Rams RB Kyren Williams negotiations need surgical precision to end as a win-win

There are many reasons for the Los Angeles Rams to extend featured running back Kyren Williams. He has been a dependable offensive force for the past two NFL seasons. And it's been the productive running of Williams that has turned the Rams seasons around from a pedestrian start to an electrifying finish in both 2023 and 2024.

It's been Williams, coupled with the exploits of wide receiver Puka Nacua, that has continued the tradition of the Rams offense as remaining so very dangerous. So it's no small wonder why Rams fans are so eager for the team to extend Williams. After all, 2025 is his last season with the Rams on his rookie contract. So after 2025, it's either bye-bye to the NFL Free Agency market to sign with a new team, or an extension to stick around.

And right now, Williams is "feeling good" about his chances to hammer out a contract extension.

Cause to celebrate? Let's push a pin in the euphoria and jubilation for a moment.

After the Rams appeared in Super Bowl LIII, the team boasted some of the highest payouts in the NFL for multiple players. But the return on some of those lucrative contracts was bad. The Rams quickly parted ways with RB Todd Gurley, WR Brandin Cooks, and QB Jared Goff. So it appears that handing out sacks of cash is not always a wise strategy.

But surely Kyren Williams is different, right? He is not suffering from any controversy over the durability or health of his knees. He has been productive. But let's not be so blinded by the light that we fail to notice the imperfections in both the Rams' offensive strategy and Williams' performance. We highlighted seven reasons why the Rams should not rush into an extension.

I'm not suggesting that Kyren WIlliams is not deserving of an extension. But if you have ever entered contract negotiations, the best contracts are the ones that address almost every possible scenario and include specific remedies to each scenario that both sides can agree to. The Rams were forced to part ways with Gurley, Cooks, and Goff because their contracts failed to address the scenarios that eventually confronted the team.

Without satisfactory options spelled out in the contract, the team was forced to part ways with players who underperformed the contracts they were on. And that is something that the team, and player, should take the time to avoid this time around.

The devil is in the details

When it comes to contracts, player positions are rather simple. It's about guaranteed money. Regardless of health, durability, number of snaps, or in a running back's case, number of carries, the player wants to know that he has a paycheck coming in, and that makes complete sense. Imagine working for a company that simply does not pay you if you get injured at work.

And the NFL is incredibly dangerous in terms of the number and severity of injuries incurred to players each season.

But it's the opposite perspective for the team. If a player is injured, the team must pick up the slack, pay another player, and be left holding the bag for paying two players for the same position. And the team wants to get the best performance out of players for the money. Few contracts have compensation tied to starting versus backup roles or total yards versus yards per carry. Teams pay for a player to make the roster. After that, it's up to the discretion of the coaching staff.

But the Rams struggle to optimize the talent in the running back room.

Williams suffers from a heavy workload. He is less explosive. He fumbles more often. And he runs a greater risk of injury. Even his effectiveness declined in 2024, as his yards per carry showed significant decline.

The Rams carried four running backs in 2024. But how did the team distribute the number of carries last season? Let's take a look, using snap count data compiled by Lineups.com.

• Kyren Williams - 888 snaps | 316 carries | 1,299 yards | 14 TDs
• Blake Corum - 119 snaps | 58 carries | 207 yards | 0 TDs
• Ronnie Rivers - 81 snaps | 22 carries | 99 yards | 0 TDs
• Cody Schrader - 2 snaps | 1 carry | 3 yards | 0 TDs

As you can see, the Rams directed nearly 82 percent of the offensive snaps to Williams. If they intend to modify his workload in 2025, the contract extension must reflect that changing workload. The Rams must do a better job of dispatching offensive opportunities. Why?

The Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers were dominant offenses in 2024. Both teams managed to get far more out of their running games by platooning their top two running backs last season. The Rams were unable to get Corum actively involved in the offense in 2024.

And now, the Rams have added another pair of talented running backs to the mix in Jarquez Hunter and Jordan Waters.

If the Rams intend to continuously add a new layer of rookie running backs to the roster, when does this team reach a point of saturation? If you examine the workload from 2024, you could reasonably conclude that the point was reached as soon as the team extended Ronnie Rivers.

NFL teams only have so much to spend. And right now, the Rams are spending far more on offense than defense. Per OverTheCap.com, the Rams are spending nearly 2.5 times more on offense than defense. Should the Rams ignore the needs of the defense and simply keep cutting checks for offensive players?

The Rams may need to stop, look, and listen. With the running back room also boasting Blake Corum, Ronnie Rivers, Cody Schrader, Jarquez Hunter, and Jordan Waters, where do the Rams get the best bang for the buck?

If team extends Williams, who is on the short list to make Rams roster?

