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http://www.todayspigskin.com/nfc-to...n-not-todd-gurley-might-nfls-next-great-back/
Here is the article:
"There is no denying the promise of Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley, the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2015.
He’s big (6-1, 226), he’s fast and he’s powerful, and you have to figure his 1,100-yard debut season is just the tip of the iceberg, coming as it did on only 229 carries in 13 games (12 starts).
But for those who want to anoint Gurley as the heir to Adrian Peterson’s throne as the NFL’s next great running back, you might want to slow down, because there is plenty of evidence that Gurley might not even be the next best running back in the NFC West. That title might very well fall to Arizona’s David Johnson.
Drafted in the third round out of Northern Iowa, Johnson didn’t arrive with the fanfare of first-rounder Gurley. But the Cardinals liked what they saw from the start and they weren’t afraid to throw out some incredibly high expectations.
“He reminds me a lot of Matt Forte,” Cardinals running backs coach Stump Mitchell said last May. “You can put him outside and use him as a receiver and he’s a good runner.”
At first blush the Forte comparison seemed ridiculous, especially since it came before Johnson had played a down in the NFL. Yes, Johnson (6-1, 224) is similar in size to Forte (6-1, 221), but could he really be as versatile and effective as the Chicago Bears veteran?
The early evidence shows that when given the opportunity, yes he can.
Unlike the Rams with Gurley, the Cardinals took their time bringing Johnson along. Even then, he was dynamic pretty much every time he touched the ball. Johnson scored twice on his first three NFL touches – across two games – one on a 55-yard catch against the Saints, the other on a 108-yard kickoff return against the Bears.
Even then the Cardinals gave their starts to Andre Ellington and Chris Johnson, and David Johnson never had more than eight carries in the first 11 weeks of the season. It wasn’t until Week 12 that Johnson got his first start, a job he held the rest of the way, gaining a league-best 131.7 yards per game from scrimmage during that time.
Included in that stretch was a 187-yard, three-TD domination of the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 14, and a 99-yard outing against Gurley’s Rams in Week 12, a 27-3 Cardinals victory. He ended up gaining 581 yards on the ground (4.6 yards per carry) and another 457 through the air on 36 catches.
The combination of size, speed, power and receiving ability led one Cardinals official to compare Johnson to the great Franco Harris, and general manager Steve Keim called Johnson’s potential “scary.”
“The way he catches the ball out of the backfield and the weapon he is as a receiver, I think he could end up being one of the better all-around backs in the NFL when you look at being a complete player,” Keim said. “A guy that’s not subbed for in third-down situations, a guy that can play every snap and can be such a weapon in every phase of the game.”
Whether or not Johnson continues to develop into the best in the game remains to be seen, but it’s going to be fun to watch he and Gurley battle it out twice a year in the seasons to come."
I am starting to get annoyed by people saying that Johnson and Rawls are as good as or better than Todd. Seahawks fans in particularly seem to think Rawls is a better running back. I think both he and Johnson will be good running backs in the future but to say they are on Gurley's level is a big stretch. Gurley is athletically superior than both of them in about every way.
It's also not really fair to compare numbers between the 3 because Gurley had to carry the load for most of the season while they didn't. Also they are in much better positions from a offensive standpoint. For Rawls, defenses have to worry about Wilson throwing downfield or taking off on a run. If they stack the box then Wilson will burn them with Baldwin, Graham, and Lockett all to throw to. Same thing for David Johnson. Defenses are worried about Carson Palmer and that loaded WR corps for the Cardinals. If defenses stack the box they will get carved up. Meanwhile, Gurley is facing constant 8-10 man boxes because our passing game is atrocious.
Here is the article:
"There is no denying the promise of Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley, the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2015.
He’s big (6-1, 226), he’s fast and he’s powerful, and you have to figure his 1,100-yard debut season is just the tip of the iceberg, coming as it did on only 229 carries in 13 games (12 starts).
But for those who want to anoint Gurley as the heir to Adrian Peterson’s throne as the NFL’s next great running back, you might want to slow down, because there is plenty of evidence that Gurley might not even be the next best running back in the NFC West. That title might very well fall to Arizona’s David Johnson.
Drafted in the third round out of Northern Iowa, Johnson didn’t arrive with the fanfare of first-rounder Gurley. But the Cardinals liked what they saw from the start and they weren’t afraid to throw out some incredibly high expectations.
“He reminds me a lot of Matt Forte,” Cardinals running backs coach Stump Mitchell said last May. “You can put him outside and use him as a receiver and he’s a good runner.”
At first blush the Forte comparison seemed ridiculous, especially since it came before Johnson had played a down in the NFL. Yes, Johnson (6-1, 224) is similar in size to Forte (6-1, 221), but could he really be as versatile and effective as the Chicago Bears veteran?
The early evidence shows that when given the opportunity, yes he can.
Unlike the Rams with Gurley, the Cardinals took their time bringing Johnson along. Even then, he was dynamic pretty much every time he touched the ball. Johnson scored twice on his first three NFL touches – across two games – one on a 55-yard catch against the Saints, the other on a 108-yard kickoff return against the Bears.
Even then the Cardinals gave their starts to Andre Ellington and Chris Johnson, and David Johnson never had more than eight carries in the first 11 weeks of the season. It wasn’t until Week 12 that Johnson got his first start, a job he held the rest of the way, gaining a league-best 131.7 yards per game from scrimmage during that time.
Included in that stretch was a 187-yard, three-TD domination of the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 14, and a 99-yard outing against Gurley’s Rams in Week 12, a 27-3 Cardinals victory. He ended up gaining 581 yards on the ground (4.6 yards per carry) and another 457 through the air on 36 catches.
The combination of size, speed, power and receiving ability led one Cardinals official to compare Johnson to the great Franco Harris, and general manager Steve Keim called Johnson’s potential “scary.”
“The way he catches the ball out of the backfield and the weapon he is as a receiver, I think he could end up being one of the better all-around backs in the NFL when you look at being a complete player,” Keim said. “A guy that’s not subbed for in third-down situations, a guy that can play every snap and can be such a weapon in every phase of the game.”
Whether or not Johnson continues to develop into the best in the game remains to be seen, but it’s going to be fun to watch he and Gurley battle it out twice a year in the seasons to come."
I am starting to get annoyed by people saying that Johnson and Rawls are as good as or better than Todd. Seahawks fans in particularly seem to think Rawls is a better running back. I think both he and Johnson will be good running backs in the future but to say they are on Gurley's level is a big stretch. Gurley is athletically superior than both of them in about every way.
It's also not really fair to compare numbers between the 3 because Gurley had to carry the load for most of the season while they didn't. Also they are in much better positions from a offensive standpoint. For Rawls, defenses have to worry about Wilson throwing downfield or taking off on a run. If they stack the box then Wilson will burn them with Baldwin, Graham, and Lockett all to throw to. Same thing for David Johnson. Defenses are worried about Carson Palmer and that loaded WR corps for the Cardinals. If defenses stack the box they will get carved up. Meanwhile, Gurley is facing constant 8-10 man boxes because our passing game is atrocious.
