Who’s Hot, Who’s Cold? Cleveland Browns vs. St. Louis Rams

Oct 11, 2015; Green Bay, WI, USA; St. Louis Rams running back Todd Gurley (30) pushes away Green Bay Packers linebacker Nate Palmer (51) in the third quarter at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

HOT: Rams RB Todd Gurley

On October 9, 2014, Georgia’s star running back Todd Gurley was suspended indefinitely due to NCAA rule violations. After the suspension, however, Gurley suffered a torn ACL during a season where he rushed for 911 yards and 9 touchdowns in only 6 games.

Fast forward to October 2015 and Todd Gurley is one of the hottest young running backs in the National Football League. He has compiled 305 yards over his past two starts, which is good for a 6.2 yards per carry average behind a very inexperienced offensive line. Gurley also has the chance to become the second player ever to rush for over 140 yards three games in a row as a rookie.

The only other player to accomplish such a tremendous feat? Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson of the Los Angeles Rams in 1983.

So how can Todd Gurley continue his excellence against the Browns?

The Browns statistically have the league’s worst run defense. Through six weeks, Cleveland has given up 899 rushing yards and 6 rushing touchdowns. However, stats can be deceiving, especially this early in the season. Long runs make up much of the rushing yardage picked up by opposing offenses, which overshadows the good run-stops that this defense is able to make. So even though the Browns’ run defense has been in trouble, the Rams cannot enter this game underestimating them.

The good news? Todd Gurley can make big plays. Once Gurley gets in the secondary, he’s a hard man to tackle. He had a 52 yard run against the Arizona Cardinals followed by a 55 yard run against the Green Bay Packers.

If Gurley can pull off some fantastic rushing plays and score his first touchdown, the Rams will have a really good chance of emerging victorious in Week 7.

Next: COLD