Sports
Todd Gurley: ‘I’m Not Going to B—h’ About Lack of Touches with Rams
Mark J. Terrill/Associated PressThe newest running back for the Atlanta Falcons isn’t sweating all the drama that surrounded his 2019 season. In fact, Todd Gurley seems ready to move on from it all. Speaking to Chris Long on his Green Light podcast, Gurley wasn’t going to spend too much time re-litigating how many touches he was given…
Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press
The newest running back for the Atlanta Falcons isn't sweating all the drama that surrounded his 2019 season. In fact, Todd Gurley seems ready to move on from it all.
Speaking to Chris Long on his Green Light podcast, Gurley wasn't going to spend too much time re-litigating how many touches he was given with the Los Angeles Rams last season.
“I try not to press the issue about nothing, so that's just kind of, just sit back and do my job,” Gurley told Long via ESPN's Vaughn McClure. “Like it's not my job to tell who to give me the ball, so if it happens, it happens. I'm not going to b—h about anything. I'm just going to keep quiet and do my part. But when I get the ball, you know I'm going to do good with it for the most part, especially when stuff is going good. But I don't know what happened, man. All I know is I'm with the Falcons now.”
Gurley ran the ball 33 fewer times in 2019 than he did in 2018 despite playing one more game. After racking up more than 1,200 yards in back-to-back seasons, the tailback finished with a career-low 857 yards last year, though he made it into the end zone 12 times.
The Rams released the 25-year-old last week, avoiding having to pay $10.5 million that was guaranteed on his contract. Gurley quipped on Twitter that he got fired on his day off, referencing the film Friday. Still, he told Long the move was a surprise.
“I didn't see it coming, but obviously I've seen the process over the years, so I understand the business and I understand how it goes,” Gurley said. “But I'm also the same type of person like when someone else is getting cut, I'm joking on them. So I can't get mad if somebody jokes on me. I joke on myself all the time. If you knew me, you know that's me. And it's all jokes. It's some truth to every little joke.”
The Falcons didn't waste much time hiring the running back. They gave him a one-year, $6 million deal that will allow him to re-establish himself as one of the top tailbacks in the league.
If he can do that, he'll be in line for a major payday. One of the knocks on Gurley this free agency was that he's still recovering from a knee injury. Proving that he's healthy, let alone that he can play at a high level, will be a major factor in grading his upcoming season.
Yet that may work out in the Falcons favor. With the NFC South looking like arguably the toughest division in the NFL this season—the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints made major upgrades—having a workhorse like Gurley in the backfield could be a major boon.
That'll require handing him the ball, something the Rams weren't as keen on doing before moving on from the 2015 10th overall pick.
Reported deals via NFL.com's free-agency tracker.
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