After his rookie season, Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley has gone from a risky draft pick to arguably the best player at his position in the league. Gurley rushed for 566 yards in his first four starts, boding well for not only the Rams, but fantasy owners as well.
Although the 2016 NFL season is still over a month away, it is never too early to start planning for this year’s fantasy draft. The NFL Network recently held a five-part series of their top 50 fantasy players, which featured an appearance by Gurley at No. 5. Alex Gelhar of NFL Network commented on how Gurley solidified his spot on this list:
“One of the best backs to enter the league the NFL in years, Gurley will undoubtedly be the focal point of the Rams offense in 2016. He could suffer a bit if the team falls behind against better opponents, but they’ll likely lean on him early and often which should mitigate those concerns of him losing work to the likes of Benny Cunningham in hurry-up or garbage time situations. He’s certainly in the discussion for the first overall pick in standard, 10-team leagues.”
Although NFL Netowrk certainly paid some respect to the young star, Gurley himself gave an interesting take on his legitimacy as a No. 1 fantasy pick. He joined the set earlier in the week with some advice for fantasy owners:
“Oh, No. 1 overall for sure,” Gurley said. “I mean you maybe could choose AB (Antonio Brown) over me, but that’s about it. Nobody else….. Maybe Cam (Newton), that’s it. Cam and AB.”
Despite his lack of conviction, Gurley certainly makes for a solid pick now that the offense has been fine-tuned to their All-pro stud. If fantasy owners passed on him last year, doing so this season could prove to be the difference in making the postseason.
