Lack of a running game
The Rams had the perfect formula on offense last year and in 2017. They ran the ball successfully with Todd Gurley, often out of 11 personnel with Goff under center. That kept defenses guessing, since the Rams could easily throw or run the ball out of that personnel package.
The play action was effective, Goff was efficient and Gurley was dominating, earning first-team All-Pro honors.
It’s been a different story in 2019. Gurley’s workload was reduced significantly, carrying it just 14.5 times per game compared to 18.3 last season. He’s averaging a full yard less per carry (3.9 vs. 4.9 in 2018), too, so his efficiency has dropped significantly.
The only area he’s maintained his effectiveness in is the red zone, rushing for 12 touchdowns. Gurley has been a non-factor as a receiver, catching just 29 passes for 186 yards – the lowest receiving yardage total of his career. Only seven of those receptions went for first downs, after he had 27 first-down catches in 2018 and 32 the year before.
His lack of effectiveness forced the Rams to throw the ball more frequently, which caused problems because Goff was struggling behind a terrible offensive line. It was a domino effect and it wasn’t until recently that McVay figured out a way to fix it by calling more bootlegs.