The West Coast Offense Comes to St. Louis Under Coordinator Shurmur

If he is anything like his uncle Fritz, former defensive coordinator on the Los Angeles Rams, Pat Shurmur will be an innovative offensive coordinator.

Fritz was the man behind the Rams' "eagle" defense from the late 1980s.  He also won a Superbowl as defensive coordinator under Mike Holmgren at Green Bay.

Pat also comes from that Green Bay Holmgren era by way of Andy Reid...who he coached under in Philadelphia.

So why is the Green Bay link so important?

The Packers' offense was based around the West Coast offense.  The offense which was used to great success by the San Francisco 49ers during their championship days under Bill Walsh.

The West Coast offense consists of using a series of small passes to progress the team up the field instead of sending wide receivers on long routes.  The focus of the offense from a receiver stand point is yards after the catch.

Reid, when he came to Philadelphia as a former quarterback coach, used this same style to build the team. 

Shurmur was installed as quarterback coach by Reid.  The Eagles, with Shurmur and quarterback Donovan McNabb, have been very successful implementing the offense even without great receivers.

If Shurmur believes in that style, as it appears he does by some of his comments, then the role of quarterback Mark Bulger changes dramatically.

Bulger is now positioned to throw more short passes, which have to be accurate. 

These kind of passes are much more his style as Bulger has proven to have a difficult time hitting receivers on long routes.

Shurmur's offense may also have a changing role for running back Stephen Jackson if it is successful.  If they can push the ball through the air, it will take some of the expected load off of him.

If Jackson is called on less to carry the play for the Rams, he may last longer as he has a tendency to breakdown under the workload. 

This changing of the Rams' offense with Shurmur at the helm will depend greatly on the ability of the Rams' receivers to make the tough catches.

If they can do this then the Rams may be able to play a possession game that moves the ball methodically up the field.  It would slow down the opposition and take pressure off of the defense.

Another key to this offense is the role of the offensive line in protecting for those key seconds while Bulger gets rid of the ball. 

Obviously.

One can argue that Shurmur is probably under as much pressure as head coach Steve Spagnuolo to get this system off the ground.  If the west coast offense can come to St. Louis and be successful, then both the quarterback and the defense will absolutely appreciate it.