Maurice Jones-Drew, the former NFL running back who currently works as the Rams’ radio analyst, says that running back Todd Gurley was hurt for the entire 2018 season.
Jones-Drew says that Gurley -- who was not listed on the injury report until Week 16, the first game of the season that he missed -- actually hurt his knee in the first game of 2018.
“Yes, he was banged up throughout the season. He got hurt in Week One, played through it the rest of the season,” Jones-Drew said on NFL Network. “He got banged up in Week One, he played through it, and he kind of just got worn down toward the end of the season.”
Jones-Drew said the Rams are going to give Gurley plenty of time off all summer to ensure that he’s healthy enough to play in Week One this season.
“Todd has a plan to be ready throughout the course of the season. They want to make sure they don’t run Todd as much as they did last year and the year before, all the way to where he can’t perform the last two games of the year,” Jones-Drew said.
Going forward, Jones-Drew said, Gurley can probably expect to see fewer snaps than he has in the past. In 2018 Gurley played 75 percent of the Rams’ offensive snaps, and in 2017 he played 76 percent. In 2019, it sounds like Gurley may be closer to 50 percent -- and even then, only if he can stay healthy.