Two Players are critical to the Los Angeles Rams playoff hopes in 2016.

The Los Angeles Rams’ playoff chances will hinge on two players, Aaron Donald and Todd Gurley.

Defensive tackle Aaron Donald and running back Todd Gurley are ranked as two of the best players in the National Football League. Both men were chosen by their peers to be among the League’s elite.

Third year lineman Donald made the NFL’s top 100 players list at number 14 while Gurley came in at number 22 as a rookie. While Donald is the nucleus of the teams defense the same can be said of Gurley on offense.

Both players factor heavily into the Rams preparation for the upcoming season.

Donald and Gurley are first round picks from 2014 and 2015 respectively. The Rams selected Donald in 2014 at 13th overall. The rookie defender flourished under Coach Fisher and Gregg Williams. At the end of the season Donald was voted Defensive Rookie of the Year with 9 sacks.

Last year the former Pittsburgh Panther finished with 43 tackles, 11 sacks and a grade of of 99.9 from Pro football Focus. The third year veteran is off to a phenomenal start. Donald earned his second trip to the pro bowl in 2016 while drawing comparisons to DE J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans.

The anchor of the Los Angeles Rams defensive line is now being talked about as one of the top defensive tackles in the last decade.

A year later the franchise picked running back Todd Gurley tenth overall. In his first season Gurley rushed for 1,106 yds and 10 touchdowns in just 13 games. At seasons end the former Bull Dawg was chosen as the league’s Offensive Rookie of the Year.

When all was said and done Gurley’s rookie statistics came close to matching those of future Hall of Fame tailback Adrian Petersons’ first year in the league. Peterson ran for 1,321 yds and 12 touchdowns in 2007.

Amazingly, after just 13 games Gurley has become one of the leagues premiere running backs.

Gurly and Donald had dominating performances last year, although each faced tremendous adversity. At times both men looked to be almost single-handedly willing their team to victory. Donald led one of the league’s best defenses despite losing some of its top players to injury.

On the other side of the ball,  Gurley was the one bright spot in a dismal offense. The rookie tailback  led the team in both rushing and receiving with wide receiver Tavon Austin coming in a distant second.

This season Aaron Donald will be getting some much needed help on defense from speedy linebacker Eric Ogletree. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for Gurley who will be called upon to carry the load in 2016.

The Rams have no choice but to rely heavily their starting tailback until the teams quarterback controversy between Goff and Keenum is settled. The Rams have a established a powerful “ground and pound” attack and the team is poised to seize control of the NFC West.

Two future Hall of Famers have set a new benchmark and have become the teams de facto leaders in Los Angeles. On game day look for Aaron Donald and Todd Gurley to be leading the way.