RB Kyren Williams, LAR (2 Viewers)

[Hot Sauce Guy]

It’s a totally normal thing to have your RB1 returning kicks, right?

I avoided this situation entirely so far. 2 drafts to go. Hope no one else in my league tomorrow or Saturday is paying attention. I like when Kyren is a 2nd round pick. One more off the board I don’t want.

Normally no, but its worth pointing out that McVay had Cooper Kupp still returning punts in 2020.

Its not ideal, but I'm personally still on board in round 3, over the likes of Etienne. Now if Achane (or maybe even Pacheco) is there in round 3 then its a tougher question. I haven't found myself passing on Achane much.

ETA: Actually just acquired Kyren in a dynasty trade as part of a larger deal, where I gave up Taylor, Pacheco, and J. Brooks (post rookie draft) for Jefferson and Kyren. Possibly a hit this year but can't help but feel like acquiring Jefferson is a do at any costs thing in dynasty. Only need Kyren to be a flex in that league.

He’s been going in the late 2nd pretty regularly. Too rich for my blood.

On the flip side, I wonder if this news gets his value to tank a bit, and he falls to like round 4 or something.

He might.

Honestly I’m out more because the Rams drafted a day 2 RB.

I’d be less out in the 4th or 5th.

 

[Judge Smails]

I was super high on him. I mean higher than all of you. I believe in the Rams feeding a bell cow, and have heard that Corum was developing but has a ways to go. This has thrown me for a loop. I mean it's not unprecedented - some team put their top WR's back there. Maybe their current punt returner can't be trusted? Bad hands/decisions? Still - this is unsettling to say the least.

 

[TheWinz]

If your league award points for kickoff yardage, great. If they don't, which almost none do, this is a kick in the cajones. Don't even try to candy coat it. This is terrible news. You may as well just have him fight in the UFC in between games. Remember Sean Payton's bounty scandal? At least he was trying to injure the other team's players!

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Went 2.02 in my RTS high stakes tonight

That’s super early.

I’d love to see that tomorrow night picking at 6.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

If your league award points for kickoff yardage, great. If they don't, which almost none do, this is a kick in the cajones. Don't even try to candy coat it. This is terrible news. You may as well just have him fight in the UFC in between games. Remember Sean Payton's bounty scandal? At least he was trying to injure the other team's players!

Yeah - IIRC one of McVay’s RBs had a high ankle sprain returning kicks? Was that Akers?

“Here, go get into a couple high speed car crashes today. Good luck.”

 

[Deamon]

Went 1.05 in my local draft last night

This is the league that CMC went 1.07? Someone actually took Kyren Williams over CMC? Dafuk?

 

[Down Under]

Went 1.05 in my local draft last night

This is the league that CMC went 1.07? Someone actually took Kyren Williams over CMC? Dafuk?

Yes, I was in shock. It may be local, and maybe a couple don't take it too seriously, but most do their own projections and one guy was talking about his tiers. I will say the scoring system is unusual and favors RBs and pushes down WRs in the first 2 rounds more than usual, but that doesn't explain the fear of CMC.

 

[zamboni]

Didn't McVay do this with Akers at some point?

I would say not really. The difference with Akers is that McVay didn't like him, whether the way he ran, his attitude, or some combination of both. McVay has always liked Kyren since he drafted him and that's clear even more so now.

I think we may be overreacting a bit that because Kyren is doing punt returns that he's going to lose his job as the starting RB. Seems far from the case. That said, I can see McVay wanting to take a little of Kyren's plate regardless because he's not the biggest guy in the world and saw what happened with the offense when he went down last year.

 

[Biabreakable]

Williams returned punts and kicks last season as well. So I don't see this as new or different.

The snap counts and extra duty does put him more at risk of injury or wearing down. He missed games last season and one could point to this lack of load management by McVey as increasing the risk of Williams missing time again.

I just think that risk was already there before this announcement.

 

[Payne]

Glad I avoided this situation.

Williams is the definition of "you can't win your league in the 1st round, but you certainly can lose it."

 

[TheWinz]

Williams returned punts and kicks last season as well. So I don't see this as new or different.

A bit misleading here. Yes, he did, but it was only 3 punts and 1 kick, and they all occurred in the first 3 games, when he had a total of 39 carries. Once he became a true workhorse (week 4, with 25 carries), his punt & kick return days were over. Why do you think they stopped having him as a returner?

