Rams Film Review: What to make of Blake Corum’s rookie season

What can the Rams expect from Blake Corum in year two?

When the Los Angeles Rams selected running back Blake Corum out of Michigan in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, it came as a bit of a surprise. Kyren Williams was coming off of a 1,000 yard season in which he scored 12 rushing touchdowns. While the Rams needed depth at running back, taking one in the third round was unexpected.

Corum’s rookie season wasn’t anything memorable. He had 58 carries without any memorable moments. His season ended in Week 18 when he broke his right forearm against the Seattle Seahawks.

Heading into year two, there seems to be some pressure on Corum with some already preparing to give him the bust label. The feeling around Corum has shifted dramatically in just one year. Following OTAs last season, Corum was impressing the coaching staff and drawing some Puka Nacua comparisons. Said McVay last July,

“I’ve been pleased with a lot of guys but Blake Corum has really stood out. Mature beyond his years. I love the way that he handles himself. I love even more how when there’s been a couple of things that didn’t go the way we wanted, how he responded the next play.”

Due to a foot injury, Williams sat out OTAs last year, leading to more action from Corum. However, Corum still only had 58 rushing attempts and six games with five or more carries. If you remove the game in Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals that the Rams lost 41-0 in which all eight of Corum’s carries came in the final five minutes, it was only five games.

However, in those five games, Corum averaged 4.3 yards per carry while showcasing his shiftiness and mental processing that made him successful in the Big 10. While the Rams drafted Jarquez Hunter in the fourth round, there is reason to believe that Corum takes a step and gets more involved in the offense.

McVay typically hasn’t played rookie running backs as Darrell Henderson had 39 carries as a rookie and Williams had 35. Again, Corum finished with 58. With a year of experience, Corum should have the upper hand when it comes to being the RB2 in the offense.

Corum will still need to prove himself in training camp and earn the trust from the coaching staff. At the same time, the experience from last season makes Corum a known commodity in the offense. With that said, the second year player should be able to take some of the load off of Williams.

Despite Corum being drafted as a Kyren Williams clone, he does provide a somewhat different skill set. He may not have the breakaway speed, but he does offer more twitch and ability to create on his own.

Like Williams, Corum may not have the breakaway speed. However, that twitch and ability to make guys miss, especially at the second level, does separate him from Williams. Corum’s lower-half is always reactive to what his eyes see. That can sometimes work against him, but when watching Corum run, it’s easy to see him actively process his blocks and his lower-half react.

That can sometimes get him in trouble as Corum had a 48.3 percent stuff rate to Williams’ 38.6 percent. It can also cause him to be off-balance and go down easier on first contact. Among rookie RBs with 50 or more carries, Corum ranked last with 2.4 yards after contact per attempt. One of the reasons that Williams is so trusted by head coach Sean McVay is that he keeps the offense on track.

At the same time, Corum makes defenders miss. From Weeks 10-17, Corum had 0.2 missed tackles forced per attempt to Williams’ 0.16. That leads to more runs into the second level. Out of Corum’s 58 runs, 24 of them went for five or more yards for a rate of 41.4 percent. For comparison, Williams was at 35.7 percent rate.

It is worth noting that over the second half of the season, the Rams run game became more balanced. In the early portion of the season, the Rams continued to build on the gap concepts that they had success with in 2023. However, with injuries to the offensive line, McVay incorporated more zone concepts after the Week 6 bye.

This is notable as Corum was much more successful on zone runs than in gap concepts. On zone runs, Corum had a 50 percent success rate. Conversely, he had just a 34.6 percent success rate in gap runs. If the Rams continue with a balanced rushing attack, it could mean more snaps for Corum. Given that the Rams drafted Hunter who played in a 47-53 split at Auburn, there is reason to believe that the offense is going to continue with this split.

Still, if Corum is going to get on the field, it’s going to come down to his ability in pass protection. If Corum can succeed in that area, he’ll gain McVay’s trust, which could lead to more snaps. Last season, the Michigan running back only got 17 pass pro snaps with overall mixed results.

It’s hard to call year two a big one for Corum, but given that Williams is in extension talks and the Rams drafted Hunter in the fourth round, that seems to be the case. Corum didn’t do enough to necessarily fall out of favor, but a lack of development could mean that Hunter surpasses him on the depth chart.

While he brings many of the same skill sets that Williams has, Corum did show more twitch and ability to make linebackers miss at the second level. Williams is much more of a one-cut and go style of running back while Corum is much more active in his lower-half.

All eyes will be on the Rams running back room this offseason. Despite not having a memorable rookie season, Corum could get more opportunities if McVay deploys more of a committee approach.

Corum’s rookie season may not have lived up to the hype that many may have been expecting, but he still showcased some of the lateral quickness and shiftiness that stood out at Michigan. Nothing will be guaranteed for Corum in year two, but he’s also not a player that should be written off.