[Elvis]

https://www.therams.com/news/rams-2025- ... -staff-set

Rams' 2025 coaching staff set

Feb 24, 2025
Stu Jackson
Senior Staff Writer

The Rams' coaching staff for the 2025 season is in place.

Head coach Sean McVay's finalized staff includes 16 returnees and six new hires. Here's more about each of those coaches.

Head Coach: Sean McVay
McVay enters his 9th year as head coach of the Rams. In 2024, Los Angeles reached the playoffs and double-digit wins for the sixth time in McVay's first eight seasons. L.A. has also finished with a winning record in all one but one season of McVay's tenure so far.

Offensive staff
Offensive Coordinator: Mike LaFleur

LaFleur returns for his third season as the Rams' offensive coordinator. Last season, he was part of an offensive staff that helped the Rams achieve the NFL's No. 10 passing offense (227.5 yards per game).


Quarterbacks Coach: Dave Ragone

Ragone returns for his second season as the Rams' quarterbacks coach.

Offensive Line Coach: Ryan Wendell

Wendell returns for his third season overseeing the Rams' offensive line. He led an offensive line in 2024 that, despite starting eight different combinations (excluding Week 18, when starters rested), allowed the sixth-fewest sacks in the NFL.

Tight Ends Coach: Scott Huff

Huff is one of the six new additions to Los Angeles' staff. He most recently served as the Seahawks' offensive line coach for the 2024 season before he and Seattle parted ways earlier this offseason. Prior to breaking into the NFL last year, he coached the University of Washington's offensive line from 2017-2023 (held run game coordinator duties in addition to that from 2017-19).

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Arizona State from 2004-05 before moving on to Boise State in 2006, initially coaching the tight ends that season before moving to offensive line (2007-09), back to tight ends (2010-11), tight ends/special teams coordinator (2012-13), back to offensive line (2014-15), then serving as offensive line coach/co-offensive coordinator in 2016.


Wide Receivers Coach: Eric Yarber

Entering his ninth season as wide receivers coach, Yarber joins assistant offensive line coach Zak Kromer as the longest-tenured member of McVay's offensive staff.

Last season, Yarber guided a receivers group highlighted by Puka Nacua, who finished with 990 receiving yards despite missing five games due to injury (rested Week 18 vs. Seahawks), and Demarcus Robinsons, who achieved career-highs in receiving yards (505) and receiving touchdowns (7).

Running Backs Coach: Ron Gould

Gould returns for his third season leading L.A.'s running backs. He's been a central figure to Kyren Williams' production over the last two seasons; in 2024, Williams set career highs in rushing yards (1,299) and rushing touchdowns (14).

Assistant Offensive Line Coach: Zak Kromer

As mentioned above, Kromer joins Yarber as the longest-tenured member of McVay's offensive staff and worked with Wendell to help the offensive line achieve the success it did in 2024.


Offensive Assistant: Rob Calabrese

Calabrese is among the 16 returnees, holding the same role as he did in 2024.

Pass Game Coordinator: Nate Scheelhaase

A new title for Scheelhaase in his second season on L.A.'s staff after serving as offensive assistant/pass game specialist last season.

Senior Defensive Assistant: Jimmy Lake

Technically a "new" hire, but Lake is a familiar face having served on the Rams' staff in 2023 (assistant head coach). He was the Falcons' defensive coordinator in 2024 before Atlanta parted ways with him earlier this offseason.

Defensive staff

Defensive Coordinator: Chris Shula

Shula returns for his second season as defensive coordinator. In his first, the unit had the sixth-highest scoring defense with 22 points, and was one of four teams across the league to have three players with a defensive touchdown. Additionally, the Rams had the tenth-highest team pressure rate generated at 35.6%, per Next Gen Stats.

Assistant Head Coach/Pass Game Coordinator: Aubrey Pleasant

The 2025 season will mark Pleasant's second-consecutive with the titles of assistant head coach and pass game coordinator, and third overall in his second stint with the organization. Working closely with the defensive backs, he helped guide a secondary that made the Rams one of five teams (Texans, Lions, Steelers, Eagles) to have multiple players rank in the Top 10 in interceptions in 2024 (Kam Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough with four each).

Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach: Giff Smith

Back for his second season on the Rams staff, Smith adds run game coordinator to his title. He helped guide a defensive line that featured a team-high 8.5 sacks from then-rookie Braden Fiske, who was named one of five finalists for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America's All-Rookie Team.

Inside Linebackers Coach: Greg Williams


Williams returns for his second season coaching L.A.'s inside linebackers. In 2024, Christian Rozeboom's 135 total tackles led the team and also set a new career high. Meanwhile, undrafted rookie Omar Speights finished with 67 total tackles after an injury to Troy Reeder forced him into a starting role.

Safeties Coach: Chris Beake

Beake returns for his third season working with the Rams' secondary and fourth on the Rams' defensive staff overall. In 2024, Kinchens and McCollough tied for the team lead in interceptions with four each.

Outside Linebackers Coach: Joe Coniglio

Coniglio returns for his third season as outside linebackers coach; in his second, he played an integral role in helping outside linebacker Jared Verse take home NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year recognition (both from the Associated Press and Pro Football Writers' of America); Verse was also named to the PFWA's All-Rookie Team. Verse led all rookies in QB hits (18), pressures (77) and hurries (56) last season; his 11 tackles for loss were second-most among all rookies, while his 4.5 sacks fifth-most.