 

[KellysHeroes]

thats literally insane to use your starting RB as punt returner. Its like their trying to get him hurt

 

[TheWinz]

I think we may be overreacting a bit that because Kyren is doing punt returns that he's going to lose his job as the starting RB. Seems far from the case. That said, I can see McVay wanting to take a little of Kyren's plate regardless because he's not the biggest guy in the world and saw what happened with the offense when he went down last year.

I don't think anyone is trying to suggest Kyren is going to lose his job as the Rams starting RB because of the kick/punt returns. I think it means McVay wants more of a RBBC than fantasy players care to admit. And, you said McVay wants a little off Kyren's plate, but taking away touches on offense and replacing them with returns isn't the way to do it.

 

[massraider]

I don't think anyone is trying to suggest Kyren is going to lose his job as the Rams starting RB because of the kick/punt returns

No, it seems like people are under the impression that when a starter gets the punt return job, his life expectancy decreases by a factor of 10.

RIP to Kyren Williams, who will most likely lose his life in a fiery punt return this season, probably Spetember.

 

[TheWinz]

3 of the top 12 kick returners from 2022 were:
Jerome Ford with 30, Isiah Pacheco with 29, and Raheem Mostert with 25

In 2023
- Ford had no kick returns and finished RB16
- Pacheco had no kick returns and finished RB15
- Mostert had no kick returns and finished RB5

Return duties seem to go to backup RB's, or to WR's (whether they are starters or not). There is no good spin you can put on this news. It's nothing but bad for his fantasy outlook.

 

[eighsse2]

The only thing I can think of is, could this be just the first of many such situations we might see, with the new kickoff rules? Maybe kickoff returns are going to be considered a lot more important now if big returns might be more feasible, and some teams will want one of their best playmakers out there.

 

[massraider]

Punt returns: Not the same as kick returns.

 

[eighsse2]

Punt returns: Not the same as kick returns.

Oh, yeah, my bad. That's even weirder I guess.

 

[Doubles]

Punt returns: Not the same as kick returns.

Oh, yeah, my bad. That's even weirder I guess.

The entire thing is just weird and unsettling. Especially so since I took him in the second round and my RB2 is…Jerome Ford. Hopefully I didn’t just lose my season on draft day like I did when I chose Najee round 1.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

lol. Lmao

 

[Biabreakable]

Williams returned punts and kicks last season as well. So I don't see this as new or different.

A bit misleading here. Yes, he did, but it was only 3 punts and 1 kick, and they all occurred in the first 3 games, when he had a total of 39 carries. Once he became a true workhorse (week 4, with 25 carries), his punt & kick return days were over. Why do you think they stopped having him as a returner?

It's certainly not my intent to be misleading and I would appreciate it if you would stop suggesting I am.

I don't know or see everything. That's the point of discussion.

You are correct Williams didn't play any special teams snaps week 4-6. After starting off with return duties the first 3 weeks.

Then he missed 4 games to injury.

Then from week 12-16 he had special teams snaps again although he didn't have any returns in those weeks.

So yes McVey did take him out of special teams duty for a bit there, but the 2nd game after returning from injury he was getting special teams snaps again. Although it was only 1 or 2 special teams snaps (I assume in a return role) in those games and he didn't have any returns.

It's reasonable to take a skill player off of special teams as a part of load management when that player is playing so many offensive snaps.

That is why I am criticizing McVey for overloading Williams in this way.

 

[steelcityman]

IDK, Antonio Brown was far and away the best WR in the NFL for a couple years and returned punts, not all the time, but some. If Corum is as great as some of you think, he'll get 8+ carries a game, and Williams remains fine. How many punts are actually returned a game, 1-2? He's probably back there to make sure the punt is caught and not fumbled and not so much to expect returns for TDs.
I was avoiding the situation, and still am. So nothing changes for me.

 

[massraider]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

 

[TVT 0 N S T A]

I think we are overreacting - I don't think this changes Kyren's value. If you were out on him, it probably justifies your position a little bit more. If you were in on him, you probably think McVay is still gushing about Kyren Williams, even after drafting Blake Corum.

