McVay: Rams could rely on Darrell Henderson vs 49ers...

Sean McVay says Rams could rely on rookie RB Darrell Henderson vs. 49ers

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Cameron DaSilva

The combination of Todd Gurley’s balky knee and Darrell Henderson’s draft position had everyone raving about the rookie running back’s potential role in the Rams offense. Five weeks into the 2019 season, Henderson has played a total of two snaps.

Both of those plays came in the season opener when Gurley and Malcolm Brown were winded with the Rams knocking on the door of the end zone. Henderson carried the ball once for no gain and ran a route on the following play, but wasn’t targeted.

His lack of involvement on offense has been startling to many, but that could change on Sunday against the 49ers. Gurley is dealing with a thigh bruise and is uncertain to play. Malcolm Brown would get the start in his place, but Henderson might get meaningful playing time.

“I think we just want to take it a day at a time. A lot of these conversations entail, ‘All right, how’s he feeling, what kind of progress does he make throughout the course of the week?’” McVay said of Gurley on Wednesday. “Fortunately for us, we’ve got some depth at that position. We’ve talked about it, whether it’s this week, at some point, the confidence we have in Malcolm There’s also going to be a time that we’re going to rely on Darrell Henderson, it might end up being this week.”

That’s a fairly strong statement by McVay, saying the Rams are going to “rely on Darrell Henderson” at some point. It’s one thing to give the rookie snaps, but it’s another to lean on him.

He seems ready for any opportunity he gets, posting this on Instagram a few days ago with the caption, “Stay ready young bull.”

It’s been difficult to get Henderson on the field, given the Rams’ lack of opportunities in the running game. Gurley and Brown haven’t had much success on the ground or as receivers and their chances have been limited by the Rams falling behind in recent weeks.

Henderson is an explosive player who’s also a very capable receiver. At Memphis, he averaged 8.9 yards per carry in each of the last two seasons. He also caught 63 passes in three seasons, turning them into 758 yards and eight touchdowns.

He ran in mostly a zone blocking scheme, too, which is what the Rams use – and with a lot of success in recent years. Henderson is a perfect fit in Los Angeles’ offense and he could provide a spark in multiple ways.