After a career day on Sunday, Rams running back Kyren Williams looks to have given Sean McVay the stability he’s been searching for in a position that has lacked it for years.
Williams had 158 rushing yards and a touchdown in the Rams 26-9 victory over the Cardinals, establishing himself as LA’s RB1 over Ronnie Rivers – and previously, Cam Akers. However, both Williams and Rivers will miss at least next week’s game against the Steelers.
With rookie Zach Evans and longtime vet Royce Freeman expected to share the load while Williams is out, should Williams be concerned about his starting job? No.
Sean McVay has sung his praises and it seems that Williams’ mold and play fits the vision of what a running back needs to do in his offense. Here’s what McVay said of Williams after the game on Sunday.
“I thought he saw the holes great,” he said. “I thought we were able to create great removal at the point of attack and he was able to press it the right way and be able to level off.”
Now, when you look at the structure of McVay’s offense, we must look at his influences. He grew up with a premium view of Bill Walsh’s West Coast offense. He spent time with both Jon and Jay Gruden and their one-back offense and he learned how to design the zone run under the Shanahans. In those offenses, whether it would be Roger Craig, Terrell Davis, or even Alfred Morris, all those backs understood what it means to run between the tackles and how their efforts open up the entire offense.
What makes Williams so effective is he’s a straightforward runner who makes quick, concise cuts while anticipating and then hitting the hole as it develops. He doesn’t dance, he doesn’t unnecessarily go outside and his effort shows in the stat sheet. According to Next Gen Stats, he has the 11th-lowest time behind the line of scrimmage of any running back this season (2.62 seconds).
His success makes defenses account for the run, creating favorable matchups for Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Tutu Atwell that Matthew Stafford and McVay can exploit. His work makes the play action so much more dangerous and it gives the Rams another way to confuse defenses.
Williams is the future for the Rams. He plays hard, he’s tough and he understands his assignments. He may not have the flashiness that one would desire in a running back or the speed to take it to the house when he reaches the second level but what he does is he keeps defenses honest and when you do that, it allows your true playmakers the space and freedom to turn close games into victories.