Rams’ Kyren Williams refuses to be discouraged by costly fumble
Kyren Williams didn’t know if the questions would come, but if they did, he was ready.
The Rams running back was less than a week away from fumbling at the one-yard line during a 26-23 overtime loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
He’s now in Pacific Palisades, preparing to work with young flag football players who are practicing for the first time since last January’s wildfires.
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Gary Klein explains what to expect from the Rams as they prepare to take on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday before flying to London ahead of their Week 7 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“If they ask me, ‘Dude, why did you fumble?’” Williams said, raising the tone of his voice to sound like a child, “I’m going to tell them exactly why it happens — because it happens.
“They’re wondering more than anything. They’re not trying to knock you down. So for me, tell them how it went, be accountable. Be honest about it and tell them, ‘Man, mistakes happen. … I’m going to grow from this mistake and it’s not going to define who I am.'”
Williams, 25, can’t wait to get back on the field Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens and show he’s over his mistake.
The third-year pro player, who received a $23 million extension before the season, is an integral part of an offense featuring quarterback Matthew Stafford, the NFL’s leading passer, and wide receiver Puka Nacua, the league’s leading receiver.
Williams rushed for 368 yards and a touchdown. He has 16 catches for 118 yards and three touchdowns.
In addition to three regular seasons and three playoff games, Williams touched the ball as a running back or receiver 805 times. He searched 11 times.
Williams wasn’t the only running back to fumble against the 49ers. Backup Blake Corum dropped the ball on a throwing play.
But Williams’ mistake came at a more dramatic moment.
The Rams led 23-20 when Stafford drove them to the three-yard line with just over a minute to play. Williams took a handoff and headed toward the goal line, but the 49ers snatched the ball from him and recovered the fumble.
Rams running back Kyren Williams, center, loses the ball on a fumble late in the fourth quarter against the 49ers on October 2.
(Marcio José Sanchez / Associated Press)
Williams was also stopped on a fourth-and-1 play at the 11-yard line in overtime to end the game.
Afterward, he blamed himself for the fumble that he said cost the Rams the victory. The feeling persisted into the following week.
“Throughout the game, I had great ball security,” Williams said. “The one time I saw dirty, I saw green, I let it go and saw what happened.”
“So for me, the lesson that I learned throughout the whole situation is: Man, you can’t be comfortable until all the double zeros are on that clock.”
Coach Sean McVay said the Rams will take steps to improve ball security. But he stuck by Williams.
“I love this guy.” McVay said. “I ride with him, and we have to find a way to improve, and he will be the first to take responsibility, that’s why you want to put your arm around him and be there with him.”
As Williams moves forward, he plans to share lessons learned from the situation during his charitable work.
Rams running back Kyren Williams teaches youth flag football players at Pacific Palisades on Oct. 7.
(Gary Klein/Los Angeles Times)
Last Monday, Williams met with Molly Higgins, the Rams’ executive vice president of community impact and engagement, and told her he wanted to commit to an event or opportunity every Tuesday of the season.
“After a tough game Thursday night, for him to want to sit out Monday, I was totally ready to say, ‘Hey, we can get into a rhythm,’” Higgins said. “But he said, ‘No, I want to sit down.’
Williams said, “I know how when I was little, seeing people I wanted to be like, how I was inspired and influenced and motivated. … So for me, it’s about remembering who I was and trying to go beyond my expectations.”
Williams plans to do the same on the field when the Rams try to rebound against the Ravens.
The fumble against the 49ers won’t define him.
“I’m not happy that things happened like this,” he said. “But I’m able to grow from the situation. I’m able to overcome it and show people that, man, I’m so much better than what I say.
“So I can’t wait.”
