What is slowing down Rams negotiations with RB Kyren Williams?

The Los Angeles Rams may have real interest in concluding negotiations with veteran running back Kyren Williams, but it is never as easy as it sounds. The Rams have learned the painful lessons that it's never as simple as just cutting a check for an amount that a player or his agent demands. If you have forgotten those lessons, you should check back on how that all turned out after the Rams were more than happy to pay RB Todd Gurley, WR Brandin Cooks, and QB Jared Goff, after competing in Super Bowl LIII.

It was a costly lesson to learn.

While expensive, it is a lesson that the Rams front office has not forgotten. It's the reason why the Rams' negotiations with veteran QB Matthew Stafford have been both difficult and meticulous in each of the past two offseasons, despite the framework for his contract extending into 2026.

Now, the Rams front office has turned to the effort to extend RB Kyren Williams. And with his post-minicamp press conference, Rams HC Sean McVay expressed his understanding that negotiations are making progress. Okay, so what's the holdup?

After all, progress between two sides that are motivated to reach an acceptable agreement should be a slam dunk, right? Kyren Williams loves playing for the Rams. Likewise, the Rams love the fact that young running back Kyren Williams can be counted on to put up over 1000 rushing yards in each of the past two seasons. So, making progress ought to mean putting ink to paper.

Unless the two sides were far apart when negotiations began.

I wouldn't interpret the slow pace of reaching a signable agreement as turmoil. How should this slow pace be interpreted by fans? To understand that, it's vital to understand why Williams' extension is such a complex matter to resolve.

Here's what I mean.

(4) Rams offense likely to have limited role for any 1 RB in 2025

The Rams have continued to invest valuable draft picks into the running back room, despite the team's insistence on committing 80 percent of the carries to Kyren Williams. I don't see any likelihood for a similar distribution of carries in 2025. While the Rams painted themselves into a corner last season by filling the running back room with less-lauded versions of Williams, the addition of RB Jarquez Hunter changes everything.

Hunter possesses the type of game-changing speed that this offense so sorely lacked last season. And the offense cannot give Hunter two carries and expect two runs of 20+ yards. To get explosive plays out of Hunter, the offense must be willing to give him a sufficient number of carries.

To that point, RB Blake Corum was never able to get a fair workload in 2024. He must also be used more frequently this season. With two viable alternatives, Williams cannot hope to have nearly the same number of carries this year.

(3) Rams continue to be a desired destination for veterans

It's never a good idea to tout alternatives when engaging in negotiations with an NFL player, but it would be foolish for the Rams to ignore the fact that the culture of this team right now makes it a desired destination for veterans. More and more frequently, players who arrive instantly report a new passion for football, a heightened level of excitement even when grinding out in OTAs, and the realization that this is a fun group to be a member of.

The Rams were quick to trade a disgruntled RB Cam Akers. Even now, he is striving to earn a spot on the New Orleans Saints roster for the chance to face the Rams once more. The Rams have plenty of options in the running back room for now, with six players vying for three or four roster spots. But should the team need to reinforce the ranks, many veterans would be ecstatic to sign with the team.

(2) Rams roster is too loaded at RB to afford Williams any concessions

Even if you limit the discussion of future running backs to Kyren Williams, Blake Corum, and Jarquez Hunter, the team has invested far too much into the group to fixate on Williams this season. Even if Williams is head and shoulders better than any other player on the roster, the team cannot afford to burn out Williams in the regular season, only to enter the NFL playoffs with an exhausted and banged-up running back.

The other aspect of adding to the running back room is not to stockpile dust collectors. The team has to have a reason, a plan, and production from players who are selected with the team's top picks in any draft. Draft picks are valueless until they become young players who can contribute to the team with a positive impact.

The Rams failed to get a fair return on investment out of RB Blake Corum last season. If the team repeats that mistake in 2025, the overall team's success will begin to suffer.

(1) Williams 2024 season showed regression, not progress

In 2023, Kyren Williams rushed 228 times for 1,144 yards, 12 touchdowns, fumbling three times and losing the football once. He averaged 5.0 yards per carry and played in just 12 games. So when he started 16 games in 2024 and carried the football 316 times, you would reasonably expect nearly 1600 rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns.

Only that never happened.

Williams did gain 1,299 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, but that is a far cry from his 2023 rushing pace. And he fumbled five times and lost the football three times (six fumbles with four lost if you factor in the postseason). If that was not bad enough, the Rams only had rushes of 20+ yards twice, putting the offense at the bottom of the NFL in that category.

And it was the Rams' fixation on only rushing Kyren Williams that plummeted their rushing offense to a pitiful 24th among 32 NFL teams. Among NFL Playoff teams, the Rams came in dead last in terms of rankings for their rushing offense. To contrast the effectiveness of the Rams' running backs, the team ranked 11th in rushing offense in 2023. 2023 was more productive because the offense did a much better job of distributing carries.

At 5-foot-9 and 202 pounds, Williams cannot be expected to become the bell cow at running for the offense. He is much more productive when the team deliberately quells the number of carries to a range of 10-15 carries per game. That is enough to keep Williams within 170-250 carries per season, while rerouting carries to other running backs.

Rams HC Sean McVay lauded the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense from the 2024 season, a team that ranked fourth overall at running the football. They managed to be so explosive on the ground because they dolled out 207 carries to rookie RB Bucky Irving, while ensuring that veteran Rachaad White had 144 carries.

What does this all add up to? The Rams have to do a very specific contract to ensure that they are not overly compensating a running back who may deservedly find himself filling a lesser role in the offense in 2025. That can be accomplished with a series of incentivized clauses.

But all of that takes time. And that is why progress is being made, but at a slower pace than many Rams fans would like. As always, thanks for reading.

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