Eagles DC on Sean McVay: 'He’s One Of The Top Play-Callers In The League'

The Rams coach has a well-known respect for Vic Fangio and that sentiment is reciprocal.
Jan 13, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay reacts against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half in an NFC wild card game at State Farm Stadium.
Jan 13, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay reacts against the Minnesota Vikings during the first half in an NFC wild card game at State Farm Stadium. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
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PHILADELPHIA - The Minnesota Vikings didn’t look like the 14-win team on the field Monday night at State Farm Stadium. 

Despite being displaced by the wildfires in Southern California, the suddenly imposing Los Angeles Rams dismantled the Vikings 27-9 in the final game of Wild Card Weekend Monday night. The prize for that is a visit to Lincoln Financial Field for the Divisional Round against the 15-3 Eagles.

The two teams met back on Nov. 24 with Philadelphia pulling away behind a monster game from Saquon Barkley, who ran for a franchise record 255 yards and an organizational best 302 yards from scrimmage.

Since that day, the Rams have won six of seven games with the only setback being in Week 18 against Seattle when Los Angeles rested its key contributors and started backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.

The concern for Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio begins with potential future Hall of Fame QB Matthew Stafford.

“His talent and his know-how,” Fangio said when asked by Eagles On SI what makes Stafford so difficult to deal with. “He’s still one of the top passers in the league. Very, very smart. Can read coverages better than most, if not one of the top two or three [in the league]. Still has tremendous arm talent. Can put the ball anywhere.”

The matchup between Fangio and Rams head coach and play-caller Sean McVay is one of mutual admiration.

McVay has labeled Fangio’s defensive scheme the most difficult to deal with and Fangio volleyed back Tuesday with McVay’s ability to tailor game plans for specific foes.

“These guys are very game plan-specific team,” Fangio said. “They’re going to have a mode of operation of the way they want to attack you, and we have to be ready for that.”

In the past Fangio has generally gotten the best of McVay but the veteran DC understands what a formidable task it is to deal with the Rams offense.

“He’s got a great offense that he’s got great command of and he’s a really good play-caller during the game,” Fangio said of McVay. “He can change gears on you at a moment’s notice and he’s one of the top play-callers in the league for sure without a doubt.”

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John McMullen
JOHN MCMULLEN

John McMullen is a veteran reporter who has covered the NFL for over two decades. The current NFL insider for JAKIB Media, John is the former NFL Editor for The Sports Network where his syndicated column was featured in over 200 outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He was also the national NFL columnist for Today's Pigskin as well as FanRag Sports. McMullen has covered the Eagles on a daily basis since 2016, first for ESPN South Jersey and now for Eagles Today on SI.com's FanNation. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube.com. John is also the host of his own show "Extending the Play" on AM1490 in South Jersey and part of 6ABC.com's live postgame show after every Eagles game. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen