Nathan Scheelhaase is next in line to be a first-time head coach picked off the Sean McVay coaching tree.
All signs point to that likely outcome after Scheelhaase interviewed for multiple head coaching openings this offseason, and it doesn’t hurt that McVay gave him a shot at calling plays in the Los Angeles Rams’ preseason opener against the Kansas City Chiefs last weekend. Calling plays isn’t everything, but it is a big deal for a lot of teams when it comes to finding their next head coach, and as described
in Jourdan Rodrigue’s tremendous The Playcallers podcast series, it’s something that the McVay/Shanahan tree takes extremely seriously.
It’s nearly a given that as McVay’s offensive coordinator, Scheelhaase will be a head coach soon. It’s a matter of when, not if. That’s a reflection of the sheer talent the Rams have had on the offensive coaching staff, but also the culture McVay has built for his team.
“I’ve been super fortunate, obviously, to learn from coach McVay,” Scheelhaase said in an interview with Andscape this week. coming here three years and being able to see what it looks like, what it feels like, as I transition into this new role.”
The idea of “culture” within a football team can be extremely overplayed. Intangible concepts like that are easy to mention, harder to quantify.
But the proof is in the pudding for McVay’s Rams. That’s reflected in the way the team plays, and in both how he builds his staff and how much success former staffers have found after leaving the Los Angeles. You don’t have seven former assistants become full-time NFL head coaches by the time you’re 40 years old by sheer luck.
There’s an entire Wikipedia page for the “Sean McVay Effect,” for crying out loud.
“He does take it to that next level, where he takes time and invests in his assistants,” Scheelhaase said. “We take a lot of time behind the scenes, long before we even get into the football, of just what it looks like to build a culture, to coach, to teach, how to communicate at the highest level we possibly can. So I’m definitely a beneficiary of that from him.”
As for Scheelhaase’s inevitable future, he said during his sitdown with Andscape that’s he’s not focusing too much on next year’s job openings and interview opportunities. Anyone could tell you it’s impossible to avoid thinking about those things at least somewhat (as someone who recently changed jobs and took a much better position, I can confirm), but for now the former Illinois Fighting Illini quarterback is trying to keep his attention on the Super Bowl contender he currently works for.
“Less than you would think,” Scheelhaase said when asked about how much he thinks about his future.
He continued: “It hasn’t really been one of those things where you’re sitting there and you’re looking at the future. There’s always so much that you feel like you’re trying to learn and grow, and I feel like I’ve been able to do that along the way.”
Scheelhaase will get his opportunity to lead a program eventually. In all likelihood, it will be quite soon. But for now, both he and the Rams are in a stellar position as he apprentices for the best coach in the NFL.
