Gurley the receiver

[tavian]

No offense to Cunningham but I hope to see Gurley not come off the field
on 3rd down next year.His hands are too good.Guess he just needs a year of NFL
seasoning to contribute more in the passing game.

 

[jap]

I agree! However, you have to look at the circumstances. He was coming off the ACL injury, rehabbing heavily and steadily, learning a brand new NFL level offense, working with a new QB who himself was learning a new system and trying to establish a rapport with a brand new set of receivers, and working with a less-than-adequate offensive staff. It was probably enough that he focused more on the basic runs & reads while he rehabilitated his body . . . and mind.

The Gale Sayers comparisons will ring more true to this member when his receiving game is more fully exploited. Marshall Faulk is a gold standard for receiving RB's even though Steven Jackson possesses the Rams' record for RB receptions at 90. I suppose the Horns had so many receiving options during the GSOT days that Marshall never really had the opportunity to catch 100 balls in a single season like he would have on a team with a less stellar receiving core. I fully suspect TGII possesses softer hands than SJ. The real question is: how does the Gurley Express!' hands compares to those of the Marshall Plan?

Gale had some long broken field receptions during his heyday. As terrifying as it was to see SJ catch passes on crossing slants at full speed against LB's and DB's, it will be even more awe inspiring to see the faster Gurley Express! RAMpaging through NFL secondaries at full locomotive force. TGII as a legitimate receiving option will take even more pressure of Tavon as a receiving threat as our Thunder & Lightning dynamic duo continues to evolve even more as defensive game plan wreckers. A legitimate long threat at WR will help this even more as well as more experience and health at OL. Tavon might emerge as a legitimate long threat if we can find a QB with the field vision, arm strength, and accuracy to find our diminutive Little Big Man in a forest of taller DB's and LB's.

 

[jrry32]

Nah. Benny is a great 3rd down HB. Outstanding pass blocker and a good pass catcher. Plus, it gives Gurley a breather.

 

[tavian]

Nah. Benny is a great 3rd down HB. Outstanding pass blocker and a good pass catcher. Plus, it gives Gurley a breather.

Did Faulk come off the field on 3rd down?Gurley is not YET the receiving threat Faulk was, but the reason he
went 10th is because he can do it all and do it well.While Benny is a decent role player he is not "great" at
anything.Contrary to the excellent return he had,Benny is not a gamebreaker or elite talent.Gurley has the potential
to be a similar Mr Everthing as Faulk was.Gurley can get his rest after his 80yard touchdown reception.

 

[tavian]

Marshall never really had the opportunity to catch 100 balls in a single season

He got that 1000/1000 though.I say we make Gurley move in with Faulk during the offseason and have
Faulk do some sort of mind meld with him.lol

 

[RamDino]

Gurley will be an outstanding pass receiver very soon. Wait till the Rams learn how to get him the ball out in space! But Benny is a great 3rd down back and kickoff return man. I believe he led the league in KR's last year, and he as really shown his value, overall, as a third down back this year blocking, receiving, and running. Just my opinion.

 

[RamDino]

Gurley can get his rest after his 80yard touchdown reception.

Totally agree with this. And there is no reason why Tre Mason should not be "spelling" Gurley. Utilize Benny when you can.

 

[LACHAMP46]

Gurley should get 85% of the snaps in 2016....Tre the rest...Phase Benny out of the regular offense....Too many plays he should bust for huge yards...We need every explosive offensive threat on the field until this offense is clicking...for several months....maybe years...

 

[Rams43]

Nah. Benny is a great 3rd down HB. Outstanding pass blocker and a good pass catcher. Plus, it gives Gurley a breather.

I rarely find myself disagreeing with you, jrry32.

But I do have a mildly different take here.

Of course I agree that Benny is a fine, even very good 3rd down HB. I love him and think he is possibly an underrated team member.

But Gurley is just special. Such playmakers must be given the ball at every opportunity.

I feel the same about Austin.On any given play either can score 6.

Such players must get every touch that Boras can conceive.

 

[jrry32]

Did Faulk come off the field on 3rd down?Gurley is not YET the receiving threat Faulk was, but the reason he
went 10th is because he can do it all and do it well.While Benny is a decent role player he is not "great" at
anything.Contrary to the excellent return he had,Benny is not a gamebreaker or elite talent.Gurley has the potential
to be a similar Mr Everthing as Faulk was.Gurley can get his rest after his 80yard touchdown reception.

