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On Thursday, the Los Angeles Rams released running back Todd Gurley. Now, if you told anyone back in 2018 that the Rams would ultimately be releasing Gurley in March 2020, they would have looked at you like you had three heads. But here we are, and it happened.
Gurley did not remain unemployed for long, as the Atlanta Falcons signed him to a one-year deal on Friday morning.
But how did the Falcons do here?
Let me get started by saying this: this is not the same Gurley from a couple of years ago. If it were, Los Angeles would have never cut him to begin with.
Think about that for a second: the Rams couldn't even find a trade for Todd Gurley, who, not too long ago, was considered by many to be the best halfback in the NFL.
Gurley's downfall began in Week 15 of 2018, when he suffered a knee injury and missed the final two games of the regular season. He returned with a vengeance in the Divisional Round that year, rushing for 115 yards and a couple of touchdowns in a win over the Dallas Cowboys, but Gurley was then a virtual no-show in both the NFC Championship Game and the Super Bowl, leading people to believe that his knee was hurt more than he and the Rams were letting on.
The 25-year-old tried to downplay his knee issue last offseason, but the scary part was he never denied that it could be a chronic thing. He merely brushed off the assertion and didn't want to talk about it.
Well, in 2019, Todd Gurley rushed for just 857 yards while averaging a meager 3.8 yards per carry. He also logged just 31 catches for 207 yards.
Clearly, the knee was still a problem, and with Gurley's four-year, $57 million contract extension getting set to kick in next season, LA decided it was time to part ways with him and save some of that money.
Atlanta cut its own injury-plagued running back, Devonta Freeman, earlier this week, so essentially, they are swapping one damaged back for another.
Now, Gurley is two-and-a-half years younger, so there is certainly more hope for him to turn things around than there is for Freeman at this point, but I'm not exactly sure what this will do for the Falcons.
To be fair, this is a very low-risk, potentially high-reward move for Atlanta, because it's only for one year. The Falcons didn't give Gurley a multi-year deal, and they won't be paying him big money.
So, if it doesn't work out, Atlanta can simply cut ties with Todd Gurley and explore other avenues.
The Falcons stunk in 2019, and they didn't have a ton of cap room to work with to improve this offseason, so in a way, this is a solid move for the club.
Again, best-case scenario, Todd Gurley rediscovers at least some of his old for and elevates Atlanta's offense. Worst case? He has a similar year to last season or gets injured and misses an extensive period of time.
I'll go ahead and give the Falcons a B-plus for this move, all things considered. There is little to no risk involved, and if Gurley's knee is feeling better in 2020, they could potentially hit a home run.
