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EDITOR PICKS

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

  • Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win 15th European Cup

  • Watch: Carvajal's header delivers killer blow for Madrid in UCL final

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

  • Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win 15th European Cup

  • Watch: Carvajal's header delivers killer blow for Madrid in UCL final

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

NFL

Is Todd Gurley's increased workload sustainable?

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff has done a nice job of spreading the ball around through the season’s first quarter. Sometimes it’s Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods who take over. Or Cooper Kupp. Or one tight end (Tyler Higbee), or the other (Gerald Everett). But there has been one constant: Todd Gurley.

“I try to remind myself every week to continue to look for him,” Goff said after Sunday’s 35-30 win over the Dallas Cowboys, “and to continue to try to get him the ball in any situation possible.”

Todd Gurley has powered the Rams’ offense, which is averaging an NFL-best 35.5 points per game. Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports

Goff has stayed true to that. Gurley, with an NFC-best 596 scrimmage yards this season, leads the NFL with 106 touches through the first four games, two more than Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell. He has accounted for 53.5 percent of the Rams’ touches, which is also the most in the NFL (Bell is second at 53.3 percent). And he ranks third among NFL running backs, playing in 82.2 percent of his team’s offensive snaps (Ezekiel Elliott leads with 89.1 percent and Bell ranks second at 87.8 percent).

Is this type of workload sustainable over the course of a 16-game season.

“That’s a good question,” said Rams coach Sean McVay, who has pondered that himself. “I think a lot of it is going to be how Todd’s feeling. But you also want to make sure you have a long-term, big-picture perspective in mind with Todd because of how important he is to us. … You want him to be able to be fresh as the season progresses, as well. So whether we tailor that back or not is going to be predicated on how he feels. But right now he’s done a great job.”

Gurley has gained more than 100 yards on the ground in back-to-back weeks, after failing to reach triple-digit rushing yards in 20 straight games. He has hauled in 20 of his 22 targets, according to ESPN’s internal statistics. And he has scored seven touchdowns, one more than he scored in four times the amount of games last season.

2016 2017
Offensive snaps per game 44.4 (4th among RBs) 49.5 (4th among RBs)
Percentage of team’s snaps 74.1 (3rd among RBs) 82.2 (3rd among RBs)
Touches per game 20.1 (5th) 26.5 (1st)
Percentage of team’s touches 46.7 (2nd) 53.5 (1st)

Gurley is averaging 26.5 touches per game this season, after averaging 20.1 touches per game in 2016. Last year, he played in 74.1 percent of the Rams’ offensive snaps, more than eight percentage points lower than where it is this season. But the Rams’ internal data has shown that Gurley’s body holds up well with rigorous workloads, as does this: Gurley is averaging 2.4 yards per carry after first contact in the fourth quarter, compared to an average of 1.7 yards in the first three quarters.

Gurley has shown the ability to be an every-down back, a goal-line back and a pass-catching back. But the Rams are going to need backup running back Malcolm Brown and gadget receiver Tavon Austin, who has been used increasingly more out of the backfield, to take some of the load off Gurley from time to time. McVay brought that up on Monday, the day after Gurley gained 215 scrimmage yards at AT&T Stadium. He’s also confident in his other weapons, from Watkins to Woods to Kupp, Higbee and Everett.

“There’s a lot of different playmakers that we feel comfortable with,” McVay said, “and I think the best thing that Jared has done a good job of through the first quarter of the season is, ‘Hey, let the ball go where my progression based on the play dictates.’ That’s why I think you’re seeing guys get involved.”

Soccer

Report: Bale's Tottenham reunion in jeopardy after latest setback

Gareth Bale’s a major doubt for Real Madrid’s pair of Champions League clashes against former club Tottenham, according to the Guardian’s Stuart James.

The Welshman’s fresh calf injury, which will reportedly require up to a month of rehabilitation, is yet another setback for a player who’s struggled to stay healthy since his move to the Spanish capital in 2013. Various other muscle injuries to his hamstring and ankle have cost him dozens of matches in the royal white kit.

Bale looked like his old self in last week’s 3-1 win over Borussia Dortmund, launching a vicious volley past goalkeeper Roman Burki to kick-start the scoring.

The calf issue forced him off in the 85th minute, and he was ruled out of Wales’ final two World Cup qualifiers after missing Madrid’s weekend victory over Espanyol.

Related: Who’s whistling now? Bale silences detractors with masterful display

Madrid will host Spurs on Oct. 17 before travelling to Wembley on Nov. 1. If Bale needs more than four weeks to recover from the injury, he’ll likely be sidelined for both contests.

Bale’s yet to face the north London side in a competitive fixture since his big-money switch to the Santiago Bernabeu.

Isco stands to fill in as Bale’s replacement in Zinedine Zidane’s lineup, slotting behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema as a free-roaming No. 10. The same combination worked well as Madrid claimed its second consecutive Champions League title last season.

