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Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay talks during the...

Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay talks during the Rams news conference on Feb. 11, 2022. Credit: ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutters/ETIENNE LAURENT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The Super Bowl is the career pinnacle of any player or coach.

But even as he prepared to appear in his second one on Sunday, Rams coach Sean McVay was pondering other significant elements in his life.

McVay became the youngest coach to win the Lombardi Trophy as the Rams beat the Bengals, 23-20. But at age 36 — and still the youngest head coach in the NFL despite completing five full seasons with that title — he hinted last week that he likely will not be an NFL lifer.

McVay could follow a path taken by some other wunderkind coaches, including the late John Madden and Jon Gruden, parlaying early on-field success into the less stressful and demanding world of broadcasting.

"I know I love football and I’m so invested in this thing, and I’m in the moment right now," McVay said. "But at some point, too, if you said, ‘What do you want to be able to do?’ I want to be able to have a family, and I want to be able to spend time with them, and I also know how much time is taken away during these months of the year."

The introspective answers were sparked when McVay was asked if he can see himself coaching into his 60s or 70s the way Pete Carroll and Bill Belichick are. McVay said he "won’t make it" that long.

McVay is the grandson of former Giants head coach and 49ers executive John McVay. Sean’s father, Tim, didn’t go into football partly because he wanted to have time with his family that John McVay never had. That example looms large in Sean’s mind, because he believes his father could have been "an unbelievable coach" and leader.

"One of the things that prevented him from getting into coaching was, ‘Man, I had such a great relationship, but my dad missed out on a lot of the things,’ " Sean McVay said. "And he didn’t want to do that with me and my little brother. I always remembered that."

McVay gave no indication that any sort of decision on his future is imminent, but he is due to get married this offseason after postponing the event for nearly two years because of the pandemic.

His fiancée, Veronika Khomyn, has been part of his life during his stints as an assistant and head coach in the NFL, so her eyes are open to the stresses such a career can put on outside relationships. Were they to add a third member of their family, though, that would change the dynamic quite a bit.

"I want to have a family, and I think [it’s important] being able to find that balance but also be able to give the time necessary," McVay said. "I have always had a dream about being able to be a father."

When that does happen, it may mean an abrupt end to one of the most successful under-40 coaching careers in NFL history.

Or maybe it won’t.

"You’ll probably be talking to me when I’m 61 doing this stuff," he said. "I can’t predict the future, you know?"

On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Patchogue-Medford pitcher Jayden Stroman, plus Long Island's top football scholar-athletes are honored. Credit: John Paraskevas

SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Interview with Pat-Med's Jayden Stroman On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Patchogue-Medford pitcher Jayden Stroman, plus Long Island's top football scholar-athletes are honored.

On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Patchogue-Medford pitcher Jayden Stroman, plus Long Island's top football scholar-athletes are honored. Credit: John Paraskevas

SARRA SOUNDS OFF: Interview with Pat-Med's Jayden Stroman On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," an interview with Patchogue-Medford pitcher Jayden Stroman, plus Long Island's top football scholar-athletes are honored.

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