The Los Angeles Rams offense was nothing short of abysmal during the 2016 NFL season. While many hoped Todd Gurley would run wild like he did his rookie season, he struggled to get anything going behind a terrible offensive line and that suspect offense as a whole.
With teams stacking nine players in the box week in and week out against Gurley, it is clear that the team is in need for a change-of-pace back to help keep the defense honest. The Rams did that by signing Lance Dunbar to a one-year, $3 million deal according to Adam Caplan of ESPN:
#Rams and RB Lance Dunbar agreed to a 1-year deal worth up to $3m, source told ESPN.
— Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) March 16, 2017
As a native Texan, this will be the first time in his playing career that Dunbar will leave his home state to play football elsewhere. While it is understandably tough for anyone to move away from home for the first time, one can assume he was more than intrigued by the situation here in Los Angeles. Regardless, Dunbar took to Twitter to express how hard the decision to leave Texas was:
If u know me then you know that was the hardest thing for me to do. But I had to do what I had to do.
— lance dunbar (@Dunbar_CDB5) March 16, 2017
Dunbar accumulated over 1,000 yards rushing and receiving combined during his five-year stay with the Dallas Cowboys. Although his numbers are not exactly mind-boggling, his receiver skill set could pay huge dividends for a head coach like Sean McVay who likes to utilize his players out of the backfield. He is expected to serve as the No. 2 running back behind Gurley and is presumably going to be used much like McVay used Chris Thompson in Washington.
Dunbar also happens to be reuniting with Skip Peete, his former running backs coach in Dallas who re-signed with the Rams thanks to the urging of Gurley. Los Angeles still has a way to go before being considered a talented offense, but weapons like Dunbar certainly help along the way.
