Todd Gurley Becomes 3rd Rookie in Rams History to Reach 1,000 Rushing Yards

During the first half of Thursday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, St. Louis Rams running back Todd Gurley became just the third rookie in team history to rush for 1,000 yards. He posted only 26 yards in the game's first 30 minutes, but the Rams were up big on the Bucs at the half, 21-3.

Gurley is in good company, as the two other Rams who achieved the same feat are Hall of Famers Eric Dickerson and Jerome Bettis, per NFL Total Access.

With two games left to play this season, NFL Network's Andrew Siciliano pointed out this is quite a feat that Gurley has accomplished:

Recovering from a torn ACL he suffered during his final season at the University of Georgia in November 2014, the 21-year-old had to wait until Week 3 to make his debut. In his first game, he rushed the ball just six times for nine yards.

Beginning in Week 4, though, after receiving the nod to start, Gurley put together four consecutive games of 125 rushing yards or more, including 159 against the Green Bay Packers in Week 5. 

His play garnered high praise from veteran wide receiver Wes Welker.

"He’s just kind of a freak,” Welker said, speaking with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Benjamin Hochman. “When you see him get through that first line of defense, there’s a good chance he’s gone."

Gurley has exhibited uncatchable speed at times this season with exceptional vision to navigate through defenses. 

Entering Thursday night, he was averaging 88.6 yards per game on 5.2 yards per carry. Those kind of numbers can take a lot of pressure off of an offense because it knows it has a player who can gain half of a first down every time he touches the ball. 

It's clear the Rams have something special in their rookie running back. If he continues to excel, this is an offensive cornerstone to build a playoff team around.

Stats courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com.