Rams didn’t feature a RB in the passing game as much, but they don’t need to

[BonifayRam]

Rams didn’t feature a RB in the passing game as much, but they don’t need to

Todd Gurley seemed to disappear as a receiving threat and while the offense was worse, they don’t necessarily need to replace Gurley with another Gurley
By Kenneth Arthur@KennethArthuRS Apr 7, 2020, 2:25pm CDT

LA Rams didn’t feature a RB in the passing game as much, but they don’t need to

Todd Gurley seemed to disappear as a receiving threat and while the offense was worse, they don’t necessarily need to replace Gurley with another Gurley

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When the LA Rams had their quick Sean McVay-fueled turnaround in 2017, they did so with a trio of new receivers that we all talk about a lot. Then they did replace one of those receivers with an even better receiver and we talked about them some more. Of course, we also talked about Todd Gurley.

In spite of his talented teammates on the outside of the pocket, Gurley finished second on the team in targets in 2017 with 87 throws his way. He caught 64 for 788 yards and six touchdowns. The following year, Gurley “slipped” to third in targets behind Robert Woods and Brandin Cooks (Cooper Kupp did miss half of the season) but he still got 81 passes thrown at him in 14 games. The rate of throws his way per game remained steady.

But as we already know, things last year did not go the way that Gurley or McVay wanted them to on offense and even though he was active for 15 games, the running back slipped to sixth in targets behind Woods, Kupp, Tyler Higbee, Cooks, and Gerald Everett. The team now focused more on the trio of receivers and duo of tight ends. Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson finished with just six targets each.

The Rams were disappointed in their offensive output but it wasn’t a bad passing offense. LA ranked 13th in passing DVOA in spite of Gurley getting just 49 throws and catching 31 for 207 yards. Compared to the 2017-2018 Rams, we may think that not utilizing the RB in the passing game in a Christian McCaffrey world is a bad thing.

But comparing to the best offenses in the NFL, we see that a McCaffrey-led offense is not necessarily the most efficient path to success.

This morning I made a spreadsheet of the top-10 target-getters for all 32 teams. My inspiration being that the Rams didn’t have a running back in the top five of targets, which seemed rare for today, and sure enough only six other teams were spread out this way.

Teams that didn’t feature a RB in their top five (Passing Offense DVOA ranking):
Baltimore Ravens (1)
Kansas City Chiefs (2)
Tennessee Titans (6)
LA Rams (13)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (18)
Miami Dolphins (25)
Cincinnati Bengals (28)

Among these seven teams, we see the two best offenses in the NFL, both of whom were also led in targets by a tight end. We also see the Titans, the league’s hottest offense in the second half of the season and Ryan Tannehill dumped passes off to backs at a lower rate than Marcus Mariota. We did see arguably the league’s two worst teams, but the Dolphins were pumping a lot of passes to Kenyan Drake before trading him to the Arizona Cardinals, then shifted that attention to Mark Walton, Kalen Ballage, and Patrick Laird. The Bengals didn’t have a single RB draw attention, but together Joe Mixon and Gio Bernard had 88 targets.

I’m not saying this is monumentally different than the Chiefs, who spread the ball around to LeSean McCoy, Damien Williams, and Darrel Williams (90 combined targets), but any idea that the modern NFL offense may “need” or even “want” a McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley, or Alvin Kamara-type is short-sighted. The New Orleans Saints had 97 targets for Kamara, but also feature an elite QB and WR. The Ravens seem like a team ideal for running back dump-offs but Mark Ingram was only targeted 29 times and they instead had three tight ends in their top five for targets.

For any team that may struggle at QB, a reliable pass-catching running back may not help much. The New York Giants were 26th in passing offense DVOA. The Panthers were 31st.The Rams want to get back to where they were in 2017-2018 when Gurley was at his best. But it doesn’t necessarily mean that they need the next Gurley.

 

[FarNorth]

You're not persuading me with statistical reductionism that it is not extremely helpful to have an RB who can catch passes. Maybe even a lot of them. No matter who else you have at receiver and tight end.

 

[Ram65]

There certainly was a disconnect between Gurley and Goff last year. The screen game wasn't up to recent standards. I thought McVay would get Henderson involved in the passing game a little more as a way of getting him touches. I hope Henderson and Goff can get a solid connection in the passing game. I like it when the running back is on the move when he gets a check-down with a little separation from the defender. When Goff has a little more time it can help create a little more separation for the running back on the check-downs. TG had some big gains on pass plays that were missed. I think Henderson can do the same.


Targets to Rbs in 2019

2023 Most Targeted Running Backs | FantasyPros

See who the most targeted NFL RBs are this season. We display the targets in one convenient view so you can easily compare players across weeks.

www.fantasypros.com

 

[CGI_Ram]

Rams like Darrelll Henderson and Malcolm Brown, but may draft another running back

Rams confident in Darrell Henderson and Malcolm Brown, but could add another RB via draft

After closing the book on the Todd Gurley era last month, the Los Angeles Rams continue to evaluate their options when it comes to figuring out how to create the most effective backfield in 2020.

Gurley had a record-setting five seasons with the club – his 70 total touchdowns rank fourth in team history, while his 5,404 total rushing yards are fifth-most in team history – and replacing him, at least initially, will likely be a group effort.

"I do think what we do want to be, and this will progress naturally, is certainly a team that utilizes more than just one workhorse running the ball, has a different genre of skill sets and a complimentary-type running game," Rams general manager Les Snead said on a video conference with local media Monday afternoon. "Now with that being said, like anything, you could get in week four, and there's one singular running back on your team who is playing extremely hot and maybe that person starts getting more carries and things like that."

Rams head coach Sean McVay praised Gurley for his contributions to the franchise and said he thinks he'll do a good job for the Atlanta Falcons, who announced yesterday that they had agreed to terms with Gurley.

At the same time, McVay also said parting with Gurley reflects the confidence they have in the two running backs who primarily played behind Gurley in Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson. Brown carried the ball 69 times for 255 yards and five touchdowns in 14 games last season, and Henderson added 39 carries for 147 yards in 13 games in his rookie campaign while backing up Gurley last year.

However, that doesn't mean Los Angeles won't do its due diligence on this year's running back draft class.

The reasoning is two-fold: Snead's aforementioned vision for the backfield, and, according to McVay, new running backs coach Thomas Brown's ability to develop running backs in college who successfully transitioned into the NFL. Brown coached future first-round picks Sony Michel and Nick Chubb at Georgia in 2015 and also worked with Melvin Gordon at Wisconsin during Gordon's Heisman Trophy runner-up season the year before.

"In the draft, that will be something that that we'll look at," McVay said in a video conference with local media Monday morning. "Whether we decide to address that position with a draft pick or not, I think remains to be seen as we continue to navigate through the draft experiences."

Drafting another running back or not, the Rams will have a plan.

"We certainly don't replace the production, the way that (Gurley) has influenced and affected the game," McVay said. "But what we can continue to do is try to adjust and adapt."

 

[Ramlock]

Todd Gurley may as well have been a Guard last year as much pass protection he was called on to do.