WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – Nine years ago, the Rams gave pass game coordinator/assistant head coach Aubrey Pleasant his first NFL position coach opportunity in the NFL, when head coach Sean McVay hired him as Los Angeles' cornerbacks coach.
This week, Pleasant has earned a second opportunity to serve as acting head coach, doing so for this Saturday's preseason game against the Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
"No question (it's helped me with the bigger picture of what it would be like to run a team)," Pleasant said after Tuesday's practice. "You can only imagine what it's like to actually go through this process, but to actually get the due diligence to be able to go through it. In life, you're provided platforms and you're provided opportunities, and I couldn't be more thankful to be able to do this with a team that gave me my first opportunity as a position coach, which is now giving me my (second) opportunity in a head coaching role."
Pleasant checks many boxes that align with the role, between the relationships built and trust earned across the team, his communication skills, and his overall energy and presence, among others. Those attributes played a big part in him earning it the first time last year, when the Rams also played the Chargers in the preseason, as well as adding assistant head coach to his title. (The genuine reaction in the team meeting when that promotion got announced only further reinforced the strength of those authentic, team-wide connections).
"He's earned the right of assistant head coach because of the influence and the positive effect that he has on everyone in this building," McVay said in August 2024.
Getting another chance to go through the associated mechanics, from meeting with officials to communicating with both sides of the ball and more, is invaluable for Pleasant. Having an "All-22" approach will allow him impact both sides of the ball.
"I've always kind of done that since I've been here, but I think now being assistant head coach and able to actually get in deep and develop the relationships with a lot of the younger players, as well as the veterans," Pleasant said. "Sometimes you see me in practice roaming around, I thank coach (McVay) all the time for the opportunity to be able to do that, and he says it's been earned, which I'm very, very thankful for. But anytime you can see the game from offense and defense, and then my role is to try to be more involved in special teams as well, because I know when sitting in that role, everyone's looking at you to lead in the best manner possible."
That roaming ability has included standing on the offensive sideline at times during practice, which Pleasant said is meant to accomplish two key things: Evaluating the eye discipline and progression of defensive players, and building relationships on the opposite side of the ball.
"One, defensively, a lot of times when you go with a reverse approach, you can actually see the eyes of the defensive players," Pleasant explained. "And sometimes, when maybe they're not learning at a certain rate or executing at a certain rate, as a teacher, it's up to you to figure out why. And sometimes, when you stand behind the offense, you can actually see the eye discipline in the progression of the players, which allows me to be a little bit more impactful in my coaching progression. And then, on the flip side, offensively, I think it's allowing me to take the relationships that I really spend time with off the field to really grow on the field. I think anytime you see a defensive coach celebrating with an offensive player, it just really, really over-emphasizes the approach of we here at the Los Angeles Rams."
Pleasant remains where his feet are planted, first and foremost, focused on being present in his current role and the best version of himself for the Rams. However, he's also not naïve and knows how valuable these types of opportunities are, especially as it pertains to larger career aspirations.
"I'm a big believer that when preparation and opportunity meet, they take care of themselves, and sometimes that equals to be luck," Pleasant said. "I've prepared for this moment for quite some time. I'm very thankful again for the opportunity. Coach Sean knows that my end goal is one day to be at this podium like himself. So when you have that perspective, and you know what you want to do, and you know how to do it, then it allows you to do your role. I think sometimes opportunities like this catch people off guard, they try to do too much instead of being themselves, and this organization has allowed me to have the opportunity to be my best self, to represent this organization as best as I could, and hopefully come out (of) this thing with a great 'W' for our fanbase."
