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All eyes were on Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley in Week 1. Was he healthy? How many touches would he get? How would he perform?
Well, Gurley looked just fine, carrying the ball 14 times for an efficient 97 yards.
Nothing crazy, but it was certainly an encouraging sign for a guy who was a virtual no-show in the NFC Championship Game and the Super Bowl due to knee issues last year.
Of course, Gurley had a full offseason off, so it remains to be seen how his body (namely his knee) holds up throughout the rest of the season, but he definitely got off to a decent start.
At the very least, Gurley looked loose and spry and didn't appear to be showing any ill effects of the knee injury he suffered in Week 15 of last season. He particularly looked good in the fourth quarter, when he racked up 64 yards on the ground.
Malcolm Brown also proved to be a very capable No. 2 back, carrying the ball 11 times for 53 yards and a couple of touchdowns.
This is the type of production I expect from both backs going forward.
Even if Gurley looked good this past Sunday, the Rams probably are not going to push him, so around 15 carries in Week 2 against the New Orleans Saints sounds about right.
Brown will probably end up with a similar amount of touches as Week 1. I'm not sure if the touchdown spread will look the same, with Brown getting two and Gurley not getting any, but the general strategy of almost splitting carries will likely remain.
Now, the catch this weekend is that the Saints actually have a really good run defense. They ranked second in the NFL in defending the run last season, and while Sheldon Rankins remains sidelined recovering from a torn Achilles, a good portion of their other pieces from 2018 remain.
I will say, however, that New Orleans did not do a very good job containing the Houston Texans' rushing attack in Week 1, as the Saints gave up 83 yards to Carlos Hyde, 57 yards to Duke Johnson and 40 yards to Deshaun Watson.
It seems safe to say that Gurley—when healthy, which he appears to be at the moment—is a better rusher than all of those names, so the Rams might throw caution to the wind and just pound the football with Gurley anyway.
Well, relatively speaking. They almost definitely won't be handing the pigskin off to Gurley 25 times, but if he ends up getting 15-20 carries, I would not be shocked.
Los Angeles does have a very explosive offense all around, with a solid quarterback in Jared Goff, a very good offensive line and three excellent receivers in Brandin Cooks, Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp.
The Rams can really hit you from all angles, so you never really know who is going to be the star of the show.
But, realistically speaking, Los Angeles will need to play a very good all-around offensive game to beat New Orleans, even if the game is in LA.
Look for the Rams to try and feed Gurley early to get him established and then to mix in his carries with Brown's throughout the contest.
Expect somewhat similar results to Week 1.
