Rams Sean McVay Admits Unprecedented Adversity: 'No Question'

Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay is a bit unfamiliar with the position his team is in after Sunday's gut-punch loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay, known in the NFL as an offensive mastermind, once saw his team score just three points in the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots and legendary quarterback Tom Brady.

McVay and the Rams lost 16-13 to Brady once again on Sunday, though this time, the seven-time champion broke LA's hearts as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He led a game-winning drive with under a minute left that saw the 45-year-old connect with rookie tight end Cade Otton for the go-ahead one-yard touchdown with nine seconds left.

But in McVay's mind, that 13-3 Super Bowl loss in 2019 doesn't compare to the adversity he and the Rams have been through this season, which swelled significantly Sunday. 

“There's no question," McVay said Monday on if this is the most adversity he's faced. "There's been a bunch of different adverse moments, different things that you go through. Whether it's losing a Super Bowl in a very humbling fashion or having the three-game skid that we had before. ... This is what you sign up for.”

Since McVay was hired as LA's head coach he's been nothing if not successful. He's accumulated a 58-31 record in the regular season, a 7-3 postseason record and is coming of a win in Super Bowl LVI over the Cincinnati Bengals.

With a 3-5 record headed into Sunday's matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, the Rams are a long way from contending for the postseason again, let alone being in the conversation as Super Bowl contenders.

But McVay, as always, is remaining optimistic.

"Part of life is handling adversity and dealing with the different circumstances and situations," he said. "What I'm interested in is, ‘Hey, let's continue to figure out how do we improve? How do we address these things? ... And that's where we're at, but you got to be able to move forward."

LA's loss Sunday -- and the way it happened --  could be looked at as a blessing in disguise in the coming weeks if the Rams are able to spark a turnaround. Any more sliding down the standings could all but end LA's hopes of making it back to the playoffs in what would be considered a lost season.

And things only get tougher, as the Rams have upcoming meetings with the Kansas City Chiefs (6-2) in Week 12 and Seattle Seahawks (6-3) in Week 13

But tough pill and all, McVay knows his team has no choice but to move forward before it's too late.

"It's a tough pill to swallow the way that we lost yesterday," McVay said. "The only thing that does feel better is when you close the book on the Bucs game and then you shift your focus towards trying to have a good week of preparation and ultimately trying to lead to a good performance."

The Rams and Cardinals (3-6) kickoff at 1:05 p.m. PT on Sunday from SoFi Stadium.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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