McVay: 2023 Rams 'helped me find my way again'

A year ago, Sean McVay was unsure if he would remain the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams. Following Sunday's 24-23 loss to the Detroit Lions in the wild-card round, McVay was appreciative of the club's remarkable turnaround.

"I'm so proud of this football team," McVay said postgame, according to ESPN's Sarah Barshop. "And the finality of it ... doesn't totally resonate. But man, did I learn a lot and really appreciate this group.

"They helped me find my way again and how much I love this and love the people that I'm around," he added.

McVay considered walking away from his role last offseason after the Rams went 5-12. The franchise revamped the roster by parting ways with some of its veterans in favor of a youth movement save for core pieces such as Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, and Cooper Kupp.

Following their worst campaign since McVay took over in 2017, the Rams entered the 2023 season with projections of missing the playoffs again. But after a 3-6 start to their campaign and despite injuries to several starters, including Kyren Williams and Stafford, the Rams racked up seven wins in their final eight games to clinch the NFC's No. 6 spot.

L.A. finished in the league's top 10 averaging 23.8 points and 359.3 total yards per game after finishing toward the bottom of each category in 2022.

"Nobody gave us a chance to even be sniffing where we are right now, and (we) gave a really good football team a run for their money," Stafford said. The star QB described 2023 as "a fun year" while also saying he plans to return for a 16th season in 2024.

"I think the further that you get away from the raw emotions of it, the more appreciation they'll have for what they did," McVay said. "And I think there's a lot of things that we can build on, but you got to do it. And this group is an example of it."

The Rams will enter the offseason looking to build around a young nucleus that includes Puka Nacua, whose 181 yards on nine receptions Sunday set a rookie record for most receiving yards in a postseason game.