The Todd Gurley Thread - Currently FA

[clarion contrarion]

curious as to why cooper has a perceived capped upside ? he is nearly as good of an athlete as white in terms of speed , he is 2 full years younger and already good at doing wr stuff , what he is .....is not flashy and not self promoter in the same vein as white seems to be but he seems to be ready day 1 to start churning out solid wr1 seasons .
Also for those yakking about gurley's draft status ... which skill position players have the rams successfully evaluated the last 5 years ... quick answer to my way of thinking ... none .
they have drafted a bunch of guys early 1st 3 or 4 rounds ....... austin bailey pead kendricks quick givens pettis salas bradford and now gurley and really none have been as good as zac stacy was his rookie year thus far and he got traded for his trouble. Even tre mason has been replaced it seems already ........ stay away . Obviously gurley is the pick of the litter but if that pup runs with a bunch of mutts he ain't winning westminster
The fact that the rams drafted him would be a negative not a positive for me way of thinking.

[FantasyFreak]

Okay. He's a once "in every few years" player according to the team that drafted him. Nobody is saying he's as good as AP, just the best to come out since AP. I know some who see Cooper as an elite WR prospect, and consider him to be an elite talent.

Interesting, every single draft analyst I've seen said Cooper was most "NFL ready" or the "safest" but I didn't see anyone call him elite and nobody i saw even said he had the highest ceiling of this years rookie WRs. That was typically White or DGB depending on which draft analyst you were listening to. When i say draft analyst i mean somebody working for a major media network that has info from NFL front offices. Not random guys from websites or blogs with no inside track to information. To each their own but IMO its like passing on potential elite piece to draft a PPR centric WR that will have a nice weekly floor but won't be a top 8-10 WR most seasons. I like Cooper a lot but his upside is capped imo.

Cris Carter called him the most advanced WR prospect since Randy Moss, and a candidate for the first pick in the draft. That's one right off the top of my head. I think a lot of people, yourself included are losing Cooper's upside because he is so safe. He will be a top 5 WR within 3 years IMO. Antonio like numbers.

[FantasyFreak]

curious as to why cooper has a perceived capped upside ? he is nearly as good of an athlete as white in terms of speed , he is 2 full years younger and already good at doing wr stuff , what he is .....is not flashy and not self promoter in the same vein as white seems to be but he seems to be ready day 1 to start churning out solid wr1 seasons .
Also for those yakking about gurley's draft status ... which skill position players have the rams successfully evaluated the last 5 years ... quick answer to my way of thinking ... none .
they have drafted a bunch of guys early 1st 3 or 4 rounds ....... austin bailey pead kendricks quick givens pettis salas bradford and now gurley and really none have been as good as zac stacy was his rookie year thus far and he got traded for his trouble. Even tre mason has been replaced it seems already ........ stay away . Obviously gurley is the pick of the litter but if that pup runs with a bunch of mutts he ain't winning westminster
The fact that the rams drafted him would be a negative not a positive for me way of thinking.

This. I heard a quote from an NFL athlete recently, who said the best athletes make things look effortless. That's Cooper for me. Amari Cooper is the same body type as DeAndre Hopkins in terms of size and weight, but much faster and a better route runner. Cooper easily has more upside than a guy like that IMO, and Hopkins is no slouch. Anyway. I like Gurley a lot, I don't want that to get lost, I just like Cooper more.

[deputylefty]

Anyone taking Gurley at 1.01 will regret it in 2-3 years. Why stake your team's future on a St. Louis RB? I don't care how talented he is. The Rams are a terrible team with a terrible coach and terrible offense. Nick Foles will not scare anybody. Gurley will be against stacked boxes. Play the percentages and take Cooper who will be a PPR stud regardless of the state of the Raiders offense, which I feel better about than the Rams offense.

[MARKinMI]

Anyone taking Gurley at 1.01 will regret it in 2-3 years. Why stake your team's future on a St. Louis RB? I don't care how talented he is. The Rams are a terrible team with a terrible coach and terrible offense. Nick Foles will not scare anybody. Gurley will be against stacked boxes. Play the percentages and take Cooper who will be a PPR stud regardless of the state of the Raiders offense, which I feel better about than the Rams offense.

