Fantasy football: Kyren Williams is the Rams RB to watch – and maybe own
Cam Akers has been one of the worst fantasy picks this season. Through six games, Akers has scored a total of 22.9 points in PPR (point per reception) formats. He’s scored fewer points than Craig Reynolds, Kyle Juszczyk, Tyler Allgeier and Kenyan Drake, ranking 62nd among all running backs.
Darrell Henderson Jr. hasn’t been much better, but it’s not as if he’s lit the world on fire, either. He has just 51.8 points in six weeks, making him RB34 in fantasy this season. Henderson’s stock is on the rise with Akers likely to be traded by the Rams, but it’s hard to feel confident about him as a starter in fantasy.
A name to watch for the Rams is Kyren Williams, a fifth-round rookie who the team traded up for in the draft this year. Williams hasn’t touched the ball a single time on offense and has played just one special teams snap all year, but he’s a promising player the Rams are high on.
Unfortunately, he’s dealt with two injuries this year. First, he broke his foot in OTAs and missed most of the summer. Then in the season opener, he injured his ankle and has been on injured reserve since.
Sean McVay said Williams could be designated to return soon, which would start his 21-day practice window before being activated. And when he does eventually return, he could push Henderson for snaps as the starting running back.
He probably would’ve played before Akers in Week 1 against the Bills if he didn’t get hurt on his first special teams snap. Before kickoff, there was a lot of buzz about Williams. Adam Schefter name-dropped Williams as a player to watch for fantasy purposes, and this was way back in Week 1 before there was any public dispute between the Rams and Akers.
Peter Schrager predicted Williams to make a game-changing play in the fourth quarter against the Bills, too. Schrager is close to McVay, so what he says about the Rams carries some extra weight.
After Williams got hurt in Week 1, McVay said it was a bummer because “we were trying to get Kyren involved and he didn’t even get the chance to be able to do that.” It’s very clear the Rams wanted to utilize Williams in that game, and he could have an even bigger role once Akers is out of the picture.
Right now, Williams is only 5.8% owned in ESPN fantasy leagues, which is a low number. But he’s been picked up in 5.3% of leagues in the last week, so fantasy owners are taking notice and scooping up the rookie running back already. That ownership number will skyrocket once A) Akers is traded and B) Williams is activated off IR.
Don’t expect him to put up huge numbers right away, but down the stretch, he could be a valuable running back to have.
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