It doesn't really move the needle for me - McVay has always been a coach that ran his RB's into dust and this doesn't bode well for Kyren Willliams league-longevity... but I don't think it changes things for me much. I was out on him in redraft and he is still my keeper at $9 in my keeper league. It does make me want to handcuff him with Blake Corum or draft an extra RB, but I was probably going to do that regardless.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Didn’t the rules change this year?

 

[Terpman22]

Don't worry, I'm not gonna do what everyone thinks I'm gonna do

AND FREAK OUT!A

 

[BIRDGANG52]

You guys are upset he's returning punts? He scored 12 TD last year, I don't think returning a handful of punts is going to drastically impact his output. If it helps, I also think that Blake Corum stinks.

 

[Doubles]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Didn’t the rules change this year?

Kickoff rules changed.

 

[Terpman22]

You guys are upset he's returning punts? He scored 12 TD last year, I don't think returning a handful of punts is going to drastically impact his output. If it helps, I also think that Blake Corum stinks.

Yes.

 

[massraider]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Didn’t the rules change this year?

Punt returns: Not the same as kick returns.

 

[BIRDGANG52]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Didn’t the rules change this year?

Punt returns: Not the same as kick returns.

 

[Desert_Power]

It's nothing but bad for his fantasy outlook.

I agree that it isn't positive, but it might not really matter much at all.

 

[Payne]

If you are being honest with yourself, there is nobody who should see this as a good thing.
This isn't something to just gloss over.

Hall, CMC, Bijan, Taylor.....those guys aren't returning punts.......ever.

 

[zed2283]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Wow, that's a crappy defense.

 

[Judge Smails]

Didn't McVay do this with Akers at some point?

I would say not really. The difference with Akers is that McVay didn't like him, whether the way he ran, his attitude, or some combination of both. McVay has always liked Kyren since he drafted him and that's clear even more so now.

I think we may be overreacting a bit that because Kyren is doing punt returns that he's going to lose his job as the starting RB. Seems far from the case. That said, I can see McVay wanting to take a little of Kyren's plate regardless because he's not the biggest guy in the world and saw what happened with the offense when he went down last year.

You don’t say you want to keep your starting RB fresh and then put him on punt returns. Doesn’t add up

 

[cockroach]

These feels similar to the "Chase has the dropsies" narrative from the other year. Kyren was really good last year, I'd bet he's really good again.

 

[Deamon]

These feels similar to the "Chase has the dropsies" narrative from the other year. Kyren was really good last year, I'd bet he's really good again.

Don't think this has anything to do with his talent, it's all about the coach. It is NEVER good when the coach puts his star rb on punt returns. This would be more like Chase's coach saying "He's been dropping a lot of balls, we will give him a go at special teams"

Hope this is nothing, but at the very least it's super strange.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

Saying KW will return punts before the season and actually having him consistently return punts during the season are not necessarily the same thing.

I suspect KW will return punts on occasion (when the game situation calls for it) but would be shocked if he's out there every time.

Then again, I'm shocked all the time.

 

[cockroach]

These feels similar to the "Chase has the dropsies" narrative from the other year. Kyren was really good last year, I'd bet he's really good again.

Don't think this has anything to do with his talent, it's all about the coach. It is NEVER good when the coach puts his star rb on punt returns. This would be more like Chase's coach saying "He's been dropping a lot of balls, we will give him a go at special teams"

Hope this is nothing, but at the very least it's super strange.

But he returned a few punts last year too.

The coach views him as a playmaker and wants to get him more touches. That seems like a good thing to me.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

IDK, Antonio Brown was far and away the best WR in the NFL for a couple years and returned punts, not all the time, but some. If Corum is as great as some of you think, he'll get 8+ carries a game, and Williams remains fine. How many punts are actually returned a game, 1-2? He's probably back there to make sure the punt is caught and not fumbled and not so much to expect returns for TDs.
I was avoiding the situation, and still am. So nothing changes for me.

well, sure, if he ends up as a level-headed team player like Brown, then this will be much ado about nothing.

 

[SayWhat?]

These feels similar to the "Chase has the dropsies" narrative from the other year. Kyren was really good last year, I'd bet he's really good again.