The ram's are building a very RB friendly team. That defense should be one of the best keeping games close and their RB on the field and part of the game plan. They also appear to be focusing on road grading offensive linemen adding 4 linemen in this draft including Rob Haventstein in round 2 and Jamon Brown in round 3. Couple that with a coach who loves to use a feature back when he has one (see eddie George) and I love the entire situation. I actually see a Adrian Peterson/Chester Taylor situation in year one when Mason plays quite a bit in year one with Gurley showing monster flashes when he gets healthy. Then its Gurley's show in 2016.

[sugbear65]

Anyone taking Gurley at 1.01 will regret it in 2-3 years. Why stake your team's future on a St. Louis RB? I don't care how talented he is. The Rams are a terrible team with a terrible coach and terrible offense. Nick Foles will not scare anybody. Gurley will be against stacked boxes. Play the percentages and take Cooper who will be a PPR stud regardless of the state of the Raiders offense, which I feel better about than the Rams offense.

Now this is an argument I just don't understand. Avoid Gurly because he went to a "bad situation" in St. Louis. But Cooper is alright because he went to the fantasy powerhouse of...Oakland? I don't understand how you can knock Gurly for landing with the Rams, and not use the same knock on Cooper with the Raiders. And just using the excuse "they will be playing from behind, so they'll have to throw" is just lazy. That was the same scenario u could have said in Oakland last year, how that turn out for their fantasy players?

[John Paul]

Positional value boasts Gurley as the top choice IMO. There are a lot of WRs putting up great numbers and very few RBs doing so. If you get a chance at taking a potentially elite RB, you do so. I will not knock anyone for taking Amari, he is a great player poised to be a key contributor in FF circles.

[Dynasty DeLorean]

It just occurred to me that Todd Gurley is DeMarco Murray. They are so damn similar it's crazy.

[yooperbacker]

If there ever was a linebacker to meet Gurley in the hole, he caught a fist to the face and was left staring at the clouds. His stiff arm is unreal. He literally plants SEC defenseman like they are kids without breaking stride. That's my comp to AP. The strength to throw defenders off and explode for big gains. TRich at Alabama was a much different player than TRich the 2nd year pro. So those comps don't make a lot of sense to me. Injury is the only concern for me when taking Gurley. Injury is always a concern with any running back, so he is my 1.1 rookie pick as well as a top 5 RB out of the gate for me.

[swertsch]

What I don't understand is why he is SO far ahead of Gordon for many people?

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap200000 ... odd-gurley

Gordon had an amazing career. And I don't see how knocks against Gordon aren't also against Gurley?

"WI has an amazing OL and he was rarely touched." Um... have you seen Georgia's OL?

"Gordon didn't play against great defenses." SEC has some great teams, but Gurley didn't play against them or perform well against them the last few years. Best D he faced was either SC (131, 6.6 per, 1 td) or AUB (138, 4.8 per, 1 td). Otherwise his great games came against Clemson, Vandy, Tenn this year and Georgia-Tech and Clemson last year. Not exactly all world teams. Gordon on the other hand set the NCAA Rushing Record against Nebraska's D and put up 251, 7.4 per, 3 td against AUB. An SEC team. Against SC the year before he put up 143, 5.7 per 0 TD in a Bowl Game loss - with James White taking 12 carries. In 2011, Gordon put up 9 carries, 241 yard, 1 TD against Nebraska. Gurley cracked 200 yards ONCE in his career with 208 on Tenn. Gordon has 6 in 2014 alone.

