Sean McVay was unable to guide the Los Angeles Rams to the Super Bowl this past season, as plenty of fans took issue with some of the decisions he made in the team's 31-27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship. However, his superb reputation remains intact as far as active players are concerned. The Super Bowl 56 champion received an A+ grade in the annual NFL Players Association report cards, per The Athletic's Dianna Russini.
McVay joins Dan Quinn of the Washington Commanders as the only head coaches to get perfect marks. Aaron Glenn was awarded an A despite the New York Jets' awful campaign, while Jim Harbaugh got slapped with a C+ after leading the Los Angeles Chargers and their injury-decimated offensive line to the playoffs, so people may not want to put too much stock in these assessments.
That being said, McVay's body of work and offensive ingenuity obviously resonate deeply with the rest of the league. Although it can be unwise to pinpoint one play in a high-stakes football game, it is possible the 40-year-old was a muffed punt away from advancing to his third Super Bowl. He still has accomplished a ton in his career even without finishing the job last season.
Sean McVay has built the Rams into a champion/perennial force
McVay developed Jared Goff into a Pro Bowl quarterback and immediately breathed new life into the Rams' offense after arriving in 2017. He led the franchise to the big game in his second season and ultimately reached the summit with Matthew Stafford at QB during the 2021-22 campaign.
The former Coach of the Year is 92-57 with LA, posting a losing record just once in the last nine seasons.
The Rams have made the playoffs in seven separate campaigns under McVay's leadership, and on those occasions, they have won at least one playoff game five times. His squad is consistently a factor in the NFL postseason, and other players take notice of that fact.
Los Angeles led the league in points, total yards and passing yards during what was an MVP campaign for Stafford, and it also ranked 10th in points allowed in 2025-26. If Sean McVay can fix the Rams' poor special teams unit, they could find themselves on the cusp of another championship.
But one ring is enough to earn him widespread recognition as a first-rate HC in the modern game.
