Rams keeping three running backs on 53-man roster will pay off

In a surprise move, the Los Angeles Rams only kept three running backs on the 53-man roster for the 2019 season.

Leading up to Saturday’s deadline for the 53-man roster, there was plenty of speculation over the Los Angeles Rams making moves at running back, mainly when it comes to John Kelly and Justin Davis.

Despite some of the uncertainty surrounding Todd Gurley heading into Week 1 due to his knee, the last thing the Rams wanted to do is keep too many running backs around on the roster since there were other positions to address with spots as well.

With that being said, Saturday’s deadline for cuts came with plenty of surprises for Los Angeles, ranging from Dakota Allen to John Franklin-Myers.

And while the Rams were also expected to make a decision at running back between Davis or Kelly, the argument can be made that seeing both running backs fail to earn a spot on the 53-man roster came as a surprise.

While Davis was in a difficult position since there was no chance of the running back moving ahead of Malcolm Brown or Darrell Henderson on the depth chart, Kelly seemed to be the one with a better chance of earning a spot on the roster.

Based off last summer when Kelly turned out to be a surprise impact player for the Rams, it seemed like only a matter of time before Sean McVay figured out a way to get the running back more involved on offense.

Apparently, this is no longer the case after Los Angeles trimmed down their roster to 53 players before Saturday’s deadline with only three running backs (Gurley, Brown, and Henderson).

As previously mentioned, with Gurley’s knee continuing to be a question heading into Week 1, this decision by Los Angeles may draw some concerns since they could arguably use some extra insurance.

But when taking into consideration that neither Davis nor Kelly would have seen much action anyway, Rams fans should be fully supportive over this decision by the team since the spots could be used as other positions.

Now, the only question that remains for Los Angeles is what to expect from this trio of running backs next Sunday when the Rams take on the Carolina Panthers.

Knowing McVay with his amazing offensive mindset, it’s going to be fun watching these three running backs over the next few months if all goes according to plan.