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Todd Jerome Gurley II (born August 3, 1994) is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons, primarily with the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, earning first-team All-SEC honors. He was selected by the Rams with the 10th overall pick of the 2015 NFL draft.
Gurley immediately made an impact in his first season by rushing for over 1,000 yards and winning Offensive Rookie of the Year. From 2017 to 2018, he twice led the league in rushing and was named AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year in the former. He also received three Pro Bowl and two first-team All-Pro selections.
During the 2018 playoffs, Gurley began to struggle with injuries that led to the Rams releasing him after the 2019 season. He played for the Atlanta Falcons the following year in 2020. Gurley announced his retirement in 2022 after spending a year in free agency.
Gurley was also a world-class hurdler and sprinter for the school's track & field team. He competed for Team USA in the 110-metres hurdles at the 2011 World Youth Championships in Athletics, where he placed 3rd in the prelims with a career-best time of 13.66 seconds, but finished 15th overall in the semifinals. Also a top competitor in the 100-meter dash, he ran a personal-best time of 10.70 seconds in the prelims of the 2011 NCHSAA 2A State Track Meet, placing 2nd.
Gurley was considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, and was listed as the fifth best running back in his class. He committed to the University of Georgia to play college football under then-head coach Mark Richt.
In the 2012 season, Gurley started 12 of 14 games and rushed for 1,385 yards on 222 carries with 17 rushing touchdowns. His 17 rushing touchdowns finished tied for third in a single season in school history. Gurley finished second in the SEC in rushing yards, only trailing Johnny Manziel. After the season, Gurley was named First-Team All-SEC by the AP. He was one of two true freshman running backs to accomplish this feat in 2012, the other player being T. J. Yeldon of Alabama.
In the spring of 2013, Gurley joined the Georgia Bulldogs indoor track team. He competed in the 60-meter hurdles, and recorded the seventh-fastest time in school history at 8.12 seconds, to take sixth place at the VT Elite Meet.
On September 27, 2015, Gurley made his NFL debut against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3. He was eased into action and finished the game with six rushes for nine yards in the 12–6 loss. The following week, the Rams visited the undefeated Arizona Cardinals for an NFC West divisional matchup. Gurley started slow with just two rushing yards at halftime, but rushed for 144 yards in the second half as the Rams edged the Cardinals by a score of 24–22. The next three games against the Green Bay Packers, Cleveland Browns, and the San Francisco 49ers would see Gurley rush for at least 128 rushing yards per game. He scored his first NFL touchdown on October 25, 2015, against the Browns the Week 7 matchup. With 566 yards in his first four NFL starts, Gurley became the most prolific rusher in his first four NFL games since the AFL–NFL merger. Following the 27–6 win over the 49ers in Week 8, Gurley's jersey and cleats were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In Week 9, Gurley was held to 89 yards on 24 carries in the Rams' 21–18 overtime loss to the Minnesota Vikings. In Week 10, he was contained to just 45 rushing yards on 12 carries in a 37–13 loss to the Chicago Bears. In Week 11, Gurley rushed for 66 yards on 25 carries against the Baltimore Ravens and scored a touchdown in a 16–13 loss. In Week 12, Gurley was limited to 19 yards on nine carries in a 31–7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The following week, he was held to 41 rushing yards on nine carries in a 27–3 loss at home in the second divisional matchup against the Arizona Cardinals. In Week 14, Gurley rushed for 140 yards in the Rams' 24–14 win over the Detroit Lions. In Week 15, Gurley rushed for 48 yards, scored a touchdown, and became the third rookie in Rams history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season (Jerome Bettis and Eric Dickerson) in a 31–23 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In Week 16, Gurley rushed for 85 yards on 19 carries in a 23–17 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, becoming the second Rams rookie, the first being Dickerson in 1983, to rush for 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Gurley finished his rookie year with 1,106 rushing yards and ten touchdowns on 229 attempts despite making only 12 starts (he sat out the Rams' season-ending loss at San Francisco). On December 22, 2015, Gurley was selected to be part of the 2016 Pro Bowl along with fellow Rams players defensive lineman Aaron Donald and punter Johnny Hekker. He was named to the 2015 NFL All-Rookie Team. Gurley was one of the five rookies to be selected to the Pro Bowl, along with Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters, Seattle Seahawks wide receiver/Kickoff returner Tyler Lockett, Oakland Raiders wide receiver Amari Cooper, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston. Gurley beat out Winston for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, earning a decisive 27 votes to 17 for Winston. He was ranked 22nd by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.
