Rams' Kyren Williams: Another heavy workload in win
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Williams rushed 23 times for 97 yards and secured five of seven targets for 19 yards and a touchdown in the Rams' 30-20 win over the Vikings on Thursday night.
Williams once again shouldered the bulk of the Rams' ground work, with backup Blake Corum logging only four carries. While he fell just short of his second 100-yard effort of the campaign, Williams set a new season high in receptions and recorded his second receiving touchdown of 2024 on a five-yard catch in the first quarter that opened his team's scoring on the night. The fact Williams recorded a season-high 28 touches despite the returns of both Puka Nacua (knee) and Cooper Kupp (ankle) was certainly encouraging, and the third-year back should once again be a pivotal figure during the Rams' Week 9 road NFC West clash against the Seahawks on Sunday, Nov. 3.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Two trips to end zone
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Williams took 21 carries for 76 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 20-15 win over Las Vegas.
Williams was the star on offense for the Rams while scoring both of his team's touchdowns en route to victory. The 2023 breakout star has continued his success from last season, scoring at least one touchdown in every game so far this season. Williams' nine combined trips to the end zone brought him into a tie with the Ravens' Derrick Henry for the league lead in touchdowns. The 23-year-old Williams faces a stiff test against Minnesota's defense on a short week this Thursday, but he remains a top fantasy option in every format.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Three TDs in upset victory
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Williams rushed 24 times for 89 yards and two touchdowns while adding 27 yards and a third score on two receptions in Sunday's 27-24 win over San Francisco.
Williams pounded in his third and fourth rushing touchdowns of the season in the Rams' first win of 2024. Los Angeles' lead back ceded just two touches to backup Ronnie Rivers, further cementing his status as a fantasy stud given the Rams' current lack of superstars on offense. Williams should be an automatic fantasy start ahead of a Week 4 matchup against Chicago.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Expected to return punts
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Williams is expected to operate as the Rams' punt returner to open the 2024 season, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Williams is coming off of a rather productive second professional season, registering 1,144 yards and 12 touchdowns on 228 carries while also adding 32 catches for 206 yards and three more scores over 12 contests in 2023. In regards to him operating as a punt returner in 2024, head coach Sean McVay believes that having the ball in the running back's hands more often is a good thing, saying that "it's another opportunity for him to get touches and impact the game." Williams is competing with rookie Blake Corum and Ronnie Rivers for touches out of the backfield with Los Angeles this season, though Williams currently is the clear-cut No. 1 option for the team.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Gets back on practice field
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Williams (foot) is participating in on-field workouts Thursday.
Williams missed most of OTAs due to a foot injury, but he's returned to the field for the final day of voluntary activities and appears to be handling on-field drills without limitations. Coach Sean McVay continuously downplayed the severity of Williams' injury, and it looks like the starting running back will indeed be ready to go for the start of mandatory minicamp June 10. The Rams could still opt to cap Williams' workload at practice if there are any concerns about his recovery, but it looks like he could be in position to handle the majority of first-team reps during minicamp, with rookie third-round pick Blake Corum, Boston Scott, Ronnie Rivers and Zach Evans working behind him.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Foot injury downplayed
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Williams, who is dealing with a foot injury that he sustained while training this spring, per Adam Grosbard of The Orange County Register, won't take part in the Rams' offseason program, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports.
That said, Barshop adds that coach Sean McVay has downplayed Williams' foot issue, noting that it's "nothing to worry about. He'll be ready to go for training camp." As the coming season approaches, the 2022 fifth-rounder remains atop the Rams' RB depth chart, with rookie third-rounder Blake Corum, Boston Scott, Ronnie Rivers and Zach Evans providing the team with backfield depth. Of the aforementioned backups, Corum could be the most notable threat to the 2024 workload of the 5-foot-9, 194-pound Williams.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Could lose some work to Corum
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Rams coach Sean McVay said Saturday that third-round pick Blake Corum reminds him a lot of Williams (hand), Stu Jackson of the team's official site reports.
McVay isn't the first to make that comparison, and while it's arguably a compliment that the Rams sought out a similar player, it also means Williams could cede more work to backups than he did last year. The comparison between the two players is imperfect, with Corum being an inch shorter yet 11 pounds heavier (based on combine measurements) and having enjoyed a far more prolific college career in terms of rushing stats. On the other hand, Williams was much more active as a pass catcher in his college days, and he's since proven to be a quality player at the NFL level, scoring 15 TDs in 12 games last season while averaging a league-high 95.3 rushing yards per game. He thus figures to remain the lead back, though he now has much lower odds to match the massive snap shares he handled last season (90 percent or higher five times, 77 percent or higher nine times). The hand fracture Williams suffered in a playoff loss to Detroit shouldn't impact his preparation for 2024.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Undergoes procedure on hand
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Head coach Sean McVay said that Williams underwent a successful procedure Tuesday to repair a broken bone in his hand, Adam Grosbard of The Orange County Register reports.
