Rams Make Surprising Special Teams Coordinator Hire

The Los Angeles Rams are not stopping as they shift their pursuits to next season

Jan 10, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay walks into the stadium before the NFC Wild Card Round game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

WOODLAND HILLS, Ca. The Los Angeles Rams are wasting no time looking towards the 2026 season, making their first coaching hire of the cycle.

Rams Hire Ventrone

According to NFL Insider Aaron Wilson, the Los Angeles Rams are hiring former Cleveland Browns Special Teams Coordinator Bubba Ventrone to usher their Special Teams into a new era.

Ventrone was ranked at the bottom of the league in DVOA over the past two seasons but has a history of solid Special Teams units when given the proper tools to succeed. During his time in Cleveland, his tenure was marred by various personnel issues, while his time in Indianapolis has been praised for their consistent play.

Sep 21, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns center Luke Wypler (56) hugs assistant head coach/special teams coach Bubba Ventrone after the Browns beat the Green Bay Packers at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

It's unclear at this time what the move means for interim Special Teams Coordinator Ben Kotwica and his assistant Matthew Harper.

What Does This Move Mean?

It's not exactly a needle mover but that's not Ventrone's fault. Ever since the departures of the core that defined the Rams' Special Teams during Sean McVay's early years, the Rams have struggled to find consistency with the unit.

At one point, when McVay retained Jeff Fisher's players/ Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel, the Rams had three Pro Bowlers and a premier coach. Slowly that started to go away. While the Rams did navigate the departures of Greg Zuerlein and Johnny Hekker well, and managed to do enough after Fassel's departure, there's also a reason why they brought Jake McQuaide back after all these years to be the team's long snapper.

November 9, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams long snapper Jake McQuaide (44) after the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Ventrone is coming into a franchise that already has key pieces in place, such as kicker Harrison Mevis, who only missed one kick during his rookie year, having had a perfect performance in the postseason, including the game-winning field goal in Chicago, and punter Ethan Evans, who is under contract for one more season.

The glaring issues are the same ones that affected Ventrone in Cleveland. A lack of investment into the players that are used on Special Teams led to a constant policy of retrofitting players into the units, leading to little consistency, causing glaring errors in the field of play.

The 2025 season was lost due to Special Teams. The Rams lost the number one seed and home-field advantage due to Special Teams, and the unit had a critical meltdown in every single playoff game this postseason.

Jan 4, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay reacts after a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

While Ventrone might be the first critical step to a fix, he is only the first in a series of moves needed to curtail this growing issue.

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