The Los Angeles Rams are hiring former Arizona Cardinals head coach and Washington Commanders offensive coordinator, Kliff Kingsbury to their coaching staff. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Kingsbury is set to join the Rams’ coaching staff with head coach Sean McVay. Schefter doesn’t specify whether or not this is for the team’s open offensive coordinator position.
Kingsbury will being some familiarity with the NFC West as he coached the Cardinals from 2019 to 2022. In 2021, Kingbury had the Cardinals atop the division until a late-season collapse and eventual playoff loss to the Rams during their Super Bowl run.
After spending time away from the NFC, Kingsbury joined the Commanders in 2024. Kingsbury coached Jayden Daniels to an Offensive Rookie of the Year season. It was the second time that Kingsbury had done so, coaching Kyler Murray to Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2019.
Even if Kingsbury doesn’t join as the team’s offensive coordinator, if the Rams promote Nate Scheelhaase, he could take the position of Passing Game Coordinator. In the case that Aubrey Pleasant joins Mike LaFleur’s staff, Kingsbury could also potentially take the role of assistant head coach. ESPN’s Peter Schrager added,
“Kingsbury and McVay have been speaking over the last two weeks and there’s mutual excitement to finally get to work together. When the Giants opted to hire Matt Nagy as OC, the path was cleared for Kingsbury to the Rams.”
An interesting aspect of the Kingsbury hire is his success with young quarterbacks. As mentioned, he’s had success with both Murray and Daniels. With the Rams having two first-round picks and the ability to draft a young quarterback in 2026 or 2027, it will certainly be something to watch. This could be a hire with that in mind.
Kingsbury seems to have a ceiling in the NFL. While he had strong starts with both the Cardinals and Commanders, the end of both tenures were rocky. Murray and Daniels both saw drop-offs after exciting starts. Still, adding an offensive mind like Kingsbury to McVay’s staff is an exciting thought.
