THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Everything about the Los Angeles Rams‘ offense looked better Sunday, in their first game under Sean McVay. Except the running game. Except Todd Gurley, who picked up only 40 rushing yards on 19 carries. Normally, amid an electrifying blowout victory to open a season, something like that wouldn’t really matter all that much.
But 2016 happened.
Gurley was one of the NFL’s least productive runners in his second season, which came on the heels of being named the 2015 Offensive Rookie of the Year. And those hopeful of a Gurley turnaround didn’t get that against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1, triggering concerns about whether his head-scratching struggles will drag into 2017. The Rams seem to believe defenses are still gearing up to stop Gurley and daring second-year quarterback Jared Goff to beat them through the air.
If Goff continues to perform like he did Sunday — 21-of-29 for 306 yards and zero turnovers — they think more running lanes will open up for Gurley.
“I think definitely they’re going to try to challenge us and make us show that we can do it through the air,” offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur said as the Rams prepared to host the Washington Redskins in Week 2. “But to their credit, they had some big stop guys inside. It’s never an excuse, but any time you have a couple plays called back, it’s always going to kind of set you back in that area.”
With less than four minutes left in the first quarter, Gurley sprinted up the right side and picked up 14 yards. But the play was called back on a hold by right tackle Rob Havenstein, who wasn’t even involved in the play. Early in the fourth quarter, Gurley reversed his field, found an opening down the left sideline and picked up 12 yards, but tight end Tyler Higbee was called for a hold. If those penalties don’t take place, Gurley rushes for 66 yards on 21 carries, which looks a little bit better.
Still, not great.
“We’ve just got to be more physical, whether me, just everybody,” Gurley said. “We’ve just all got to do our job and just go out there and execute. At the end of the day, I’ve got to win my one-on-ones, receivers got to win their one-on-ones, linemen got to win their one-on-ones, tight ends got to win their one-on-ones.”
Gurley averaged only 0.84 yards before first contact, ranked 37th among 41 running backs in Week 1. It’s a sign defenses were getting to him quickly. But ESPN Stats & Information says Gurley faced eight or more defenders in the box on only two of his carries, and that 12 others throughout the league — including Gurley’s backup, Malcolm Brown — faced more in their season openers. The offensive line also appeared to have a good day, at least with regard to pass-blocking.
On film, though, it didn’t seem as though the holes were there. Not for long, at least.
“It’s hard to run in there,” Rams left guard Rodger Saffold said, adding that the Colts were operating mostly out of eight-man boxes. “And plus, it’s still Week 1. We still have to get a feel for everything. It’s a new team, a new line, a new organization. So we have to all kind of get into the groove of things.”
Gurley gained only 885 rushing yards last season, the fewest ever for someone with at least 275 carries. But he made up for it somewhat through the air, while catching 43 passes for 327 yards. He did that Sunday, too, with five grabs — a lot of them screens — for 56 yards. He likes doing that.
“It’s always better when you can avoid one or two guys instead of 11 guys,” Gurley said, laughing. “It definitely doesn’t get much better than that.”