Landing left tackle Trent Williams might wind up being the most important move of the 49ers’ offseason. San Francisco acquired Williams on Day 3 of the draft for a 2020 fifth-round pick and a 2021 third-round selection. A short while laster, longtime 49ers left tackle Joe Staley officially announced his retirement. It wasn’t going to be difficult for the team to woo Williams and his agent to put their stamp on a swap that sent the seven-time Pro Bowler to the Bay Area. He told NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport on the ‘RapSheet and Friends’ podcast that the 49ers were his No. 1 trade destination.
The 2019 season was a tumultuous one for Williams who began his season sitting out due to a contract dispute. He wound up needing surgery to have a cancerous growth removed from his skull, and Washington wound up putting him on the Non-Football Injury List and ending his season.
Trade rumors swirled around Williams all through last season, and picked up steam closer to the draft. He told Rapoport that as soon as he knew Staley was officially retiring, he wanted to go to San Francisco.
“We were told (before the draft) that they were basically — they were going to sit still until they understood what direction Joe was heading in … so I knew there was a possibility, but it was just kinda on the back burner until that situation played out,” Williams said. “So, I just kinda kept close tabs on it because obviously that was my number one destination. That’s where I wanted to be. So, once it started to play out and I started to hear and the rumblings started to grow that he might not return, I think that’s when all the focus started to shift back on the 49ers.”
Familiarity with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan would be a logical reason for Williams to want to play in San Francisco. Shanahan was the offensive coordinator and his father, Mike, was the head coach in Washington when they made Williams the No. 4 overall pick out of Oklahoma in the 2010 draft. He told Rapoport that his knowledge of Shanahan’s scheme didn’t play a huge role in his desire to play for the 49ers since there were several teams with coaches Williams knew well.
The bigger key was Williams’ competitive nature. He hasn’t played in an NFL game since the 2018 season finale. The former first-round pick made the Pro Bowl seven times in his first nine seasons and was widely considered one of the best players in the league at his position. There’s some lingering doubt that he’ll be able to elevate himself back to that level after a full year off. Competing daily against the league’s best and having the opportunity to knock any rust off played a big role in his choice.
“Oh, man. I’m looking forward to it,” Williams said of matching up against the 49ers’ defensive line in practice. “That was one of the, when I looked for a team to go to, I looked at the opposite side of the ball to see who can I sharpen my iron on every day in practice. Because when I get out there on the field, I can’t come up with a rust excuse. All that, to me, doesn’t exist. So, I’d rather be rusty in practice and be able to sharpen my iron then, than to try to do it Monday night with all the cameras on me.
“For me, coming to this organization where their defense is probably the best in the league. When you think about defensive lines that get after the quarterback, I mean I think anybody with a pulse is going to throw the 49ers’ front out there within the first, second or third groups. That in itself excites me as a competitor because I know I can get some of the best work done during the week so that on Sundays – you’re not gonna see too many guys better than that group.”
Williams also singled out second-year defensive end and reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Bosa – a player he’ll get plenty of match ups against in practice.
“I think they just don’t have that many guys in the league that’s just better than (Bosa). So, I think for me it’s gonna do everything for me to get me back to where I know I can be at,” he said.
If the 49ers get the version of Williams that went to seven consecutive Pro Bowls, they won’t see any drop off at that position in the immediate aftermath of Staley’s retirement. That would indeed make the trade for Williams their best move of the offseason.
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