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Todd Gurley's Knee Injury Reportedly a Major Concern for Rams Moving Forward

By Austin Pert

Super Bowl LIII - New England Patriots v Los Angeles Rams
Super Bowl LIII - New England Patriots v Los Angeles Rams / Harry How

The decline in snaps and production late last season for Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley was both a surprise and point of confusion for many, as there appeared to be no sign of any injury suffered or any reported ailments from the running back.

But according to Fox Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer, Gurley's knee is a source of long term concern for his franchise.

According to the report, Gurley has developed arthritis in his left knee, just one of the many issues he's had with the knee since suffering a torn ACL during his junior season at the University of Georgia in 2014.

Reoccurring swelling of his knee is the biggest concern in the medium-to-long-term future, having been a cause for his reduction of carries a season ago.

"I think the biggest test will be what happens early in the season," Glazer said in his weekly column in The Athletic. "If he runs and [the knee] doesn’t blow up and the Rams are able to use him as a workhorse, then a lot of those concerns will go away. If not, they’re going to have to get a little creative."

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UPDATE: Rams RB Todd Gurley’s knee issue is a real concern for him and the team, per Jay Glazer. Gurley, 24, started with his knee issues at Georgia when he suffered an ACL tear in his left knee. Since then, he’s developed arthritis and reoccurring swelling to the same knee which is what forced him to miss the final stretch of the 2018 regular season. Rams HC Sean McVay told reporters earlier this offseason that Gurley was receiving several different treatments to his knee, including stem cell treatment. While the Rams have denied any long-term issues for Gurley’s knee, Glazer mentioned in his latest mailbag that their concerns are not overblown. “Nope, it’s not overblown. I think the biggest test will be what happens early in the season. If he runs and it doesn’t blow up and the Rams are able to use him as a workhorse, then a lot of those concerns will go away. If not, they’re going to have to get a little creative. They would be wise to be prepared because the knee has gone through a lot from college to now, so they’ve got to brace for it swelling up again,” Glazer wrote. It’s worth noting that the Rams packaged two picks to move up in the third-round to select Memphis RB Darrell Henderson with the 70th overall pick. The Rams signed Gurley to a 4-year/$60M extension last July that included $45M guaranteed, keeping him under team control through the 2023 season. In 2018, Gurley started 14 games and rushed for 1,251 yards on 256 carries (4.9 YPC) and 17 touchdowns. He also caught 59 passes for 580 yards and four touchdowns. In three playoff games, Gurley rushed for 160 yards on 30 carries (5.3 YPC) and two touchdowns. He also caught four passes for five yards. #nfl #nflnews #nfllive #nflupdates #nflnow #nflnetwork #espn #espnnews #sports #sport #active #fitness #football #exercise #ball #workout #game #motivation #news #fantasyfootball #fantasysports #trending #nike #underarmour #update #rams #toddgurley #injury

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After rushing for 1,251 yards in the first 14 games of the regular season, Gurley sat out the last two weeks of the regular season before rushing for 115 yards in the divisional round playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys. However, getting only 45 combined yards on 14 carries against the New Orleans Saints and New England Patriots in the NFC Championship and Super Bowl raised eyebrows for fans who weren't already concerned about the ball-carrier's health.

The Rams did trade up in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft to select Memphis RB Darrell Henderson with the 70th overall pick, so it's possible that LA is preparing for a potential Gurley setback.