Brandon Staley’s true impact on the 2020 LA Rams defense, which ranked first in the league in many notable categories, will only ever have a theoretical answer. Even if the Rams defense somehow tanked next season, we wouldn’t know how much of that had to do with the defensive coordinator. And even if Staley orchestrated a dramatic improvement over Wade Phillips’ best season at the helm, Phillips barely got to work with Jalen Ramsey.
But Staley’s ascent from a defensive coordinator at John Carroll in 2016 to the head coach of the LA Chargers in 2021 didn’t happen by accident.