When team president John Shaw assured that Scott Linehan would return as the Rams’ head coach, it became a foregone conclusion that some assistant coaches would be jettisoned. That’s just how it works in the NFL after a lousy season.

And so it’s begun, with the firing of offensive line coach Paul Boudreau and the removal of Greg Olson as offensive coordinator. Olson could be reassigned on Linehan’s staff, but why would Olson want that? He’s been given the OK to talk with other teams, and it seems a good bet that he’ll find another job elsewhere.

Linehan rolled the dice a bit with Olson, who hadn’t been a coordinator previously. But it seemed like a logical move at the time, because Linehan was a former OC and would be running the offense anyway. That was before he learned just how demanding the duties of a head coach are.

So now he apparently is looking for a stronger presence in that role, a la Jim Haslett on defense. The names that have come up initially as potential candidates include ex-Dolphins head coach Cam Cameron and former Raiders head coach Bill Callahan. Both have impressive pedigrees as OCs.

Here’s a fun fact: Cameron and Callahan have the same agent, Gary O’Hagan. That could be interesting.

Could Al Saunders be in the mix, too, in the wake of Joe Gibbs’ resignation in Washington? Saunders, the Redskins’ OC, has a solid history with the Rams.

One thing we know for sure: Mike Martz won’t be returning; he was hired by the 49ers on Tuesday as their OC. Not that Martz had any chance of rejoining the Rams as long as Shaw was in charge anyway.

Candidates to succeed Boudreau could include Hudson Houck, most recently of the Dolphins; Drake head coach Steve Loney, a longtime Linehan friend and confidant; Mike Solari, recently out in KC; and Jim Chaney, the Rams’ assistant OL coach the last two years.

More staff changes probably are coming, but nothing further is expected this week. Stay tuned.

All for now. . .