Rams reportedly could rest Todd Gurley again

[T-REX]

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/...ley-again-for-regular-season-finale-vs-49ers/

Rams reportedly could rest Todd Gurley again for regular-season finale vs. 49ers

• By Jared Dubin
• 1h ago • 1 min read

The Los Angeles Rams are going to the playoffs. That much is for certain. They are incredibly likely to have a first-round bye, as all they need to do is either defeat the division rival 49ers or have the Bears lose or tie against the Vikings in order to secure the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

So perhaps it is not surprising that the Rams are considering holding star running back Todd Gurley out of his second-consecutive game. Gurley missed last week's win over the Cardinals with a knee injury, and according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Rams are thinking about holding him out again, even though they thought he might've been healthy enough to play in Week 16.

"They thought he was healthy enough to go [against the Cardinals], but they were extremely cautious," Rapoport said. "Of course, nothing is more important than the playoffs and I'm told they could take the same approach this week, so he may, in fact, sit out as well."

If Gurley sits, that'll give him nearly a month of rest between the last time he played and the Rams' first playoff game, assuming they secure the No. 2 seed and a bye. He had been bothered by the knee injury prior to sitting out Week 16, so it's something he's been dealing with for a while now. Getting a long rest like that could allow him to be completely refreshed for an important playoff run.

With Gurley out, the Rams turned to recent free-agent signing C.J. Anderson as well as rookie John Kelly to carry the load on the ground. Anderson had a monster game with 20 carries for 167 yards and a score, and would presumably act as the lead back once again if Gurley sits the regular season finale.

 

[-X-]

Might as well.

 

[RamWoodie]

This is a wise move...and I like it because CJ gets another game that him more reps with the offense.

 

[dang]

So he has been dealing with this injury for a while. I had noted before that it looked like his lateral movement was somewhat limited since the Chiefs game. Unless he is close to 100% I believe he will be rested in week 17.

 

[IBruce80]

The main thing is that Gurley is in his best shape come playoffs.
If Gurley sits out then both Anderson and Kelly get valuable playing time before the playoffs.
Still a lot to play for in this last game, but trust must be high with Anderson.

 

[RamsFanCK]

Yeah, just sit him. No way any of us want him to aggravate the injury and miss the playoffs.

 

[Selassie I]

Not a surprise at all.

I'd be more surprised if he played this week... especially after seeing our new bowling ball RB rip of hella runs last Sunday.

 

[snackdaddy]

Yes, they are going to be much more of a challenge than the Cards were. 49ers are 12th in rushing yards and 8th in yards per carry. Their pass defense isn't as good but they've been getting better there. They do play better at home so we have that going for us. But like you said, this game is not a gimme like the last one.

 

[Ellard80]

Ian Rapoport =

 

[Mojo Ram]

I think if you break it down though with the eye test, they're both poor teams obviously, and Arizona's defense looks alot worse than it is due to having to support a historically bad offense. Rams fans know how that works.

My point is that SF's defense sucks too. They are no better than Arizona's D except possibly better in run D. Which glares statistically because SF's middle of the road offense can at least hold the ball and get 1st downs. That Cards defense has been on the field all season long and it shows in their awful run D.
TOP 26:15
Dead last and frighteningly low.


2 of AZ's 3 wins have come against SF this year. Both teams are terrible and the Rams have nothing to be scared of facing that D. If anything the Rams D needs to come prepared.

edited

 

[yrba1]

Don't mind seeing Gurley rest again. Anderson, Kelly, and our passing game needs reps to prep for playoff football. Gurley's legs will be fresh getting a whole month's worth of rest.

 

[Ram65]

Under the circumstances resting Gurley is the prudent thing to do. I don't see the Rams taking the Whiners lightly. They will be up for the game as will the Rams. I like to see those quick moves by Kelly after Anderson plows through the Whiners defense.

 

[Merlin]

Yeah whiners are pretty stout up front on defense. Rams just need to take care of business though and this should be a win. Anderson should be able to carry the load here and Goff has to avoid turning into a football dispenser and we be good.

 

[Loyal]

Not enough context there, chief. Bears are not the same team outside of Soldier Field. Lets see what the Niners do in January at Soldiers Field....we won't of course, because they BLOW.

If we can't beat the Niners with Anderson in LA, then we suck.

 

[Loyal]

McVay's first instinct is to rest the whole team if he could, except last year happened in the Wild Card round. If Anderson does what he did in practice as he did last week, again, McVay will revert to that instinct and rest Todd Gurley, Meanwhile all the yappers will talk with fake fear that the Rams will seriously be underdogs in the playoffs, because we're hiding how bad off Gurley is...lol..Resist the pressure, Sean!

 

[jrry32]

I'm fine with sitting Todd. He won't get rusty. CJA and Kelly can handle the workload.

 

[I like Rams]

I personally would love to see another Anderson/Kelly show.

 

[NJRamsFan]

Honestly I want to see if C.J. Anderson is the real deal (big ups to our run blocking) or the Cardinals run D is just THAT bad. Because to the eye test Anderson looked like a stud last week...and yes I know Todd Gurley is Todd Gurley and hard to take off the field ever but we could enter the playoffs with a 2 headed monster.

Anderson has Been a 1,000 yd rusher in this league so we know he’s not some fluke...there’s always certain players that end up in weird circumstances and get overlooked and aren’t valued as high as their talent level would dictate, and I think he’s one.

 

[jrry32]

Yes, they are going to be much more of a challenge than the Cards were. 49ers are 12th in rushing yards and 8th in yards per carry. Their pass defense isn't as good but they've been getting better there. They do play better at home so we have that going for us. But like you said, this game is not a gimme like the last one.

It's worth pointing out that the 49ers have lost all of their starters in the secondary outside of Richard Sherman (Colbert, Tartt, Ward, and Witherspoon). They are stout up front, but we handled them well enough the last time we played them (Gurley and Brown combined for 128 yards on 28 carries).