Rams fire special-teams coordinator Chase Blackburn

For as good as the Rams have been this year, their special teams have struggled. Now, with two games left in the regular season, coach Sean McVay is making a change.

The Rams have fired special-teams coordinator Chase Blackburn, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

Blackburn, 42, played 10 seasons in the NFL, winning a pair of Super Bowls with the Giants. His coaching career began in 2016, with the Panthers. He was hired by the Rams in 2023.

On Thursday night, a 58-yard punt return touchdown by Seahawks receiver Rashid Shaheed in the fourth quarter sparked a 16-point comeback. Shaheed said after the game that the Seahawks had spotted a flaw in L.A.'s punt coverage.

We've been focused on that left return all week," Shaheed said. "We knew they had kind of a weak point with their special teams."

On Friday, Rams coach Sean McVay was asked generally to descibe what he saw on the game-changing punt return.

I saw a flat, low kick that was not at all intended for what we wanted," McVay said. "You give a guy like that an opportunity, that's where the momentum flipped."

In hindsight, that's where the switch flipped on McVay making a change as it relates to a critical aspect of any football team, especially in close games.