OXNARD, Calif. – When Rams running back Kyren Williams and his agent Drew Rosenhaus told the Rams what they wanted in his contract on Tuesday morning, Williams said he didn't expect them to say yes. But after head coach Sean McVay and senior manager of football administration Matthew Shearin discussed, they came back with good news.
Williams gasped in surprise and relief before dropping his head in his hands.
"I just started thanking the Lord because, man, it was a feeling I'll never forget," Williams said.
After negotiating for much of the offseason, Williams and the Rams agreed on a three-year extension for the St. Louis native coming off back-to-back season clearing 1,100 rushing yards with double-digit touchdowns. It was a day he's dreamed about since he was a kid.
The first question he was asked at the press conference after Tuesday's joint practice with the Cowboys was, "What are you going to buy for Mom?" His answer was simple: "Retirement." Williams and his mom have a very close relationship, so naturally, he called her shortly after finalizing the deal. The interaction was filled with "tears of joy" for both parties.
"When I called my mom, she just said, 'I can't stop crying,'" Williams said. "(That) made my eyes ball because I can feel it. I can feel it through the phone. I felt how she felt."
Taking care of his family has always been the most important consequence of playing football for Williams, and this will help him do that.
"This whole day is kind of surreal," he said. "I'll never forget this day, but this is the day that I kind of worked for my whole life. I knew I was going to be here. I didn't know when. I didn't know how. I didn't know what the outcome was going to be, but I'm here. And so I just want to say thank you to everybody that played a part in making it happen."
Those people included his mom, McVay, Shearin, Rosenhaus, general manager Les Snead, Rams Owner/Chairman E. Stanley Kroenke and Williams himself. He said it meant "everything" to get this deal done with the Rams because Williams is "all about commitment."
The Rams have believed in him since the day they drafted him in 2022, and he's thrilled to be able to reward that trust over the next three years. McVay in particular has been in his corner "since Day 1."
"He's always instilled that confidence in me that I was going to continue to be the player that I hope to be," Williams said, "and he's done that since... I broke my foot (in 2022 OTAs). I remember him texting me in that hotel room telling me that I'm going to be okay, I'm going to be better. I just remember sitting in that bed, and I started crying because this means so much to me."
McVay being more worried about Williams as a human being than as a football player has created a special bond. Williams said McVay is the first coach he's connected with "on a real level," which made his presence in the negotiations that much more significant.
Explaining to McVay why he felt he deserved certain things in his contract was important to him, and the head coach was happy to get the deal done.
"I think this represents, not exclusive to the running back position, but a human being that's handled everything the right way," McVay said. "He's shown the mental and physical toughness that we're looking for. The way that he responds to both the good things with humility and some of the challenging setbacks with the growth mindset that we're looking for (is special)."
Although Williams didn't expect the Rams to grant his contractual wishes, he did have a feeling that it would get done on Tuesday. Still, he hasn't quite wrapped his head around it.
"I'm so lost for words at times, and I can't really understand it," Williams said. "I can't wait to call my mom again to make sure that it's real and to make sure that the hard work is finally paying off."
