No player on the Rams made a bigger jump in his development last season than Darious Williams. He went from being a backup to one of the best young corners in football, allowing a passer rating of only 61.1 in coverage and picking off four passes.
He was a big part of what turned into arguably the best secondary in football, lining up at outside cornerback opposite Jalen Ramsey and often covering opponents’ No. 2 receivers. Unfortunately, Williams wasn’t able to cash in with a big contract this offseason since he was a restricted free agent, but the Rams would like to keep him L.A. for a long time by giving him an extension at some point.
Whether that’s this offseason or next, the Rams want to keep him in horns for the foreseeable future after his breakout 2020 campaign.
“I think it’s obvious Darious is obviously someone you’d love to be a Ram for a long time. We will definitely begin having those discussions internally,” GM Les Snead said Tuesday. “We’re a little bit tougher right now, based on the variables you mentioned, and even tougher for planning, because you’re not necessarily sure how next year goes and what’s going to happen there. But as Wade Phillips used to say, ‘Good players get paid,’ and Darious has proven to be a good player. I’ve always said we’d love to have as many good players as possible, guys like Darious. His story’s pretty cool. Give him credit, give our coaches credit for developing him and having the courage to put him out there and then give him credit for making the most of that opportunity.”
Williams can become an unrestricted free agent next offseason after signing his one-year tender for 2021, which will pay him $4.766 million for this coming season. It doesn’t provide the long-term security he’d like, and the tender doesn’t guarantee the Rams will be able to keep him beyond this season, but there’s still time for both sides to get a deal done.
Pairing Ramsey and Williams at cornerback for the next three or four years would be a wise move by the Rams after seeing the way they played together last season.