"WI ran the ball more than any other team!" Yes, WI had 46.3 rushes per game. Georgia had 42.6. So, WI has 3.3 more carries ... That's hardly a major difference. And yes, WI had horrible QB play which forced them to run the ball more and had a run first offense. But that just means that Def didn't even care about the WI passing game or WRs (I am a WI can and can't even name a WR off the top of my head at the moment). WI had 15 passing TDs on the year and their best QB stats wise has 9 QB and 10 INT. Mason for Georgia has 21/4 for his TD/INT. Georgia RBs had a much more balanced offense to help them out. Everyone knew Gordon was running like crazy, and he still got his yards. Like playing against Barry Sanders in the NFL - you knew he was going to get yards even when the entire team was working to stop him.

"Gordon doesn't have top speed." Gordon ran a 4.52, Gurley is projected to be a 4.45 guy, but didn't run because of injury. There are many NFL RBs without "elite" speed. More important for Gordon, he has amazing acceleration and change of direction speed. His top speed might not be CJ2K, but his acceleration is off the charts. Gurley is comparable. No real difference here.

"Gordon can't catch." Well, the short of it...WI can't throw. Their QBs couldn't even connect on a check down pass. Yes, he isn't naturally as good as Gurley seemed to be or some others, but he can catch the ball. He's better at receiving than AP. Not that his running is on par, but his catching isn't as bad as AP. He is also on a team where I'm sure they are working on this a ton to get him into the complete offense.

"Gordon might be better this year, but Gurley will be better overall." Sure, but what are we talking about with Gurley? Hoping that he is like AP and has a 10 year career? Because many NFL RBs (even good ones) have about 5 year careers of being elite. I like Gordon's chance to start his career hot fantasy wise and then continue on for a few more years. Gurley is going to take a year to get going (rumors of the PUP list this year?) and then he'll last for about the same time frame as Gordon and many other RBs, statistically speaking.

"WI has a history of RB busts!" WI RBs to make the NFL (even for a short time): Gordon, White, Ball, Calhoun, Dayne, Bennett, Fletcher. Dayne and Bennett are probably the two best, with Fletcher having an okay NFL career. That's not really that bad of a run for the school. Georgia on the other hand has: Gurley, Moreno, TD, Gary, Crowell, Lumpkin. That's about equal with a slight edge to Georgia. But it isn't run away.

Gurley has an injury history and might not be ready for the start of the season.
Gordon is in a more established offense with a RB need that he fits into very well.

Like I said at the top, I don't see Gurley being head and shoulders above Gordon. I have 1.1 and I am trying to talk myself out of taking Gordon 1.1 ever so badly.

[KMA]

I think one important thing to consider is that Melvin Gordon is coming off of an amazing season. Absolutely amazing. Yet, the ACL injured Gurley was still taken top 10 by a team that already had a solid RB. I am of the belief that NFL teams are good at evaluating talent and potential. But it is up to the player, system fit, and opportunity to make them good pros. It is not a knock on Gordon at all. He still went first round. It's like arguing between Superman and Batman. Everyone knows Superman is the top dog but Batman is no slouch either. The last thing we remember of Gurley is him balled up on the field grabbing his knee. Go back one year and people were salivating for the day he turned pro. Well, it's here and suprisingly people are getting him for a discount. I got him at 1.02 in my league and the same may happen in yours!

[Typhus]

If there ever was a linebacker to meet Gurley in the hole, he caught a fist to the face and was left staring at the clouds. His stiff arm is unreal. He literally plants SEC defenseman like they are kids without breaking stride. That's my comp to AP. The strength to throw defenders off and explode for big gains. TRich at Alabama was a much different player than TRich the 2nd year pro. So those comps don't make a lot of sense to me. Injury is the only concern for me when taking Gurley. Injury is always a concern with any running back, so he is my 1.1 rookie pick as well as a top 5 RB out of the gate for me.

Im with you, and I understand those that prefer to go elsewhere with the 1.01, but I think it all boils down to this.
If you want to go the safe route than go Gordon or Cooper with the 1.01 and Im quite confident 6-7 yrs down the road you wont have any complaints with either of those two at that pick.
But if your fairly stacked, and able to gamble a bit to quite possibly pull off the next AP, then you can go Gurley here and hit the jack pot.
Either way, your going to be just fine.

