The news cycle surrounding the Los Angeles Rams and quarterback Matthew Stafford continues to pick up daily, with little concrete information being provided as the situation continues to unfold.
With little information, speculation will naturally run rampant. One such train of thought is the Rams’ hypothetically being interested in bringing aboard Aaron Rodgers to succeed Matthew Stafford.
The Rams incidentally added fuel to that fire today with the announcement of their coaching staff for the 2025 football season.
In their announcement, Los Angeles announced the addition of Alex Van Pelt as a senior offensive assistant. Van Pelt was the offensive coordinator of the New England Patriots last season and the Cleveland Browns before that. Beforehand, however, he was part of the Green Bay Packers’ coaching staff.
His time overlapped with Aaron Rodgers’s in Green Bay, and he and Rodgers developed a strong rapport with each other. In fact, Rodgers publically vented about Mike McCarthy’s decision to let Van Pelt walk.
“My quarterback coach didn’t get retained. I thought that was an interesting change, really without consulting me. There’s a close connection between quarterback and quarterback coach. And that was an interesting decision.”
Now, it’s important to note that Rodgers didn’t follow Van Pelt to any other situation, and teams that have hired coaches that appealed to Rodgers have failed each time, either in luring him (Denver with Nathaniel Hackett) or failed in general (New York Jets…also with Nathaniel Hackett).
Van Pelt doesn’t hold a significant role with the Rams as just a senior offensive assistant. His duties will likely involve helping run practice and calling the scout team, as well as some minor responsibilities in game-planning. Is that enough of a tie to call it a link to Rodgers?
Of course, the Rams could have hired Van Pelt because he was a successful coach with plenty of ties to McVay’s offense and has experience coordinating for several years. But where’s the fun in that?
