While some may have questioned how LA Rams DC Raheem Morris landed the head coaching job for the Atlanta Falcons football team, others expressed no shock or surprise whatsoever. One of the main reasons for that foregone conclusion is the fact that Morris had unrestricted access to the LA Rams offensive strategy.
As is the expectation of all head coach candidates, Morris was pre-armed with a projected coaching staff that certainly included many names from the Rams coaching staff. Of course, perhaps the most important name on his coaching staff was his expected offensive coordinator. For that pivotal role, he tapped the former Rams QB coach/Passing Game Coordinator Zac Robinson to lead the Atlanta Falcons offense.
Robinson was a member of the Rams coaching staff for five years, rising from assistant quarterbacks coach in 2019 to QB coach/Passing Game Coordinator in 2022 and 2023. As such, he has plenty of first-hand experience at the planning, strategy, and objectives of the Rams offensive play book. And as is often the case, look for many of those offensive tactics to find their way into the Falcons’ offensive playbook this season.
Keep in mind that the Falcons are not the first team to attempt a clip and graft of offensive coaches from the Rams into their own coaching staff. The Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions, Cincinnati Bengals, and even the Green Bay Packers have all attempted to bolster their offense be syphoning some offensive concepts from the Rams offensive playbook.
The question is, how can the Rams original offense continue to compete as coaches and plays are cloned into other NFL team playbooks? There are three methods that the Rams can employ to stay ahead of the curve in terms of their innovative offensive concepts and plays. They are:
III: Keep innovating new plays
Of course, the first strategy to remaining in front in terms of introducing new and effective offensive plays is to keep on introducting new and effective offensive plays. While that may seem like common sense, it’s actually quite profound. Nobody can ‘catch up,’ until the offensive pauses to rest. Then, as the team continues to repeat the same strategy and plays, other offenses can close the gap or ever surpass the team. The best prevention is to continue to introduce new plays.
II: Add more talented players
One of the unspoken advantages of authoring the playbook that other teams clone is knowing the exact profile of players who will excel in that offensive system. It’s simply a matter of trial and error, and the original offense simply has more time, trial and errors under the belt. That may seem like a minor advantage, but it can be significant over free agency and an NFL Draft as the Rams come closer to landing the ideal fits.
I: Do better than the rest
While other teams may clone parts of the Rams playbook, they are unable to take the Rams players who make the thing work. It’s that devotion to their craft, their familiarity with the playbook, and their passion for the game that ultimately moves the chains and puts points up on the scoreboard. As long as the front office continues to load up on talented and passionate players, this team will continue to be the masters of the offense that so many hope to replicate.
