At one point, Sean McVay was ready to walk away from football.
After leading the Los Angeles Rams to a Super Bowl title in 2021, McVay hit a breaking point during the disastrous 5-12 season that followed in 2022. The losses piled up, burnout consumed him, and for the first time in his coaching career, the NFL’s youngest Super Bowl-winning head coach seriously considered retirement.
“But it took that 5-12 year where you’re really getting broken down,” McVay admitted recently on the Bussin’ With The Boys podcast. “I almost quit coaching.”
McVay revealed he was counting down the days until the season ended, calling himself “a fraud” for his lack of perseverance through the first losing season he had endured during his young head coaching career. Although massive broadcasting opportunities were waiting for him, McVay admitted those offers would have simply masked the real reason he wanted out.
“The reality is, I would have been quitting because I couldn’t handle the losing. It was almost like a scarlet letter,” he said.
A major turning point came during a conversation with his wife, Veronika McVay, whom he married in 2022 after the Rams’ Super Bowl run. As McVay explained why stepping away made sense, Veronika delivered the line that changed everything.
“She’s like, ‘You know, that never really sounded like the kind of leader you wanted to be,’” McVay said. “Boom. It hit me like a ton of bricks.”
That moment forced McVay to rethink not just coaching, but the example he wanted to set for his growing family. The couple welcomed their first son, Jordan, in 2023, and their second son, Christian, in 2025.
“I’ll never be able to look at my little boy when he grows up and goes through adversity and say, ‘Do as I say, not as I did,’” McVay said.
Since then, McVay has embraced a healthier perspective on coaching, crediting former coach Chris Petersen for helping him rediscover joy in the profession. Now, after signing a contract extension and leading another Rams resurgence, McVay says the idea of leaving coaching “feels so laughable.”
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