Los Angeles Rams: 3 takeaways from 33-13 win over Oakland Raiders in Week 1

1. Lack of carries by Gurley in first half

After last year’s success that consisted of finishing second in the MVP voting along with recording 2,093 yards from the line of scrimmage to go along with 19 touchdowns, expectations are higher than ever for Todd Gurley this season, especially after that hefty new contract. When looking at his workhorse mentality, Gurley is going to be the kind of player that remains on the football field as much as possible throughout the 2018 season, although it was surprising to see his lack of carries in the first half against the Raiders.

Even though Gurley finished the game with 108 rushing yards on 20 carries to go along with a key 19-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter, it was surprising to see the Rams star running back only receive five carries in the first half. Knowing McVay, the Los Angeles head coach could have easily been doing this on purpose to make sure Gurley’s legs would be fresh for the second half of the team needed to run the clock down, but this was still a surprise to see at first since the Rams trailed 13-10 at halftime.

Then again, the most important factor is that despite Gurley only having five carries in the first half, the Rams still won the game. And when seeing how McVay was able to escape the win while his running back only received 20 carries in the game, it makes the victory even more enjoyable.