The Rams and running back Kyren Williams crossed the finish line Tuesday, agreeing to a three-year extension, a source confirmed.
The deal is worth a reported $33 million. The average annual value of $11 million would make Williams the seventh-highest paid RB in the NFL.
Williams, 24, participated in all of the Rams’ offseason activities and reported to training camp without complaint, expressing a belief two weeks ago that a deal was going to get done so that he did not reach free agency after this season.
“Yeah, I want to play for the Rams. That’s who I want to be with. That’s who I want to stay with and I know it will work out,” Williams said on the day the Rams reported to training camp.
The Rams, for their part, expressed a desire to reach a long-term agreement with Williams throughout the offseason. General manager Les Snead said in January, “I do think Kyren is someone who is a Ram,” his way of describing the impact someone has on the team’s culture.
Head coach Sean McVay expressed his gratitude for Williams continuing to be a part of team activities all spring and summer when discussing a potential deal last month.
“He has done everything that he can control that makes you want say, ‘Let’s try in good faith to figure this out for this guy because he’s representing all the things that are right about the Rams,’” McVay said in July. “He has done everything that he can control that makes you want say, ‘Let’s try in good faith to figure this out for this guy because he’s representing all the things that are right about the Rams.”
Williams has been the focal point of the Rams’ run game the past two seasons, totaling 544 carries in that span. In 2024, he rushed 316 times for 1,299 yards and 14 touchdowns while adding two more scores in the pass game.
But beyond the statistical production, Williams is a generator for the Rams. Teammates and coaches have raved about the energy that he provides in games and practices, and the example he sets in the weight and training rooms with how he takes care of his body and approaches his work.
“The fiery nature and you see, the enthusiasm that you see, that’s just who he is as a person and there’s no faking that,” right tackle and team captain Rob Havenstein said last month. “That’s what you love about Kyren. Honestly, the way he goes about his business, you forget that there’s even contract negotiations just because he’s been the same guy from Day One since he’s walked in.”
The Rams selected Williams in the fifth round (164th overall) of the 2022 draft after he played three seasons at Notre Dame. In his last two seasons for the Fighting Irish, Williams started all 24 games in which he played, with 419 carries for 2,153 yards (5.1 avg.) with 27 touchdowns. He also caught 78 passes for 675 yards (8.7 avg.) with four touchdowns.
Two months after being drafted, Williams underwent surgery after breaking his foot in practice. He then suffered a high ankle sprain returning a kick in the Rams’ season opener and was out until November. He finished his rookie season with 35 carries for 139 yards and nine catches for 76 yards.
In 2023, Williams took over for Cam Akers as the Rams’ starting tailback in the second game and went on to have a Pro Bowl season despite missing four games with a sprained ankle. He led the Rams with 228 carries, 1,144 yards (5.0 avg.) and 12 touchdowns on the ground — with an NFL-best 95.3 yards per game — to go with 32 receptions for 206 yards (6.4 avg.) and three scores.