Rams add new special teams, running backs coaches

Rams add to staff with new special teams, running backs coaches

John Bonamego, a former head coach for Central Michigan, has been hired by the Rams to be their special teams coach.

Staff Writer

Feb. 10, 2020 5:46 PM PT

Sean McVay’s revamped Rams coaching staff is all but complete.

McVay hired John Bonamego as special teams coordinator, the team announced Monday, and Thomas Brown will join the staff as running backs coach, a person with knowledge of the situation said.

Bonamego, 56, replaces John Fassel, who left the Rams after last season to join the Dallas Cowboys staff. Brown replaces Skip Peete, who was not retained by McVay after the Rams’ 9-7 finish. He also joined the Cowboys.

Bonamego, new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley and new offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell will be introduced at a news conference Wednesday. Staley’s and O’Connell’s hirings, known for weeks, also were announced Monday.

Staley, 37, replaces Wade Phillips, who like Fassel and Peete was a member of McVay’s initial staff in 2017. Staley was outside linebackers coach for the Chicago Bears and Denver Broncos the last three seasons.

O’Connell, 34, was the Washington Redskins offensive coordinator last season. McVay calls plays for the Rams, so O’Connell’s will be a non-play-calling role similar to the one Matt LaFleur held in 2017.

Bonamego coached for the Detroit Lions in 2019 but was fired along with several other assistants after the season. He also has worked as special teams coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins. Bonamego was head coach at Central Michigan from 2015 to 2018.

Brown, 33, coached running backs last season at South Carolina. His new job with the Rams will be his first in the NFL. Brown was offensive coordinator at the University of Miami in 2016-2018 and also has coached running backs at Georgia, Wisconsin, Marshall and Tennessee-Chattanooga.

McVay is expected to fill a few lower-level assistant positions before offseason workouts begin in April.