Rams Rookie RB Kyren Williams Suffered Injury in OTAs, Had Surgery

LA's fifth-round pick has caught the injury bug prior to the start of minicamp Tuesday

The Los Angeles Rams are beginning their 2022 mandatory minicamp on Tuesday, as veterans and rookies alike will finally get a chance to begin preparation for the 2022-23 season following voluntary OTAs. 

But the Rams will be without one of their prized selections from this year's draft during the coming stages of offseason preparation. According to a report Tuesday from The Athletic, coach Sean McVay said rookie running back and fifth-round pick out of Notre Dame Kyren Williams broke his foot and had surgery, but should be back in time for the first phases of training camp later this summer. 

“He got surgery, everything went really well,” McVay said Tuesday. “And we expect him to be back at some point in the earlier parts of training camp. But he’s gonna attack the rehab the right way and it’s an unfortunate setback and he’s gonna attack his rehab the right way and be back sooner than later.”

The 5-9, 199-pound back from St. Louis, Missouri recorded back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons for the Fighting Irish, was the 2020 ACC Player of the Year and tallied 2,153 yards on 419 carries in 26 games spanning 2-plus seasons for the Irish. In 2021 he also added 151 yards on 14 kick returns, averaging 10.8 yards per return.

Despite the injury, Williams is still fixing to be LA's No. 3 back behind Cam Akers and Darrell Henderson Jr. The team's leading rusher from a season ago, Sony Michel, signed with the Miami Dolphins in May, opening up room for Williams to carve out some playing time next season.

McVay spoke highly of the Rams' new rookie class during OTAs last week. 

“These are guys that you hope can become pro's pro. They’re approaching things the right way,” McVay said. “They’re mature rookies, they’ve got a good look in their eye, they know how to come out and go to work. They know, ‘Hey, I’m gonna look at what these other veterans are doing and be able to mimic and emulate that, but put my own spin on it.’ And these guys like football, and that’s really important." 

The Rams mandatory minicamp runs until this Thursday, June 9. 

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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