Williams, who suffered the injury in this past Sunday's 24-23 wild-card round loss to the Lions, will have plenty of time to recover before the Rams take the field again in OTAs this coming spring. Heading into the start of the 2023 season, Williams was expected to work behind Cam Akers in the team's backfield. However, by Week 2, Williams moved into a starting role that resulted in the 2022 fifth-round pick logging 228 carries for 1,144 yard and 12 touchdowns to go along with 32 catches (on 48 targets) for 206 yards and three more scores in 12 regular-season games. Looking ahead to the 2024 season, Williams projects to remain the Rams' lead back, though Los Angeles could look to add more viable competition through the draft and/or free agency. Beyond Williams, 2023 sixth-round pick Zach Evans is the only Rams running back currently under contract for the upcoming season, as Ronnie Rivers and Royce Freeman are slated for exclusive-rights free agency and unrestricted free agency, respectively.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Hurts hand in playoff debut
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Williams (hand) is questionable to return to Sunday's wild-card round game against the Lions.
Williams went back to the locker room in the fourth quarter to have the injury examined, leaving Ronnie Rivers as the top option in Los Angeles' backfield. Prior to the injury, Williams rushed 13 times for 61 yards and caught his lone target for nine yards in his playoff debut.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Sitting out in Week 18
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Rams head coach Sean McVay said Williams won't play Sunday in San Francisco, Greg Beacham of the Associated Press reports.
Along with Williams, quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Cooper Kupp are among the healthy skill-position players for the Rams that won't see action in the regular-season finale while Los Angeles has already secured a wild-card spot. Williams thus will end his second season as a pro with 228 carries for 1,144 yards and 12 touchdowns and 32 catches (on 48 targets) for 206 yards and three more scores in 12 contests.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Three TDs in Week 17 win
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Williams rushed 20 times for 87 yards and three touchdowns while catching both of his targets for 14 yards in Sunday's 26-25 win over the Giants.
Williams opened the scoring with a four-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, then scored again from two yards out in the third before adding a 28-yard touchdown in the fourth. He's up to 12 rushing touchdowns in 12 games, and Williams has exceeded 100 scrimmage yards in each of his last seven appearances. The Rams can clinch a playoff spot if things break right for them in the remaining Week 17 games, but if Los Angeles still has something to play for Week 18, Williams would be a near-automatic start against a 49ers team that has already clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Spectacular showing in return
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Williams (ankle) rushed 16 times for 143 yards and brought in all six targets for 61 yards and two touchdowns in the Rams' 37-14 win over the Cardinals on Sunday.
The second-year back looked more effective than ever in his return from a four-game stay on injured reserve, compiling a career-high rushing yardage total while also bringing in scoring grabs of 15 and three yards. Williams' reception total also led the Rams on the afternoon and tied the versatile back's season high. Williams clearly looks completely back to full health after ripping off multiple explosive runs, including a game-high 56-yarder, and he'll next take aim at an inconsistent Browns run defense in a Week 13 home matchup.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Turns in week of full practices
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Williams (ankle) was listed as a full practice participant Friday for the third day in a row and doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game in Arizona, though the Rams haven't yet activated him from injured reserve, Stu Jackson of the Rams' official site reports.
Williams was designated for return from IR after missing each of the Rams' last four games, but his ability to resume practicing the first week he was eligible to do so while facing no restrictions suggests he'll be added back to the 53-man roster before Saturday's 4 p.m. ET deadline for Week 12 transactions. In his looming return to action Sunday, Williams should settle back in as the Rams' lead back, though head coach Sean McVay told Cameron DaSilva of USA Today that he's mindful of taking some snaps off the second-year player's plate in an effort to ease him in. "I think we want to be able to give him a good workload, but I think that was something we had identified [previously]," McVay said of Williams, who will be backed up by Royce Freeman on Sunday. "Exactly what that balance looks like, you want to be able to ride the hot hand, you want to make sure that you're able to get him in the flow of the game, but 95 percent is something that we definitely want to be mindful of taking some snaps off him." Williams had played at least 73 percent of the snaps in each of his five games as the Rams' starting running back prior to landing on IR, averaging 16.4 carries and 4.4 targets during those contests.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Logs full practice Wednesday
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Rams head coach Sean McVay said Williams (ankle) will be a full practice participant Wednesday, Adam Grosbard of The Orange County Register reports.