NFL

Pressure on Bears to devise proper game plan for Mitchell Trubisky

CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears’ decision to bench quarterback Mike Glennon in favor of Mitchell Trubisky was the right call.

The Bears could no longer live with Glennon’s mistakes — he had eight turnovers in four games — and expect to win.

But don’t expect Trubisky to a savior in Year 1.

The Bears preferred Trubisky to sit behind Glennon for a reason. With only 13 career starts at North Carolina, Trubisky is still a raw prospect. To say Trubisky is 100 percent ready to take over is overstating it.

Mitchell Trubisky will make his NFL debut in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football. Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

The onus is now on offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains to craft the proper game plan for Trubisky on Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings. The Bears have to keep it simple.

Chicago is incredibly weak at wide receiver. The Bears have dropped eight passes as a team this season, tied for third most in the NFL, and four of those drops have come in the red zone, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The Bears’ leading receiver this season is Kendall Wright, who currently ranks 69th league-wide in receiving yards.

The wide receiver situation is unlikely to improve.


• Statistics
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The Bears need to overcome that by allowing Trubisky to attack the edge against the Vikings. Trubisky showed during the summer that he’s capable of making plays outside the pocket; therefore, the Bears should roll out Trubisky whenever possible to cut the field in half.

The Bears have to push the ball downfield more often with Trubisky. The offense was very predictable in the first quarter of the year because there was no threat of Glennon beating the defense deep. In fact, the Bears barely even attempted to stretch the field vertically. That needs to change with Trubisky, and it probably will; at least an effort will be made to occasionally take the top off the defense.

Of course, the Bears must maintain the identity of a running football team to help Trubisky.

The good news is that the Bears are averaging 4.6 yards per rush this season, good for seventh best in the NFL, and Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen each rank in the top 25 in rushing this season.

The important thing to remember is that Trubisky’s NFL debut won’t be flawless. Without question, the second pick will make his share of mistakes against a very good Minnesota defense. Trubisky will be only the sixth quarterback taken in the first-round to make his first career start on Monday Night Football.

Talk about pressure.

But the franchise has to move forward. Glennon was living on borrowed time anyway.

Trubisky is the only one that can usher the Bears out of the NFL abyss.

Soccer

FIFA 18 Ratings Analysis: Defenders

Gianluca Nesci

3d ago

Denis Doyle / Getty Images Sport / Getty

theScore’s Gianluca Nesci takes a deep dive into the ratings from the newly released FIFA 18 video game.

F | MF | D | GK | FUT Icons

Defender Club Rating
Sergio Ramos Real Madrid 90
Giorgio Chiellini Juventus 89
Leonardo Bonucci AC Milan 88
Thiago Silva Paris Saint-Germain 88
Mats Hummels Bayern Munich 88
Diego Godin Atletico Madrid 88
Jerome Boateng Bayern Munich 88
Marcelo Real Madrid 87
Gerard Pique Barcelona 87
Alex Sandro Juventus 86

“Sergio Ramos? He’s the best defender in the world.”

Leonardo Bonucci clearly isn’t the only one who thinks so.

The AC Milan centre-back anointed his Spanish peer as the world’s premier player in his position this past summer, and the FIFA 18 ratings reflect that claim; Ramos stands atop the heap, barely edging Bonucci’s compatriot and former Juventus teammate, Giorgio Chiellini.

An injury-plagued 2017 sees Jerome Boateng take the biggest hit from last year’s edition, though the imposing defender’s well-rounded skill set, alongside that of countryman Mats Hummels, still makes Bayern Munich’s backline a daunting unit to break down.

Further down the list, the retirement of longtime kingpin Philipp Lahm makes room for Real Madrid’s afro-clad star to assume the mantle as the game’s best full-back; Marcelo, who plays with the attacking flair of a No. 10, is well worth his rating, while fellow Brazilian left-back Alex Sandro isn’t far behind after a marvellous season dominating the flank for Juventus.

More FIFA 18 ratings analysis:

F | MF | D | GK | FUT Icons

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Soccer

  • Watch: Carvajal's header delivers killer blow for Madrid in UCL final

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

  • An introduction to Top Soccer News on theScore ??

  • Real Madrid beat Dortmund to win 15th European Cup

  • Police arrest dozens of ticket-less fans at Wembley final

  • Dortmund boss Terzic lauds 'brilliant' Sancho after UCL defeat

  • Modric, Kroos among Madrid stars to make history with latest UCL triumph

  • Madrid's inevitability is a superpower no rival can match

  • Transfer window preview: 50 players who could move this summer

  • Vinicius Jr. named Champions League Player of the Season

“If you think about it, I've never held a job in my life. I went from being an NFL player to a coach to a broadcaster. I haven't worked a day in my life.”
-John Madden


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