Todd Gurley isn't Marshall Faulk. Marshall Faulk was a great receiver that happened to be an elite HB.

 

[jrry32]

I rarely find myself disagreeing with you, jrry32.

But I do have a mildly different take here.

Of course I agree that Benny is a fine, even very good 3rd down HB. I love him and think he is possibly an underrated team member.

But Gurley is just special. Such playmakers must be given the ball at every opportunity.

I feel the same about Austin.On any given play either can score 6.

Such players must get every touch that Boras can conceive.

Benny's ability to pick-up blitzers is invaluable and he's actually been a very effective receiver. Yes, Gurley is a better runner but blocking skills are more important on 3rd down (except 3rd and short).

 

[Oldgeek]

Why wait until 3rd down to throw it to Gurley? Keep the defense guessing.

 

[Rams43]

Benny's ability to pick-up blitzers is invaluable and he's actually been a very effective receiver. Yes, Gurley is a better runner but blocking skills are more important on 3rd down (except 3rd and short).

Again, jrry32, I am a big fan of Benny.

But Gurley is no slouch in pass pro, himself.

And whom would you prefer racing upfield after catching a Keenum pass? Gurley or Benny?

Better still, if you were a defender, which player would most scare the hell out of you?

Easy call for me. Lol.

 

[BonifayRam]

In 2016 this stable of RB's should be the same. With a healthy more experienced OL we should take command of the game easy enough.

I would like to see Todd Gurley set the tone in the first quarter then back him on down by the end of the 1st in order to keep him fresh. I would prefer to mix in a heavy dose of Austin-Mason-Cunningham in the late 1st and 2nd quarters. When the 2nd half begins feed Gurley the ball in the 3rd & 4th quarters in order to with Gurley to finish off their DL to point of total exhaustion. Physically beating our opposition into submission.

 

[tavian]

Todd Gurley isn't Marshall Faulk

Yet.
Faulk was a elite HB who happened to be a great recevier

 

[jrry32]

Yet.
Faulk was a elite HB who happened to be a great recevier

Gurley will never be Faulk. He can be an elite HB in his own right but Faulk isn't something you develop into. It's something you are or aren't.

Gurley ain't Faulk. He can be a very good receiver FOR A HB. No doubt. But Faulk was a great receiver for anybody.

Again, jrry32, I am a big fan of Benny.

But Gurley is no slouch in pass pro, himself.

And whom would you prefer racing upfield after catching a Keenum pass? Gurley or Benny?

Better still, if you were a defender, which player would most scare the hell out of you?

Easy call for me. Lol.

I would prefer an arena league player racing up-field after Keenum's pass. Because he has no business being our starting QB next year.

Gurley isn't a slouch but he's nowhere near as good as Cunningham as a pass protector. And that's the most important role for a 3rd down HB.

 

[Ram65]

I like Bennie a lot of 3rd downs. Surprisingly quick footed after the catch.

Hard to ignore Todd Gurley's big play ability while being able to run or catch for a first down. I wouldn't be surprised if he see some 3rd down action next year. The Rams need something to improve 3rd down efficiency.

 

[tavian]

He can be a very good receiver FOR A HB

and Cunningham ain't Gurly.which brings me back to the original point
next year Gurly will be a better option on third down.You don't take your
premier player off the field on third down.It happened this year for a couple
of reasons:coming off acl and being a rookie.Won't be the case next year.

 

[iced]

Benny's ability to pick-up blitzers is invaluable and he's actually been a very effective receiver. Yes, Gurley is a better runner but blocking skills are more important on 3rd down (except 3rd and short).

gotta disagree with ya on that,particularly on screen plays

 

[jap]

Yet.
Faulk was a elite HB who happened to be a great recevier

You need to keep in mind that Marshall had superlative hands & ran WR-quality routes---not just the simple flare-outs and screen passes other receiving RB's specialize in. Plus, Marshall was one of the smartest NFL players ever who recognized defensive schemes and knew our offense as well as our starting QB's. We know TGII has good gray matter---we saw that in his second game when he downed himself to keep the clock running against the Cards rather than giving them a free time stoppage. It remains to be seen whether he can compete with the Marshall Plan as an NFL Einstein.