On the same day in which the Rams designated Williams for return from injured reserve, the running back "looked like he was full speed during walkthrough just now," per McVay. The team likely will want Williams to string together multiple uncapped practices before activating him from IR, but he seems poised to miss the minimum four games due to a sprained left ankle. The Rams will need to add Williams back on the active roster by Saturday at 4 p.m. ET for him to have a chance to play Sunday at Arizona.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Expected back Week 12
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Coach Sean McVay said Tuesday he expects Williams (knee) to return from IR in time to suit up versus the Cardinals in Week 12, Stu Jackson of the Rams' official site reports.
Williams' earliest eligible return date from injured reserve is Week 12, and it looks like he's on track to meet that timeline. Los Angeles currently has a bye this week and will then take on the Seahawks in Week 11, which will give Darrell Henderson and Royce Freeman another chance to lead the backfield, but it appears Williams will be back in the mix for a road game in Arizona on Nov. 26. It remains to be seen, however, whether he will immediately regain his No. 1 role, or whether he will return to a committee situation.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Surprisingly goes to IR
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Williams (ankle) was placed on injured reserve Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Head coach Sean McVay didn't seem optimistic Williams would return in relatively quick fashion following an ankle injury in Sunday's win over the Cardinals, but the initial reports didn't seem to indicate the second-year back would need a stint on injured reserve. As a result, Williams won't be eligible to return until Week 12 -- all the way at the end of November. It's unclear who will step up and assume the larger share of what figures to be a significant backfield-by-committee, as the likes of Zach Evans, Royce Freeman, Myles Gaskin and likely practice-squad elevation Darrell Henderson all could see some work in the ensuing weeks.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: No activity Wednesday
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Williams (ankle), whom coach Sean McVay said Wednesday won't play Sunday against the Steelers, didn't practice Wednesday.
Williams is expected to miss multiple weeks due to a sprained ankle that he suffered this past Sunday against the Cardinals, so his lack of practice activity shortly after the injury doesn't come as a surprise. However, he was spotted with a cast on his left ankle and also needed a scooter to get around during Wednesday's session, per Adam Grosbard of The Orange County Register. With Ronnie Rivers' (knee) landing on injured reserve Wednesday, the Rams now are down their top two running backs for at least one game, leaving rookie sixth-rounder Zach Evans as the team's likely No. 1 back heading into the Week 7 matchup with Pittsburgh. Behind Evans, the Rams have Royce Freeman and Myles Gaskin on the active roster and Darrell Henderson on the practice squad.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Won't play this week
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Rams head coach Sean McVay confirmed that Williams (ankle) won't play Sunday against the Steelers, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.
Earlier reports suggested Williams likely would miss multiple games and return either Week 9 or Week 11, with the Rams being on bye in the week in between. McVay didn't elaborate much on Williams' outlook beyond this week, but the Rams' top back will miss his first game of the season Sunday. Meanwhile, Williams' top backup, Ronnie Rivers (knee), is headed for injured reserve, leaving the Rams with Zach Evans, Myles Gaskin and Royce Freeman as their available options out of the backfield.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Multi-week absence expected
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Williams (ankle) is expected to miss multiple contests but should return to action after the Rams' Week 10 bye at the latest, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.
Adam Schefter of ESPN previously reported Monday that Williams was likely to miss the Rams' Week 7 game against the Steelers due to the sprained ankle he sustained late in this past Sunday's 26-9 victory against the Cardinals, but Fowler suggests the running back could be in line to miss more time beyond this week. If Williams is in sidelined through the Rams' bye, he would be in line to miss three games before returning to action Nov. 19 against the Seahawks. With backup Ronnie Rivers (knee) expected to miss 4-to-5 weeks due to an injury of his own, the Rams' lead backfield role could thus be up for grabs with matchups against the Steelers, Cowboys and Packers on deck. Though head coach Sean McVay hasn't revealed his plans for the backfield, he intimated that rookie sixth-round pick Zach Evans may get the first chance to start, per Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com reports. Even so, Evans may not be handed a clear lead role, as the Rams signed Royce Freeman off their practice squad and Myles Gaskin off Minnesota's practice squad to bolster their backfield. The team also added veteran Darrell Henderson to the practice squad.
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Rams' Kyren Williams: Set for MRI
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Williams (ankle) will undergo an MRI on Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
The MRI should provide more details about the ankle injury Williams sustained late in the Rams' 26-9 victory over the Cardinals on Sunday, when he handled 20 carries for a career-high 158 yards and a touchdown. The second-year pro left Sunday's game without a boot on his injured ankle, but until his MRI results are in, it'll be difficult to project how much time, if any, Williams might have to miss. Meanwhile, backup Ronnie Rivers (knee) is believed to be dealing with a PCL sprain and also will receive an MRI.
