, tend to move on to jobs with greater responsibilities.

What, if anything, does this mean for Goff? A year ago, he made the Pro Bowl as the league’s most-improved quarterback. Plus, if anything, his relationship with Coach Sean McVay should be stronger in its second season, and Goff’s surrounding cast of talent is arguably better than last season.

Still, a quarterback is an extension of his coaches, each of whom has his own voice, preferences and nuances. As Goff entered the final phase of the Rams’ offseason program Tuesday – the start of a three-day minicamp – the Rams seemed unconcerned about the latest round of coaching flux.

“He’s had a few new faces,” Waldron said, “so the biggest thing is keeping that consistency in what the messaging has been in the meeting room. Zac Taylor has done a great job of picking up where (Olson) left off, and ultimately Coach McVay is the lead voice of our offense, and his message is the same.”

That’s the bottom line, even though McVay attempted to downplay it Tuesday as he heaped praise on Taylor and Waldron. McVay is a former high school quarterback and he is the Rams’ play-caller.

A position coach is important, but Goff’s tightest bond always will be with McVay. The two seemed to bond quickly in 2017, after McVay took over in January.

“I think quarterback and play-caller is one that has to be tight,” Goff said, “and our relationship continues to grow and I feel good about it.”

After three years of college consistency at Cal, with veteran head coach Sonny Dykes and coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tony Franklin, Goff arrived in the NFL in 2016 and got handed to Coach Jeff Fisher, who had a defensive background, and a support staff with little experience.

Rob Boras, a longtime tight ends coach, had never before been a full-time NFL offensive coordinator. Quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke had a Heisman Trophy on his shelf but had only one year of experience as a coach beyond the high school level.

Perhaps it’s no surprise that Goff struggled as a rookie, then thrived in 2017 under Olson, a quarterbacks coach with 30 years of experience at the NFL and college levels, and LaFleur, a first-year but well-regarded coordinator. Most importantly, Goff had McVay, the play-caller who transformed the Rams’ offense from dormant to dominant in a short period.

Goff isn’t a stranger when it comes to his new coaches, and that helps.

Taylor, 35, spent last season as the Rams’ assistant receivers coach, and previously was an offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with the Miami Dolphins. Waldron has retained his previous duties as the Rams’ tight ends coach, and he also worked with the tight ends in Washington and New England.

“I think it’s about everybody having a great relationship,” McVay said. “There’s a lot of times when I might not be in that quarterbacks room or the offensive meeting, but when you have the confidence in Zac and Shane and Coach Kromer and the other coaches, you feel really good about stepping away.”

REGGIE BUSH LAWSUIT

A jury in St. Louis ordered the Rams to pay former NFL (and USC) running back Reggie Bush almost $12.5 million, the fallout of an on-field accident in 2015 in which Bush suffered a severe knee injury.

During a game at the Edward Jones Dome, the Rams’ home until 2016, Bush ran out of bounds after he fielded a punt. Bush slipped on an exposed area of concrete, beyond the sideline, and tore his meniscus.

Bush initially filed a lawsuit against three parties: the Rams and two agencies that oversaw and operated the stadium, but last week, the judge in the suit dismissed the other two entities as defendants

The jury on Tuesday awarded Bush $4.95 million in compensatory damages and $7.5 million in punitive damages. The Rams are expected to appeal the decision, and a team spokesman declined comment.

(ALMOST) ALL ABOARD

As expected, star defensive lineman Aaron Donald did not attend the minicamp. Donald is in the final year of his contract and seeks a new deal. All other players were in attendance, although some, such as Mark Barron and Dominique Easley, were held out for precautionary reasons.

McVay announced that the third and final day of minicamp will be canceled, and instead, the players and staff members will board buses and tour the under-construction stadium in Inglewood.

[Elvis]

The quick answer is no, shouldn't matter much at all.

The important relationship is between the QB and his play caller, Mcvay. You see the relationship between Brady and McDaniels, Brees and Payton, with any luck Goff and McVay are well on their way to similar success and inseparability, the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

One of the things i remember Cignetti saying when he took over as OC is that he would leave the QB to the QB coach and not be involved the way Schottenheimer had been.

Well that's one thing Shotty had right. As McVay likes to explain it, the QB is an extension of the coaching staff, and to me, that means the play caller...

[AvengerRam]

Yeah... I'd call this one much ado about very little, if not nothing.

Its still the McVay offense. So... same head chef, same recipes, new sous chefs.

[snackdaddy]

We're in better shape than most teams when it comes to coaching. We won't be losing our true offensive coordinator to a head coaching gig elsewhere. He is the head coach. And we won't be losing our defensive coordinator to a head coaching gig because he has no desire for that. These coaches are ours as long as we want them. I see some good things for many years. Now if we could only have a weak conference once in a while like he Patriots have in the AFC.