On Jan. 12, 2017, Sean McVay was named the 23rd head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, becoming the youngest head coach in modern NFL history at 30 years old.
In his first six seasons, McVay led the Rams to four playoff berths and two Super Bowl appearances, winning Super Bowl 56. He has achieved five winning seasons and three NFC West titles with the Rams.
The 2017 AP NFL Coach of the Year and Super Bowl 56 champion is widely regarded as one of the brightest football minds, but is he paid like a top head coach? Let’s examine McVay’s contract and net worth, plus how it stacks up compared to his peers.
Sean McVay’s Contract, Salary, and Net Worth
McVay was reportedly making around $8.5 million the year he led the Rams to their Super Bowl victory. Now, he reportedly makes $14 million a year, which makes him the fourth-highest-paid coach in the NFL.
The only coaches earning more than McVay annually are Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh ($16 million), Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton ($18 million), and Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid ($18-$20 million per year).
Following McVay’s most recent contract extension, Rams owner Stan Kroenke pointed to the culture McVay has helped build: “As an organization we constantly strive to better ourselves every day. This requires selflessness, dedication, and great leadership throughout.
“Sean and [general manager Les Snead] personify this mindset. They have been crucial to many of our successes that transcend wins and losses. They epitomize the ‘We not me’ mantra that permeates the entire organization. Their extensions are well deserved.”
McVay currently has an impressive net worth of roughly $40 million. That makes McVay one of the wealthiest active NFL coaches, trailing only Reid ($50 million).
Amazon reportedly offered McVay $100 million over five years to serve as a broadcaster after the 2022 campaign, but he chose to stay in Los Angeles — and received a subsequent pay bump. McVay has flirted with the idea of an early retirement in past offseasons, but he ultimately decided to stick with the Rams for a bit longer.
KEEP READING: Meet Veronika Khomyn, Sean McVay’s Wife
McVay confessed that while the TV deal is flattering and something that he might consider in the long run, he’s focused on trying to lead the Rams to another Super Bowl for now.
McVay’s personality and football knowledge are the main reasons why he is expected to thrive as a broadcaster once he moves on from coaching.
But in the meantime, he’s one of the most respected coaches in the league, and he is paid like it too.
Rams vs. Vikings Game Preview
- Location: Glendale, Arizona; State Farm Field
- Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Channel: ABC, ESPN, ESPN+
McVay is trying to lead the Rams past the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Cound Round of the NFL playoffs.
The winner of this game will travel to face the No. 2 seeded Philadelphia Eagles, who easily defeated the Green Bay Packers 22-10 in their Wild Card game.
With this being a neutral site game due to the Los Angeles wildfires, the Rams cannot rely on home-field advantage. Away from SoFi Stadium this year, the Rams are 5-3, and they did play once at State Farm Stadium back in Week 2 when they lost to the Arizona Cardinals, 41-10.
The Rams have been playing really great football lately, winning five straight before falling in a meaningless game against the Seattle Seahawks in the season finale, where key players earned much-needed rest.
The Vikings fell from potentially being the No. 1 overall seed to the No. 5 seed when they lost the season finale to the Lions. That game saw Minnesota’s offense stall in the red zone, settling for multiple field goals, as QB Sam Darnold had one of his worst outings of the year.
Pro Football Network’s OFF+ metric sees this as a top-15 matchup, and there could be potential for many points on Monday night. The Rams are ranked No. 11, and the Vikings are No. 13.
Kupp and Puka Nacua are elite wide receivers, so counting this team out is irresponsible.
This season, Kyren Williams helped Los Angeles’ offense rank seventh in rushing success rate. The respect Williams demands from opposing defenses has allowed the Rams to rank seventh in third-down avoidance. They constantly operate from ahead of the chains, a common trait of successful offenses.
The passing game hasn’t been the most consistent weekly, leading to a reasonably wide fluctuation in grades. The Rams have four top-five weekly finishes but also four weeks ranking 20th or worse. Still, with Nacua and Kupp healthy, Los Angeles’ upside gives it a fighting chance to win a playoff game for the first time since their Super Bowl 56 victory.
The Vikings have sometimes looked like an elite offensive unit, but several down weeks kept their final ranking outside the top 10. Darnold has affirmatively answered any questions about his ability to lead this team to Super Bowl contention, but Week 18 was a reminder that his floor remains very low.
One of Minnesota’s worst traits this season was the red-zone offense, where they finished 19th in touchdown rate. That reared its ugly head in the division-deciding loss to the Lions, where the Vikings had one success on 14 red-zone plays.
That was the worst red-zone success rate in a game over the last five seasons (min. 10 plays). The passing game finished 10th in success rate, which helped this unit overcome a fairly average rushing game (17th in success rate).
Head coach Kevin O’Connell’s willingness to seek out explosive plays on early downs has helped Darnold avoid difficult situations, as Minnesota avoided third downs at the fifth-highest rate of any offense.
Per Pro Football Network’s Playoff Predictor, with 10,000 simulations, the Rams are an underdog and given just a 43.8% chance of winning against the Vikings.