Defensive Assistant: Mike Harris

This will be Harris' third season as a defensive assistant on L.A.'s staff. He primarily works with the secondary.


Pass Rush Coordinator: Drew Wilkins

Wilkins is among the six new additions to the staff for 2025. He most recently served as outside linebackers coach for the Patriots in 2024; prior to that, he worked for the Ravens for 12 years, beginning his career as a video operations intern in 2010 before becoming their football video coordinator in 2012, coaching assistant in 2013, then outside linebackers coach from 2018-21. He then coached the New York Giants' outside linebackers for two seasons before departing for New England last year.

Earlier this offseason, Wilkins was the defensive coordinator for the East team in last month's 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl. The East defense pitched a shutout in its 25-0 victory the West in that game.

Senior Offensive Assistant: Alex Van Pelt

Van Pelt is also among the six new additions to the staff for 2025. He most recently served as Patriots' offensive coordinator in 2024 before New England parted ways with him at the end of last season.

A former NFL quarterback who began his coaching career with NFL Europe's Frankfurt Galaxy in 2005 as their quarterbacks coach, and also as a volunteer quarterbacks coach for the University of Buffalo that same year, he has primarily been an offensive coordinator or quarterbacks coach for several NFL teams:

Buffalo Bills: Offensive quality control (2006-07), QBs coach (2008), offensive coordinator and QBs coach (2009)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: QBs coach (2010-11)
Green Bay Packers: RBs coach (2012-13), QBs coach (2014-17)
Cincinnati Bengals: QBs coach (2018-19)
Cleveland Browns: Offensive coordinator (2020-22), offensive coordinator and QBs coach (2023)
New England Patriots: Offensive coordinator (2024)

Special Teams staff
Special Teams Coordinator: Chase Blackburn

Returning for his third season overseeing Los Angeles' special teams, Blackburn in 2024 guided a specialist group that included wide receiver Jordan Whittington landing on the PFWA's All-Rookie Team as a kick returner and rookie Josh Karty setting the franchise record for most points scored by a rookie kicker and tying Frank Corral's record for most field goals made by a rookie kicker. Additionally, punter Ethan Evans led the league in percentage of punts landing inside the 10-yard line at 25.5%.

Assistant Special Teams: Ben Kotwica

A longtime NFL special teams coach, Kotwica joins the Rams after recently serving as the Broncos' special teams coordinator over the last two seasons. An Army alum who also served in the United States Army as a helicopter pilot, he began his coaching career at the United States Military Academy Prep School as a defensive coordinator (2005-06) before beginning his NFL coaching career with the New York Jets. After his time with the Jets from 2007-13, he was on Washington's staff from 2014-18, then the Falcons from 2019-20, the director of player development at Army in 2021, and an assistant special teams coach for the Vikings (2022) before joining Sean Payton's coaching staff in Denver in 2023.

Other
Game Management Coordinator/Assistant Tight Ends: Dan Shamash


In addition to working with Huff and the tight ends, Shamash – also among the six new hires – replaces John Streicher in the game management coordinator role after Streicher joined Mike Vrabel's Patriots coaching staff this offseason. Shamash recently held that role on former Jets head coach Robert Saleh's staff; he also helped coach New York's tight ends. The game management coordinator role included educating Jets coaches and players on NFL rules and regulations and working closely with their analytics staff, according to an October 2022 article from The Athletic.

[actionjack]

Ah Jimmy Lake is back lol. Nice to see Alex Van Pelt added to the staff.

[Elvis]

Glad we have a new game management guy.

If you want to do conspiracies, Van Pelt has a history with Rodgers...

[Elvis]

To be fair, he could've been going nuclear about Cignetti...

[Dare]

Most people are inclined to say that McVay doesn't develop young QBs and that argument has merit. They use it to support their contention that the next starting QB will be another veteran QB. Again fair enough.

I've been contending that the Rams will follow Snead's own stated playbook and draft a QB. Now the hiring of Alex Van Pelt who was a QB coach in GB for 4 years. People like to point to that to say it indicates that Aaron Rodgers is on the Ram radar. I on the other hand see it as confirmation that the Rams will draft a QB and Van Pelt and Ragone will be charged with the development of the rookie. After all, why would a grizzled vet like Rodgers need a QB coach much less 2 of them?

With Ragone and Van Pelt, McVay can leave the development of the young QB to them while he focuses upon running the team and starting offense. It makes perfect sense. Good QB coaching will be necessary for the first several years of a rookie's career. In Ragone and Van Pelt they have two men with proven track records in that area with Rodgers. Their input would also be very pertinent to the choice of which player should be selected to be the best fit for what McVay wants to do.

IMO everything is pointing to the Rams drafting a QB and probably in the first round to reap the benefits of that 5th year option. For example, Justin Herbert just finished his 5th year option, obviously a top tier QB. The Chargers paid him $37.3M which is far less than he would have commanded had he not been a first round pick. This is why if the Rams are going to draft a QB they need that 5th year if they are going to sit him as a developmental QB2 in his rookie season. QB is the single most expensive position to extend without a 5th year option. Drafting him now makes the QB affordable through the 2029 season. If a rookie is deemed good enough to become the franchise QB1 of the future why wouldn't you take him in the first round, draft prognosticators be damned?