Sean McVay’s coaching tree with the Rams has a wide reach, but one name that never comes up in those conversations is Thomas Brown. Although Brown actually has head coaching experience already (he was Bears interim head coach in 2024), his rise through the ranks since being an offensive assistant for McVay from 2020-2022 has slipped through the cracks.
But Brown’s secret could be out of the bag if he’s instrumental in helping the Patriots beat the Seahawks in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
Brown is the
Patriots pass game coordinator.
Once a running back for the Falcons and Browns, Brown started as a strength and conditioning coach at the University of Georgia in 2011. By 2020, Brown was hired by McVay as a running backs coach on the Rams and was added the title of assistant head coach in 2021. He was moved to tight ends coach in 2022.
Finally, Brown moved on and took a job with the Carolina Panthers on Frank Reich’s staff as offensive coordinator in 2023 after he was passed over for the same job in L.A., as McVay opted to go outside the organization to hire Mike LaFleur to replace Kevin O’Connell instead. LaFleur is leaving this week to become the head coach of the Cardinals, leaving an opening for Rams OC.
Will McVay go back to Brown?
Probably not. It is widely expected that McVay will try to retain Nate Scheelhaase as offensive coordinator. But Brown’s name is back on the market as one that many teams would like to have. He also interviewed for the same Cardinals head coaching position that went to LaFleur. As passing game coordinator in the Super Bowl, Brown could be in line for a full-time OC position somewhere rather than working under Josh McDaniels again.
Brown’s short tenure with the Panthers went as poorly as Reich’s. He was let go with the rest of the staff after one season. He was then hired by the Bears as pass game coordinator in 2024, then promoted to OC when Shane Waldron was fired, then promoted to interim head coach when Matt Eberflus was fired.
He is now pass game coordinator for MVP candidate Drake Maye and he continues to work with tight ends.
Brown won a Super Bowl with the Rams in 2021. After so much turmoil in 2023 and 2024, he could win his second this weekend and do so against the Seahawks.