Don't think this has anything to do with his talent, it's all about the coach. It is NEVER good when the coach puts his star rb on punt returns. This would be more like Chase's coach saying "He's been dropping a lot of balls, we will give him a go at special teams"

Hope this is nothing, but at the very least it's super strange.

But he returned a few punts last year too.

The coach views him as a playmaker and wants to get him more touches. That seems like a good thing to me.

No, it’s not a good thing. There are an insane amount of “playmakers” at RB and WR in the NFL, and not a single other one is returning punts for their team. That’s not because 31 other coaches are foolish and aren’t using their playmakers enough, it’s that they are too valuable as a RB to WR to risk on increasing odds of a big punt return.

 

[Desert_Power]

Rams returned 28 punts last year for about 200 yards.

Wow, that's a crappy defense.

Assuming this is not considering fair catches.

 

[Biabreakable]

I agree that Williams returning punts isn't that big of a deal.

Williams playing 94% of the offensive snaps and doing punt returns on top of that is what concerns me.

Perhaps his offensive snaps are less this year though with other RB who can spell him more and then its not really an issue as far as load management if offensive snaps are only 70-80%

Part of what made Williams so valuable last season was the volume of touches though.

 

[cockroach]

and not a single other one is returning punts for their team.

Say what????

Tyreek Hill doesn't return punts?

What about Kyren's returns last year?

 

[Deamon]

But he returned a few punts last year too.

The coach views him as a playmaker and wants to get him more touches. That seems like a good thing to me.

lol no

 

[cockroach]

Part of what made Williams so valuable last season was the volume of touches though.

Definitely, but not as much as a guy like Rachad White. Kyren was actually near the top of efficiency metrics.

 

[JoeJoe88]

and not a single other one is returning punts for their team.

Say what????

Tyreek Hill doesn't return punts?

What about Kyren's returns last year?

He returned like 3 last year, and they were all at the beginning of the season. Once he became the teams bellcow, no more returns.

 

[travdogg]

I agree that Williams returning punts isn't that big of a deal.

Williams playing 94% of the offensive snaps and doing punt returns on top of that is what concerns me.

Perhaps his offensive snaps are less this year though with other RB who can spell him more and then its not really an issue as far as load management if offensive snaps are only 70-80%

Part of what made Williams so valuable last season was the volume of touches though.

I'm expecting about 70-30 in Williams favor. He was never going to get the same share he got last year, nobody should be projected for that much, not even CMC.

ETA: I don't see any RB getting above 80%.

 

[cockroach]

and not a single other one is returning punts for their team.

Say what????

Tyreek Hill doesn't return punts?

What about Kyren's returns last year?

He returned like 3 last year, and they were all at the beginning of the season. Once he became the teams bellcow, no more returns.

We'll see what his workload looks like week 1, I guess. I doubt owners will be too worried.

 

[BIRDGANG52]

These feels similar to the "Chase has the dropsies" narrative from the other year. Kyren was really good last year, I'd bet he's really good again.

Don't think this has anything to do with his talent, it's all about the coach. It is NEVER good when the coach puts his star rb on punt returns. This would be more like Chase's coach saying "He's been dropping a lot of balls, we will give him a go at special teams"

Hope this is nothing, but at the very least it's super strange.

But he returned a few punts last year too.

The coach views him as a playmaker and wants to get him more touches. That seems like a good thing to me.

I'm with you, cockroach. The only thing that's surprising to me is that he's their best option at Punt Returner. Looking at it, their best other option is Tutu Atwell? I mean, the guy averaged 5.0 YPC and scored 12 TD. There is nobody else on the team currently that is giving them that.

Last I checked, Sean McVay is pretty smart. Doubtful he stops making Kyren his bellcow who averaged 5.0 YPC so he can cede carries to a rookie and Ronnie Rivers. Maybe it happens, but I don't see it. For the record I have zero shares of every player listed in this thread. I just don't think you're plugging Blake Corum in there and getting 5.0 YPC, but he might be a better goalline option, I'm not doubting that, but I wouldn't be shaking in my boots over this guy. Great Michigan offense, better team around him than actual talent, imo.


I'm willing to believe that Kyren make be their best Punt Return option. They used him for returns last year. However, if you don't think Blake Corum is a bust like me, then you would probably be afraid, but I don't think he's all that good personally. He's a 3rd Round pick though, he was always going to see carries.