[FantasyFreak]

If there ever was a linebacker to meet Gurley in the hole, he caught a fist to the face and was left staring at the clouds. His stiff arm is unreal. He literally plants SEC defenseman like they are kids without breaking stride. That's my comp to AP. The strength to throw defenders off and explode for big gains. TRich at Alabama was a much different player than TRich the 2nd year pro. So those comps don't make a lot of sense to me. Injury is the only concern for me when taking Gurley. Injury is always a concern with any running back, so he is my 1.1 rookie pick as well as a top 5 RB out of the gate for me.

Agreed. His agility is not in the same ball park, however. He can't make cuts like AP, or a guy like Le'veon Bell. IMO Gurley will never be a better back than Bell. Bell's change of direction is far Superior, although Gurley has better speed. Something happened to T-Rich when he got to the pros. He lost his confidence and decision making. Gurley is a really decisive back. He does not hesitate at all. Very North/South 1 cut type back. He won't juke guys out like a Bell or Lynch (bigger backs with power as well), but he does have the long speed. The only problem with Gurley is indeed injuries. He has been banged up quite a bit already, and has never been able to show "Bell Cow" like durability in college, so I have major concerns with him going into the pros. His carries were 222, 165, and 123. Not too good when talking about a guy who's suppose to be a 3 down back for 16 games against NFL impact hits. There is no correlation that I have found either, to suggest the lighter workload in college helps him become more durable, so if you can find it, please feel free to correct me. His talent is undeniable, but it comes with some serious injury/durability concerns.

[FantasyFreak]

If there ever was a linebacker to meet Gurley in the hole, he caught a fist to the face and was left staring at the clouds. His stiff arm is unreal. He literally plants SEC defenseman like they are kids without breaking stride. That's my comp to AP. The strength to throw defenders off and explode for big gains. TRich at Alabama was a much different player than TRich the 2nd year pro. So those comps don't make a lot of sense to me. Injury is the only concern for me when taking Gurley. Injury is always a concern with any running back, so he is my 1.1 rookie pick as well as a top 5 RB out of the gate for me.

Im with you, and I understand those that prefer to go elsewhere with the 1.01, but I think it all boils down to this.
If you want to go the safe route than go Gordon or Cooper with the 1.01 and Im quite confident 6-7 yrs down the road you wont have any complaints with either of those two at that pick.
But if your fairly stacked, and able to gamble a bit to quite possibly pull off the next AP, then you can go Gurley here and hit the jack pot.
Either way, your going to be just fine.

I don't think Gordon is any safer than Gurley, because he's not as talented, so there is the same amount of risk IMO. Cooper is much safer than both or the RB's. I am fairly stacked, and have been wrestling with this myself, but although I think Gurley can be a top 5 back, I really don't see the next AP. I'd put money on him never rushing for 2000 yards, or even 1800 for that matter. However, 1200 and 500 receiving, if he plays a full season, is totally reasonable. I really have my doubts about his durability, and really like Cooper as well, so in the end, I think Cooper is my pick. Also, I'm a Raider fan (was a huge advocate of Cooper pre-draft) and the Commissioner is also a Raider fan, and League expulsion could be a possibility if I don't take Cooper.

[KMA]

I was in the same boat (stacked team with high picks 1.02, 1.04) but knew I wanted to go Gurley. The owner at 1.01 took Cooper which made it easy for me but I don't blame him for doing so. I was a big time TRich supporter (to a fault). His demise falls squarely on his shoulders IMO. He didn't have the work ethic or attitude to succeed at the next level. But the talent was there. Another player that comes to mind is Eric Ebron. Many people have already written him off. But I am curious to see how his career turns out. It is evident to me that he WANTS to turn things around and has "seemingly" done the work to make it happen. They say you can't measure the heart of a player. I think TRich lacked that. As for Gurley, I can't wait to see what he is made of. He has the physical attributes one looks for when choosing a franchise back. The only question is, does he have the heart and the health? The opportunity and scheme are there. That is typically the hardest things to come by. The only thing standing in his way is himself. Not every RB can say that.