Rams Reportedly Fire Special Teams Coordinator After TNF Collapse vs. Seahawks

The Los Angeles Rams have reportedly fired special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The news comes two days after the Rams blew a 30-14 fourth-quarter lead en route to a 38-37 overtime defeat to the Seattle Seahawks, who took a full-game lead over Los Angeles for first place in the NFC West with the victory.

▶️ Full Rams-Seahawks Recap

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The Seahawks' comeback began midway through the fourth quarter, when Rashid Shaheed returned a punt 58 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 30-20.

Special teams assistant coach Ben Kotwica will take over the unit, according to Schefter, who added that this is the first in-season coaching change that McVay has made since taking over in 2017.

This hasn't been the best year for the Rams' special teams units.

In Week 3, the Rams lined up for a 44-yard field goal with three seconds left down 27-26 to the Philadelphia Eagles. Joshua Karty's kick was blocked and returned 61 yards for a Jordan Davis touchdown. Earlier in the quarter, Karty had a 36-yard field goal blocked as well.

EAGLES' BLOCKED FG TD SEALS WIN 🔥

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Two weeks later, Karty kicked short of the landing zone to begin overtime against the San Francisco 49ers. That gave the 49ers the ball on their 40-yard line. San Francisco ended the drive with a 41-yard field goal and stopped the Rams on downs to win 26-23.

In November, the Rams made big special teams changes, bringing up kicker Harrison Mevis and long snapper Jake McQuaide from the practice squad to replace Karty and Alex Ward. That happened after Karty missed an extra point and a 39-yard field goal in a 34-10 home win over the New Orleans Saints.

According to ESPN's Sarah Barshop, ""The Rams have been unsuccessful on five field goal attempts this season (2 blocked, 3 missed), which is tied for the second most in the NFL, according to ESPN Research. Their 67% field goal percentage is the worst in the league."

Mevis has been exceptional all year, making all 32 of his extra points and 8-of-9 field goals. His lone miss occurred against Seattle, when a 48-yard try sailed wide right with 2:11 left in regulation and the game tied at 30.

The 11-4 Rams have two regular season games remaining against the Atlanta Falcons on the road and the Arizona Cardinals at home. They have already clinched a playoff berth but still hold a chance to clinch the division and even get the NFC's top postseason seed.

As for Blackburn, the 42-year-old played 10 seasons in the NFL for the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers from 2005-2014, winning a pair of Super Bowls. The linebacker was known well for his efforts on special teams but still saw time on defense and ultimately amassed 372 tackles.

His most notable play occurred for New York in Super Bowl XLVI, when he had one-on-one coverage with New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski deep downfield and intercepted quarterback Tom Brady in the fourth quarter. The Giants, who were down 17-15 at the time, won 21-17.

Blackburn became a coach after his playing days, first serving as the Panthers' assistant special teams coach (2016-2017) before being promoted to special teams coordinator (2018-2021). He then became the Tennessee Titans' assistant special teams coach in 2022 before becoming the Rams' special teams coordinator in 2023.