The Los Angeles Rams have seen another familiar face find a new home in the competitive NFC West. Earlier today, Mike LaFleur was hired to be the Arizona Cardinals next Head Coach. And then later this afternoon, it was announced that the San Francisco 49ers hired Raheem Morris to be their next defensive coordinator.
Raheem Morris reunites with Kyle Shanahan,
whom he coached with in Washington in the mid 2000s when they both worked underneath Mike Shanahan. Morris was looking for his next coaching gig after getting fired by the Atlanta Falcons in early January. Morris lasted just two years with the Falcons after being heavily endorsed for a Head Coach role by Les Snead, Sean McVay, and the Rams.
The San Francisco 49ers had a defensive coordinator opening due to the hiring of Robert Saleh as the Tennessee Titans head coach. Morris is the Shanahan’s fifth defensive coordinator with the following serving in the role before him: Robert Saleh (2017-2020, 2025), Demeco Ryans (2021-2022), Steve Wilks (2023), and Nick Sorenson (2024).
The firing of Raheem Morris in Atlanta came as a surprise as the Falcons won their last 4 games and appeared to arguably be the best team in the NFC South going into 2026. In both seasons, the team saw inconsistency at the quarterback position. Kirk Cousins started in 2024 only to yield the job to rookie Michael Penix Jr. In 2025, Michael Penix Jr suffered another ACL tear, giving the job back to Cousins. As the seasoned concluded, the Falcons looked strong with Cousins under center, Bijan Robinson at running back, and the Falcons offense line operating as one of the best in the league.
The latest two moves are an unfortunate reality for the LA Rams as their NFC West adversaries are theoretically getting stronger while the Rams simultaneously are “weakened”. Even though the Rams will replace LaFleur’s vacancy, their NFC West competition now has inside information on the Rams. Raheem Morris worked for 3 years with Sean McVay. Mike LaFleur worked for 2 seasons with McVay. Both have solid intel on the in game strategy and play calls that McVay and the Rams use. Furthermore, the hiring of Mike LaFleur with the Arizona Cardinals could lead to a cascading effect as LaFleur looks to fill out his coaching staff. Sean McVay may need to brace for impact again as his coaching tree continues to get plucked for head coaches and offensive coordinators.
As for the offensive coordinator vacancy, Nate Scheelhaase is considered the front runner to fill the position. That would then leave LA will a need to find a passing game coordinator if Scheelhaase is promoted.
