[Elvis]

That said, the issue in the Saints game wasn’t a health issue. It was Gurley simply not being completely engaged mentally to start the game. Sensing that and understanding he could not afford to wait on Gurley to find his groove, head coach Sean McVay simply moved onto C.J. Anderson, whose play the last two games of the regular season and against the Cowboys created a comfort and confidence level with the Rams.

[Elvis]

I think this is the first time i've heard a reporter state something like this as a fact...

[Hacksaw]

I think this is the first time i've heard a reporter state something like this as a fact...

Vinny going big. Hope he's right. Although if it's not physical, I'm differently concerned.
Or did he have a hangover?

[Will0120]

Can anyone post the full article here...?

[AvengerRam]

Facts regarding Gurley: interested.

Speculation about Gurley: not so much.

[TomSlick]

Gurley dropping two passes in the NO game, Goff saying that Gurley would have a heck of a game in the SB...yeah, I guess you could speculate that perhaps Gurley was not mentally into the NO game but would bounce back in the SB.

Sure would like to see some confirmation before a story like this fills the airwaves.

[/zn/]

from Rams offseason: The mystery of Todd Gurley’s poor playoffs must be solved

Vincent Bonsignore

https://theathletic.com/808371/2019/02/ ... be-solved/

The curious manner in which the last two games of Todd Gurley’s season played out naturally resulted in a strong contingent of conspiracy theorists laying out various explanations of what happened.

It didn’t overshadow what the Rams did this season, which saw them win their second straight NFC West title and advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2001. But the inexplicable absence of Gurley in the NFC Championship Game and Super Bowl LIII is bound to linger as the Rams recover from a 13-3 loss to the Patriots and plot an offseason with the intention of returning to the Super Bowl and winning it.

The Rams are confident Gurley will return next season completely healthy. But if they learn in the next month or so that his left knee injury hampered him down the stretch and requires some sort of medical procedure, that development would change things considerably.

...

Still, Gurley will be a subject worth monitoring.

Going into the Super Bowl, I boldly predicted he would deliver an MVP-caliber performance (and boy was I wrong) figuring no one was more motivated to rebound with a great game than Gurley after disappearing in the NFC title game against the New Orleans Saints.

That bounce-back didn’t happen, of course, leaving Gurley to answer for yet another meager performance in a game the Rams desperately needed him to be at optimal level. Meanwhile, theories started to emerge over what was really going on with Gurley. There were even questions over whether the Rams should part ways with their high-priced star.

Let’s be clear: Gurley is here to stay. As far as what happened to him the last two games, it appears a combination of things created an imperfect storm for Gurley.

First of all, while Gurley was physically fit to play (see the 115 yards he gained against the Dallas Cowboys in the Rams’ divisional round playoff win), he likely wasn’t the 100 percent he was prior to tweaking his knee against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16. That said, the issue in the Saints game wasn’t a health issue. It was Gurley simply not being completely engaged mentally to start the game. Sensing that and understanding he could not afford to wait on Gurley to find his groove, head coach Sean McVay simply moved onto C.J. Anderson, whose play the last two games of the regular season and against the Cowboys created a comfort and confidence level with the Rams.

Against the Patriots, Gurley’s lack of production (35 yards rushing on 10 carries) was more about the Rams’ inability to create offensive continuity and traction. That resulted in a slew of short drives that dramatically drove down the Rams’ play total. Yes, Gurley’s numbers and touches plummeted. But then, that also was the case for Robert Woods, Brandin Cooks, Josh Reynolds, Gerald Everett and Tyler Higbee.

Gurley will be back. And I suspect Anderson’s production down the stretch — and the benefits the Rams saw in having another reliable running back who can share some of the load — will prompt them to look long and hard about adding another back to the mix next season to fill that role.

[/zn/]

Vincent Bonsignore

But if they learn in the next month or so that his left knee injury hampered him down the stretch and requires some sort of medical procedure, that development would change things considerably.

First of all, while Gurley was physically fit to play (see the 115 yards he gained against the Dallas Cowboys in the Rams’ divisional round playoff win), he likely wasn’t the 100 percent he was prior to tweaking his knee against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16.

He's speculating. But it;s reasonable speculation.

They have an MRI on him and it showed no structural damage. That's good because it means no heavy surgery.

BUT as VB points out that does not mean the knee is unaffected. There are all kinds of things that could have happened. Knee inflammation happens for a reason. It could be tendinitis, it could be a tiny fragment of cartilage. If it's the latter you can fix it with a scope, not with major surgery. But until they scope it they don't know.

Odds are that because he experienced pain and inflammation and that always has a cause, that this is not fixed until the actual cause is addressed.

And a player can be in that situation and be able to play--he just would not be 100% his normal self. Some people swear that they have seen TG limping a bit and that he couldn't cut the way he could before the inflammation.

I don't know why the Rams are so coy about all this, but I suspect it's because TG wants it that way.

Anyway. The reason VB speculates about a lingering knee issue is because it makes perfect sense. You don't get inflammation for NO reason, and so far no one has said that whatever caused the inflammation went away.

In terms of the N.O. game and not being mentally 100%, one reason for that could be that the entire knee business can flip TG out and make him iffy on game day, even if he looks good before the game. I have no actual evidence for this but I suspect that's sometimes TG's mindset with this.

....

[Hacksaw]

Gurley will be back. And I suspect Anderson’s production down the stretch — and the benefits the Rams saw in having another reliable running back who can share some of the load — will prompt them to look long and hard about adding another back to the mix next season to fill that role

Or is this an insurance type move?

I guess this also indicates a bit about VB's assessment of Kelly , Davis or Brown.

[/zn/]

I guess this also indicates a bit about VB's assessment of Kelly , Davis or Brown.

I doubt he has one to be honest.