Los Angeles Rams: 3 reasons John Kelly deserves backup role over Malcolm Brown

2. Kelly has led team in rushing each preseason game

With Gurley getting plenty of rest from game action over the last couple of weeks, McVay and the Rams have been able to see what some of the backup running backs were able to do with additional playing time. For Kelly, the rookie running back has arguably benefitted the most from Gurley receiving the rest every game to date since he’s seen the most action, and as a result, the Los Angeles running back has led the team in rushing yards during each contest.

A few weeks ago, Brown seemed like the early favorite to be the one to lead the team in rushing yards with Gurley watching each preseason game from the sidelines since some believed he was a lock for the backup role. Not to mention, there were some Rams fans that believed Davis would emerge with some significant playing time, which looked like the case after the first game before he started dealing with a hamstring injury.

It’s not often a sixth-round pick ends up being the leading rusher for a team in the preseason when he was deep on the depth chart heading in, but that’s exactly been the case for Kelly. And if Kelly can figure out a way to make this kind of impact during the regular season when it matters the most, it’s going to make Los Angeles feel even better about their late selection from this year’s draft.