The Tragic Story of Todd Gurley

in the NFL injuries are very common as unfortunate as it is it's the unfortunate reality of the NFL there have been many players like this but what's most sad to hear is that the majority have been running backs right now in 2023 running backs are not being paid I believe there's a reason for that and I think the story of Todd Gurley is gonna be able to tell you why that is just to clarify I find it very sad that running backs are being paid less than the average kicker also yes this is a true statement they are literally being paid less than the kicker position to tell the story we gotta go back to when Todd Gurley was first drafted we go back into 2015 he was a first rounder and not just a first rounder he was the 10th pick of the draft very early for a running back to be selected and he was just the real deal he had a phenomenal rookie year getting a thousand rushing yards 10 touchdowns to go along with 4.8 yards per scary he was flashy exciting and everything you could ask for in a running back year two comes by he struggles and I'm not talking struggling I'm talking literally not the same player right very very bad he gets 3.2 yards per carry and was on the field every game that season many worried for Gurley and that even included himself the difference is himself wearing was the best thing that could have happened for his NFL career Gurley went into the offseason and worked and he worked and he worked he was fully healthy and looked like he was about to unleash an absolute monster on the National Football League wanna know what happened well he went off and had a great season it was even better than that rookie season that we were talking about he got 1300 rushing yards 13 touchdowns as well averaging 4.7 yards per carry and as great as that sounds it wasn't even just the rushing game that clicked for Gurley it was the receiving game that clicked in as well for Todd something that we really didn't see a ton of and the previous two years so he had 700 receiving yards and six touchdowns he was a guy on that offense who could do anything and everything you really gotta understand how valuable that that can be for an offense as great as he was this wasn't even Todd Gurley at his best he had a lot more to show and that's what's fun about the running back position they can work and work and become animals Unstoppable animals that can practically carry an offense if they work for it like what we saw with Gurley like what we saw with Jonathan Taylor and Derrick Henry 2018 comes around Todd Gurley earned himself a massive four-year extension 45 million dollars guarantee and it goes up to even 60 million dollars the Rams roster was absolutely loaded on the offense and on the defense Gurley is fired up and has his best season yet he had 1200 yards and 17 touchdowns he was able to make that Rams offense score and score and score he had 588 yards receiving and as well as four touchdowns he ended up going all the way to make it into the Super Bowl with LA where they did lose to New England ultimately throughout that postseason he was a dominant Runner but failed as a receiver that was really something he was never ever able to get in the postseason as a running back was that really I guess receiving yards in the receiving touchdowns in the postseason still though in the regular season he was very much responsible for the majority of that Ram's success one year into his extension it was still looking like a great contract for La that 2019 came by 2019 changed not only the Rams future but also Todd Gurley and the running back position Gurley came in he couldn't stay healthy and combined that was very very bad he had 3.8 yards per carry on the season and ultimately was not the same player plus the receiving numbers were regressed and were very very poor getting 200 yards receiving and two touchdowns and he was being paid absolute bank for a running back you gotta understand they're paying him to be not only just the best running back in the league but the best running back of all time that's the at least what the money says right and he was performing like one of the worst if not the worst running back and the entire National Football League even despite the bad statistics he was just clearly not the same player on the field not at all and it was very noticeable the LA Rams then went out and released him you may think it's no free action because it's only one year well no this is a player who not only statistically has lost the fun in football but he is a guy he just was not having fun with the sport of football and lost the explosiveness he once had as a runner he moved on quickly though and he ended up signing with the Atlanta Falcons it was a very cheap contract but on the bright side he had a shot to prove himself this was his chance this was his chance to prove that he was still the same guy still the same guy having fun with football how did his opportunity with Atlantic go it went for 3.5 yards per carry even worse than last year many low football IQ plays and just overall not explosive player a guy who just didn't have it anymore and then it was not resigned and never touched an NFL field ever again so was it just Todd Gurley is it just the story of Todd Gurley or is it just the running back position my best way to put it is it's the story of both we've seen players like Todd Gurley Bo Jackson Barry Sanders and many more running backs who have shown some of the best seasons of all time and not just by a running back but of NFL history and it's all been ruined by injury keep in mind Bo Jackson and Barry Sanders would likely be called you know top five players of all time in football just like Todd Gurley probably would have if injury didn't ruin him like how it did it ruined him and he lost every electrifying part in his game and it's not even any of those running backs faults right it's not their fault that they lost that electrifying part that made them them it's just the reality of being a running back many would call it tragic as I would it's sad to see players who were once at the top of the mountain completely vanished from that mountain this is the story of Todd Gurley and the NFL running back position I hope you guys have enjoyed it's a sad state that the NFL running backs are in but you can't say much about it right you can't say much about it other than it is what it is now how can the NFL go ahead and maybe solve this issue honestly I'm not sure I'm not sure because you also go ahead and look at Players like Derrick Henry who have been able to stay healthy who even of course have battled injury but they get through it and they come back and they're still that dominant rushing player that we once knew or there's even players like Aaron Jones who may not be quite as at the top of the map as those other guys but still is very very consistent and is able to stay on an NFL field the thing is with the running back position is that the rookie contract gives you their Prime that's the issue running backs are very very good for those first four to five years and that's just proven statistically and then after those four to five years it's just a drama fall off and that's really been the issue with the running back position so it just makes you wonder what can you do what can you do because saquon Barkley one of the best rushers in the League last year is not getting paid because he struggled to stay healthy but then you see a guy like Christian McCaffrey who just got paid so it's a very weird situation I believe right now to say the least but anyways let me know what you guys thought of all this I hope you guys have enjoyed it make sure to drop a like if you have not already and of course peace out

Channel: Purely Football

Views: 1,695

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Id: GolNWP0YtFQ

Length: 8min 6sec (486 seconds)

Published: Tue Aug 01 2023