Outside of injured players, Todd Gurley was one of the most underutilized stars in the preseason last year. He entered the regular season with just four preseason carries under his belt, and not because he was hurt.

Jeff Fisher and the Los Angeles Rams decided to hold out their star running back for three of the four preseason games last year, only playing him in the second. Gurley already matched his total from last preseason this year, toting the rock four times in the opener against the Cowboys.

Needless to say, Sean McVay isn’t going to approach Gurley’s workload the same way Fisher did a year ago. He’s going to give his stud running back much more work in the coming weeks.

“Yeah, that’s the plan and we discuss those things as the preseason progresses with our coaches,” McVay said of whether Gurley’s workload will increase going forward. “But, the plan is right now for our starters to get progressive work through the third preseason game and Todd’s a very important part of what we want to do. I also think this preseason offers us a unique opportunity to get him some touches, being mindful of that we do want to allow him to be at his best by the time we play the Colts. But, especially being in a new system and just for the overall continuity of our offense, I think it’s important for him to be out there with those guys and that’s the goal and that’s the plan right now.”

One thing McVay did make evident is that Gurley is a player who always wants to be out there competing. As a result, “you have to be mindful of protecting himself from himself because he works so hard,” McVay said.

It’s impossible to determine whether last year’s lack of action in the preseason led Gurley to become one of the worst running backs in the league in 2016, but it certainly didn’t help. He averaged just 3.2 yards per carry last season and didn’t come close to reaching 1,000 yards rushing despite having 49 more attempts than he had as a rookie.

If the Rams are to have any success in 2017 and make a run at the playoffs, Gurley is going to have to be the player he was two years ago, and not the one that struggled through all of last season. Getting a head start on that in the preseason could be the key.