Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams believes his best football is ahead of him, and he had better be ready to prove it against the San Francisco 49ers.
Williams, who, along with the Rams, recently wrapped mandatory minicamp in Maui, sports a 3.72 yards-per-carry average in three games against his NFC West rival. That is his seventh-worst YPC mark out of the 23 teams he has faced since entering the NFL.
Niners cornerback Deommodore Lenoir reminded Williams of his role in the RB’s modest output.
Lenoir, entering his fifth season with the 49ers, sent “free smoke” to Williams and Kenneth Walker of the Seattle Seahawks in the form of a highlight clip with him tackling them.
“Free smoke there yall go. Hope yall working hard [fingers crossed emoji],” Lenoir captioned the clip, featuring one highlight for each back, which he shared to his Instagram stories on June 21. “Still here twin.”
Williams previously remarked about how the Rams were the 49ers’ “big brothers.”
“It means everything, honestly. Because literally on the way here, our pilot said, ‘Go sweep the Niners,’” Williams told reporters in December 2024 about sweeping the 49ers. “When he said that, I was like, ‘Dang, we really could sweep the Niners.’ I don’t think I’ve done that since I’ve been here.’
“Being able to do that, knowing how good of a team they are and knowing the history with just the two organizations, I know it’s huge. And it shows that we’re the big brothers now.”
Williams is still 2-1 against the 49ers, with 249 yards and 3 touchdowns on the ground and another 79 yards and 2 TDs through the air. Lenoir may have ensured he gets the very best of Williams when the Rams and 49ers meet in Week 5 on Thursday Night Football in LA.
Kyren Williams Looking to Have ‘Best Season Yet’
GettyKyren Williams #23 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers.
Williams set career-highs with 1,299 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns in 2024. It was his second straight 1,000-plus-yard campaign. Williams led the NFL in rushing yards per game and was a Pro Bowler in 2023.
He believes that his best is yet to come.
“I don’t feel like I’ve touched my peak yet,” Williams told RG.org’s DJ Siddiqi in an interview published in May. “However that looks, whether that’s pass blocking, catching the ball, breaking long runs, converting first downs, do everything I can to make sure that I’m the best I can be consistently this year.”
One area the Rams would benefit greatly from Williams making a marked improvement is efficiency.
He was third in carries and seventh in rushing yards. That combination resulted in him finishing 34th in yards per attempt among qualifying backs. It may be more than an outlier, too, with Williams sandwiching his 5.0 YPC in 2023 with a 4.0 mark in 2022 as a rookie.
Williams also tied for third third-most fumbles at his position last season.
However, he ranks fourth at 4.5 YPC among the eight backs with 500-plus carries over the past two seasons, per Stathead.
Rams Bolstered Running Game
GettyJarquez Hunter #27 of the Auburn Tigers runs for a touchdown against the Kentucky Wildcats.
The Rams ranked 16th in rushing attempts and 24th in yards as a team in 2024. They were 31st in yards per attempt, underscoring how Williams’ perceived issue is really one affecting the entire team.
This offseason, the Rams used a fourth-round pick on Auburn’s Jarquez Hunter in the 2025 draft. He joins a room that includes former undrafted free agents Blake Corum and Ronnie Rivers.
Hunter led the SEC with 6.4 yards per carry en route to 1,201 yards and 8 TDs in 2024.
He also posted a 17-224-2 line as a sophomore, hinting at underrated chops in the passing game. Williams is in the final year of his contract. Rams head coach Sean McVay expressed optimism about a deal getting done with Williams. Still, Hunter offers them a pivot.
Williams could be at risk of losing out on valuable reps to Hunter right out of the gate. Moreover, both of their performances could have significant implications on the young veteran’s future.
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