I've argued the reasoning behind paring down the number of running backs on the 53-man Rams roster in 2025. If the team hopes to be effective for 17 games, the Rams need to do a better job of matching the number of players on the roster to the number of opportunities given to that positional group.

The Rams adhere to one running back per play. By rights, the team should limit the number of running backs on the roster to three. Right now, the team boasts six running backs on the roster. So, who goes? It would be simple if the Rams witnessed breakout players at the running back position in training camp and the preseason. But that's a difficult scenario to realize.

Players who impress in training camp or are presumed starters in 2025 will never see preseason action. Players who excel in preseason are already fighting an uphill battle just to make the roster. And it's that lack of head-to-head comparative performances that makes it very difficult for the team to reveal the depth chart to fans until preseason games arrive. Even then, don't expect many changes to who makes the roster and who does not make the Rams roster after preseason starts, even if a running back shines like an NFL star.

• Kyren Williams | Age: 24 | 5-foot-9 | 202 pounds | 4 yrs in NFL | 4.65-second 40
• Cody Schrader | Age: 25 | 5-foot-9 | 214 pounds | 2 yrs in NFL | 4.61-second 40
• Ronnie Rivers | Age: 24 | 5-foot-9 | 192 pounds | 4 yrs in NFL | 4.60-second 40
• Blake Corum | Age: 24 | 5-foot-8 | 210 pounds | 2 yrs in NFL | 4.53-second 40
• Jarquez Hunter | Age: 22 | 5-foot-9 | 204 pounds | Rookie | 4.44-second 40
• Jordan Waters | Age 24 | 6-foot-0 | 210 pounds | Rookie | 4.59-second 40

So, who is on the short- list to make the Rams roster in 2025? Let's run down the list:

(6) - Jordan Waters

While I am thrilled over the upside of 6-foot-0, 215-pound rookie running back Jordan Waters, I fear he is simply the token big back who doesn't stand much of a chance at making the Rams roster. But he is faster than three of the six running backs, towers over the group, and has enough weight and power to make a huge difference. He may not make the active roster, but he has better than even odds of signing on the practice squad.

(5) - Cody Schrader

The Rams loved Cody Schrader so much that the team claimed him off the San Francisco 49ers' waiver wire. The thing is, he spent an entire year on the Rams roster and didn't deliver anything. He is slightly bigger and slightly faster than Kyren Williams. The problem is, if he didn't see action in 2024, he has even more competition for playing time in 2025. There is simply not enough room on the roster for everyone. Whatever the Rams loved in 2024 never showed up on a football field.

(4) - Ronnie Rivers

Veteran Ronnie Rivers is the smallest running back of the group, and he also boasts the most experience behind featured RB Kyren Williams. In the NFL realm of roster slots, is that enough to ensure inclusion in 2025? The Rams parted ways with veteran RB Boston Scott in 2024, so no. Ronnie Rives is a surprise cut from the team's 53-man roster. If he clears waivers, the team will certainly bring him back on the practice squad.

(3) - Blake Corum

It's been a year, and I still have no answer as to why rookie RB Blake Corum was not deployed more in 2024. While slightly shorter than Kyren Williams, he is heavier and faster. Still, other rookie runners drafted far later than Corum had productive rookie seasons. Was it Corum's shortcomings? Or do the Rams simply deliberately avoid putting rookie running backs into games? Whatever the reasons, that matters will need to be resolved in 2025. Corum makes the roster. Still, he has an uphill battle. He didn't get much work and was injured in Week 18 of 2024.

(2) - Jarquez Hunter

Jarquez Hunter has a real shot to not only make the Rams roster but to leapfrog Corum to earn a larger role in the offense. He is the fastest running back on the team, affording the chance to explode for huge gains on any play. That is something this offense desperately needs. But at 2024 pounds, he is much stronger than you might expect. He is a north-south running back who can move the pile to gain a first down or to score a touchdown. The Rams need to get him chances. If he plays, he stays. He brings a new dimension to the Rams' offense.

(1) - Kyren Williams

Addition by subtraction? Yes, that's right. This team should target 200 to 225 carries for Kyren Williams in 2025. He was a far more effective runner with fewer carries, and he managed to have a much better handle on the football. If the team is concerned about too many changes impacting the players' feel for the game, then sit Williams once out of every third game. The team can use that downtime to get opportunities for Jarquez Hunter and Blake Corum.

The Rams' rushing offense was not good in 2025. It's not because Williams could not run well, but because the team did not allow any other players to get significant carries. The Detroit Lions split 435 carries between Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers split 351 carries between rookie RB Bucky Irving and veteran Rachaad White.

The Rams took notice. Now, it's a matter of implementing that strategy and getting far more production out of a group of talented runners.

Kyren Williams may feel good about contract negotiations, but the team must drastically alter the way they use him in the offense this season. He is surrounded by talented teammates. It's time to harness their talents too.

As always, thanks for reading.

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