LOS ANGELES — In his end-of-season news conference — more than a week after the Los Angeles Rams‘ season ended — coach Sean McVay was asked if he had been able to “decompress” from the loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game.
McVay said he had not, in part because of his love for the 2025 Rams team, saying the loss “probably hurt even more than any loss that I’ve ever been a part of.”
The Rams took care of their most pressing offseason need by signing McVay and general manager Les Snead to multiyear contract extensions. Now, as the Rams enter the offseason, here’s a look at five offseason questions for Los Angeles:
Will quarterback Matthew Stafford be back in 2026?
After the Rams’ season ended in Seattle, Stafford declined to answer this question. When McVay was asked this in his end-of-season news conference, the head coach said he was hopeful but that the Rams did not give Stafford a timeline to make the decision.
“I think that if that’s something that he wants to do, the answer is absolutely yes,” McVay said Monday. “… I think what’s great is he’s going to take his time, talk with [his wife] Kelly and the girls and see what’s best.”
But what McVay did say, is that if Stafford is back, he knows the quarterback “is still playing at an incredible level.” Stafford, who turns 38 in February, just finished his 17th NFL season playing at what McVay called an MVP-level. The Rams quarterback is coming off the best season of his career, finishing the regular season as the odds-on favorite to be named MVP after leading the league in passing yards (4,707) and passing touchdowns (46).
While McVay said Stafford “deserves as much time as he needs” to make the decision, he said he doesn’t “get the sense that [Stafford] wants to let it drag on either.”
Stafford is under contract through the 2026 season after he and the Rams agreed to a reworked contract last February. Stafford is currently scheduled to count $48.3 against the salary cap in 2026, but Los Angeles could rework the quarterback’s deal, as they have the past two offseasons.
One of Stafford’s top targets, wide receiver Davante Adams, is expected to return next season, McVay said.
“Oh yeah, absolutely,” McVay said when asked whether Adams would be back in 2026. “I have no reason to believe otherwise.”
Adams, who signed a two-year deal in March, currently has a cap hit of $28 million. He had 60 catches for 789 yards and a league-leading 14 receiving touchdowns in 14 games this season.
What is McVay looking for in a new offensive coordinator?
After Mike LaFleur was hired as the Arizona Cardinals‘ head coach, McVay will once again be looking for a new offensive coordinator. LaFleur had spent the past three seasons in Los Angeles in that role.
Although LaFleur did not regularly call plays for the Rams, McVay detailed the offensive coordinator’s heavy responsibilities, including installing and scripting plays.
“So he’s done a lot,” McVay said. “I mean he’s coordinated the offense, very similar to previous guys, but I think it’s more along the lines of letting them be able to collaborate with the other coaches and not feel like you have to be immersed in every part of it, even though your responsibility is kind of that oversight.
“But Mike did a great job and really appreciative of him and I think I was able to be a better head coach because of the contributions that he and our offensive staff have made over the last couple of years, and we’re looking to continue that.”
McVay said the Rams will hold an “extensive search” for the position, while acknowledging Los Angeles has several strong in-house candidates who could be promoted into the role.
One possibility could be passing game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase, who interviewed for multiple head coaching jobs in 2026. Before he was hired by the Rams in 2024, Scheelhaase served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Iowa State.
Which players are up for a contract extension?
The Rams already signed three players going into or playing on the final season of their contracts in running back Kyren Williams, inside linebacker Nate Landman and safety Quentin Lake.
Now, the Rams’ strong 2023 draft class is eligible for contract extensions, led by wide receiver Puka Nacua (fifth-round pick) and outside linebacker Byron Young (third round). Defensive tackle Kobie Turner (third round) and guard Steve Avila (second round) are also candidates to receive new deals before their fourth NFL season. Because none of the above group was a first-round pick, Los Angeles does not have the possibility of a fifth-year option.
Nacua, along with Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, is a candidate to reset the wide receiver market with his contract extension. Nacua had 129 catches for 1,715 yards and 10 touchdowns in 16 games this season.
Young had a career-high 12 sacks this season, which led the team. The Rams will have to weigh how they pay their front seven, as next season, outside linebacker Jared Verse and defensive end Braden Fiske will also be eligible for extensions.
“Those are all great players that we obviously have a very high level of interest in continuing to be able to continue our journeys with those guys,” McVay said.
McVay said the Rams have not had extensive conversations about what a timeline might look like for extending those players, but that those talks will probably start up “in a couple of weeks.”
How are the Rams approaching special teams after their struggles in 2026?
The Rams made a rare in-season coaching change under McVay, as he fired special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn in Week 16 after the unit once again played a large role in a loss for Los Angeles. Earlier in the season, the Rams made a change at kicker and long-snapper in an effort to improve the unit.
On Monday, McVay announced they have hired Bubba Ventrone to be their special teams coordinator. Ventrone spent the last three seasons with the Cleveland Browns, serving as their assistant head coach and special teams coordinator.
McVay said Ventrone is a “guy I’ve had my eye on for a while” and that the pair are “very aligned philosophically.”
“He’s got a great energy, a great edge,” McVay said. “He’s a great communicator. You talk to people when you do the vetting and the background and what he does in regards to just being able to uplift and elevate people he is around and situations he is a part of.”
McVay also said the Rams hired Kyle Hoke as their assistant special teams coach.
Will any in-season injuries affect the start of the offseason program?
Stafford, who missed most of training camp while dealing with an aggravated disk in his back, will not need any offseason surgery, McVay said.
McVay said while he has not sat down with senior vice president of sports medicine and performance Reggie Scott since the end of the season, he does not believe any players are dealing with injuries that will affect their status for the team’s offseason program this spring.
“Usually, what happens is just because of the nature of some things, Reggie will go through and guys will have some of those little cleanups, things like that,” McVay said. “There’s nothing that he and I have discussed that will affect their availability for the start of the offseason program.”
