Gurley Prepping for Possible Debut?

Practice Report 9/23: Gurley Prepping for Possible Debut

Myles Simmons

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Around the league, Wednesday is considered one of the most important practice days of the week. It’s typically the session teams will go full speed and perhaps put on pads, given its proximity from the previous and upcoming game.

This week, Wednesday was a full-go practice for nearly everyone on the Rams’ active roster — including running back Todd Gurley. While Jeff Fisher has not yet tipped his hand as to whether or not the rookie will make his debut on Sunday, the head coach has said the team is ramping up Gurley’s reps. And the running back looks good on the practice field.

“He’s had two good days. He had a good day today in pads and he had a good day in the three-quarter speed practice yesterday,” said Fisher, who did not list Gurley on the injury report. “He’ll get a day off tomorrow and we’ll see how he is Friday.”

Not only is he looking good, but he’s also feeling that way, too.

“Today was a great day,” Gurley said. “I really wasn’t thinking about it too much. I was just going out there and doing me. It felt good.”

“Wednesday is our big day, so they wanted to see how I felt from Wednesday to tomorrow,” Gurley added. “We’ll have tomorrow off, and then we’ll see how it goes on Friday to Saturday.”

Given that Gurley has been rehabbing his knee since late last year, one of the factors with him returning to the game field has been getting into football shape. Gurley said Wednesday ramping up his reps has been helpful in that process.

“It’s definitely getting there,” Gurley said. “I know as far as recovery — recovery from being tired — I definitely feel a lot better. I feel like I’ve been doing a great job with that. And getting those reps is helping me a lot.”

The running back’s teammates have noticed the progress he’s made on the practice field. Though they don’t know whether or not Gurley will play either, they recognize the kind of impact he can make on the offense.

“Todd’s a talented guy,” quarterback Nick Foles said. “We all know what he did in college. He looks great in practice. He’s looking good moving around — great vision, and a real smooth runner.”

“I think he’s just another threat on the offensive side of the ball that defenses have to worry about,” right guard Rodger Saffold said. “It’s just another time to get another good player on the field.”

Gurley has maintained throughout the process that he won’t do much lobbying of the coaches to play. Instead, he’s letting his performance during the week do the talking.

“What I do outside in practice, that’ll give them a feel for how I feel and what they believe, and what they see,” Gurley said. “So it’s what I bring on the practice field that can only determine the outcome.”

And so as everyone waits to see whether Gurley will debut on Sunday, the running back said he’s just going with the flow. That is, with one caveat.

“Just going with practice and taking it a day at a time. Not looking too far ahead,” he said, later adding, “I definitely feel like myself again.”

YOUNG OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Rookie offensive linemen Rob Havenstein and Jamon Brown now have two games under their belts, and the reviews have come back positive for both.

“I think they’re doing a good job,” offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti said Wednesday. “They’re doing a great job preparing. They come out here and practice very well, and you can see in the first two weeks that there’s progress being made.”

Saffold, the veteran of the offensive line group, has already seen plenty of growth from the two rookies, and is looking forward to more.

“We’re just getting started,” Saffold said. “They’re going to be seeing some of the guys they’ve probably looked up to right across from them, so this is the way of being a rookie and going along with the ups and downs of the season. We’re trying to constantly stay up, so consistency, once again, is a big thing.”

For more on Havenstein and Brown, be sure to check out our feature story on both of them on the site tomorrow.

MORE PRAISE FOR DONALD

As discussed yesterday in this space, Sunday’s game represents a homecoming of sorts for Aaron Donald. The defensive tackle is not only from Pittsburgh, but also attended the University of Pittsburgh where he starred for the Panthers.

All that, of course, is common knowledge — as is Donald’s relentless work ethic. And Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin provided another example of how the Defensive Rookie of the Year continued to make himself better even in the dead of winter.

“Aaron Donald, besides being a special player, is a special man,” Tomlin said on a conference call with St. Louis media. “I’ve gotten to know him over the years being a neighbor over here at Pitt.”

“It was a week after the Pro Bowl and I saw him in that parking lot every morning because he was coming over to get his work like he normally does at the University of Pittsburgh,” Tomlin continued. “I saw him just about every morning in February. When a lot of guys are on beaches and vacationing, this guy was getting out of his car at 6:30 in the morning to work out. That’s not out of character based on the things that I know about him.”

Both Fisher and Tomlin are members of the competition committee, and Fisher noted on Wednesday the Steelers head coach mentioned that Donald story in one of the committee’s offseason meetings.

“Nothing different,” Fisher said of Donald. “He just gets up in the morning and goes to work and works out. He’s all about business. It’s certainly paid off for him.”