Following the Rams' Week 8 bye, Gurley's output became more balanced for the next five games: he averaged 62 rushing- and 54 receiving-yards per game, with 100+ yards from scrimmage in four of them, and recording three rushing touchdowns over that time period. In Week 14, he had 96 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns on just 13 carries, along with three receptions for 39 receiving yards in an impressive-but-losing effort against the Philadelphia Eagles. In Week 15, Gurley had a career-best four touchdowns (three rushing, including a 57-yarder on 3rd and 20 with 30 seconds left in the first half) on 180 yards from scrimmage in a dominant 42–7 win over Seattle. He became the first Ram to score four touchdowns in a single game since Steven Jackson in 2006. He scored 24 total points in the game, which was the most for a single game by any player in the 2017 season. His performance in Week 15 earned him NFC Offensive Player of the Week. On December 19, Gurley was named to his second Pro Bowl as a starter. In Week 16, Gurley caught 10 passes for 158 yards and two receiving touchdowns to go along with 118 rushing yards, earning him NFC Offensive Player of the Week for the second straight week. Gurley was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for the second time that season. The playoff-bound Rams decided to have Gurley sit out the last game of the season against the San Francisco 49ers, allowing Kareem Hunt to win the title for rushing yards, but he still led the NFL with 13 rushing touchdowns, 19 total touchdowns, and 2,093 yards-from-scrimmage and all-purpose yards. He finished the season leading the league in scoring among non-kickers with 114 points. He was the 16th player in NFL history with a 750/750 rushing/receiving yard season and the eighth to record a 1,300/750 season.
Gurley played his first career post-season game in the against the Atlanta Falcons on January 6, 2018. Playing from behind most of the game, he had 14 carries for 101 rushing yards in the 26–13 home loss.
After a stellar 2017 season, Gurley was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year. He finished second in MVP voting to Tom Brady. He was ranked sixth by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.
Gurley scored the Rams' first touchdown of the season, taking a short pass from quarterback Jared Goff and going 19 yards to the end zone against the Raiders in Week 1. The touchdown was part of a 147-scrimmage yard performance for Gurley in the 33–13 victory. In Week 2, in the 34–0 victory over the Cardinals, Gurley recorded three rushing touchdowns for the second time in his professional career. In Week 3, Gurley had 23 carries for 105 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to go along with five receptions for 51 receiving yards in the 35–23 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.
In Week 5, Gurley had 77 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in the 33–31 victory over the Seahawks. In Week 6, Gurley ran 28 times for a career-high 208 yards and two touchdowns in a 23–20 win over the Denver Broncos, earning him NFC Offensive Player of the Week. In Week 7, against the 49ers, he recorded two rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown in the 39–10 victory. Gurley was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for the month of October after rushing for 462 yards and seven touchdowns and catching 16 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns through four games.
With a 17-yard touchdown run during a Week 10 victory over the Seattle Seahawks, Todd Gurley set a new team record by scoring a touchdown in 13 straight games, breaking the mark set by Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch. During a Week 12 matchup against the Lions, Gurley rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to help the Rams clinch their second straight NFC West title and was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in 2018.
Gurley scored two rushing touchdowns in a 30–23 loss to the Eagles in Week 15. He was then held out of the final two regular season games due to knee inflammation and finished the 2018 season with 256 carries for 1,251 yards and 17 touchdowns rushing, along with 59 receptions for 580 yards and four touchdowns receiving. Gurley was named to his third Pro Bowl in his four professional seasons. He was named as a First-Team All-Pro.
In the against Cowboys, Gurley ran 16 times for 115 yards and a touchdown in the Rams' 30–22 victory.
In the against the New Orleans Saints, Gurley struggled as he ran four times for 10 yards and a touchdown and had one catch for three yards in a 26–23 overtime victory to advance and play the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LIII. Leading up to the Super Bowl, Gurley's injury status was heavily discussed with reports claiming he was healthy while other reports claimed his knee was significantly more hurt than thought. In the Super Bowl, Gurley had ten carries for 35 rushing yards in the 13–3 loss to the Patriots. On March 2, 2019, it was reported that Gurley had arthritis in his left knee.
Gurley made his Falcons debut in Week 1 against the Seahawks. During the game, Gurley rushed 14 times for 56 yards and his first rushing touchdown as a Falcon in the 38–25 loss. In Week 4 against the Packers, he had 16 carries for 57 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 30–16 loss. In Week 5 against the Panthers, Gurley recorded 150 yards from scrimmage and a rushing touchdown during the 23–16 loss. In Week 7 against the Lions, he had 23 carries for 63 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 23–22 loss. His second rushing touchdown was particularly notable. The Falcons were trailing 16–14 late in the fourth quarter while driving. The Falcons were able to get into a position to run out most of the clock and kick a potential game-winning field goal. However, Gurley was given the ball and tried to stop crossing the goal line. However, he scored a touchdown with 1:04 remaining to give the Lions a chance to get the football back and win the game, which they did. Overall, Gurley finished the 2020 season with 195 carries for 678 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns to go along with 25 receptions for 164 receiving yards. Throughout the season, Gurley shared backfield carries with Brian Hill and Ito Smith.
After not playing in 2021, Gurley confirmed in an October 2022 interview that he was finished playing professional football.
| AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
Gurley was a co-founder of the M.A.D.E. Sports Foundation, which is designed to work in communities and use sports to help build character among members.
As a result of his successful 2017 season, a movement started among some fantasy football owners who owned Gurley in their leagues to donate some of their winnings to Shriners Hospitals for Children, which was Gurley's charity of choice. The initiative ended up netting over $10,000 for the hospital.
In 2018, Gurley hosted a childhood literacy initiative in partnership with Pizza Hut. The initiative was collaborating with nonprofit organization First Book to fulfill the company's goal of providing access to a quality education for needy children.
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