Secret weapon of Rams offense on verge of being brought to light

After dominating at Michigan, Los Angeles Rams running back Blake Corum didn't do much as a rookie in the NFL. The No. 83 overall pick amassed 207 rushing yards and no touchdowns on 3.6 yards per carry. 

Toss that "wasted pick" script into the trash can. Corum came into his own last season, forming a dynamic backfield duo with Kyren Williams. Nonetheless, he slipped mostly under the national radar. Fantasy football users flocked toward Williams as the red-zone moneyman, leaving Corum off their active rosters and out of mind. He garnered more attention toward the end of the year by making it impossible not to acknowledge his existence, but to the casual fan, he may well be just another backup.

That won't be the case for long. Arguably the more explosive Rams back already, Corum is poised to make even greater strides in 2025. And people are beginning to recognize his potential. 

Corum in prime position to make a name for himself this season

A 16 percent rate of 10-plus-yard carries boosted Corum's average to 5.1 per attempt. He wound up with 746 rushing yards, six touchdowns, and a 59.3 percent success rate. Those are all drastic improvements over his rookie year. 

His 10-plus rate is evidence of Corum's ability to generate explosive plays, whereas Williams is the steady first-down and goal-line bruiser. Indeed, the latter has exceeded 10 TDs and 1100 yards in each of the last three seasons.

Ripping off big chunks isn't the name of Williams' game, though, and that's where Corum is so valuable as a change-of-pace weapon. Only this season, he should be doing a lot more than just playing second fiddle all the time. While Williams should remain the clear top dog, the Rams will only benefit from letting Corum off his leash more often to make the rushing attack more, you guessed it, explosive. 

To that point, it's been three years since Williams rumbled for a gain of at least 35 yards. 

Head coach Sean McVay already started giving Corum a bit more run down the stretch in 2025. Corum accounted for 590 rushing yards and five TDs over his final 11 regular-season games. He averaged 11.6 totes per contest, compared to just 5.8 during the early part of the schedule.

Although McVay leaned on Williams in the playoffs, the younger back kept up his contributions. Corum actually gained a slightly greater portion of attempts and yards than he did in the regular season. 

The former Wolverines champion should enjoy some natural progression in Year 3 after an impressive sophomore leap, balancing the workload more evenly between himself and Williams. That perceived gap between the Rams' RB1 and RB2 could shrink in a hurry. 

It already is. And with all those carries nibbling away at Williams' running-back shelf-life, even now the team may be eyeing Corum as his soon-to-be successor.

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