The Los Angeles Rams will be happy to hear the drama unfolding up north
WOODLAND HILLS, Ca. The Los Angeles Rams could see a hated face leave the NFC West this offseason.
NFL Insider Adam Schefter reports that there is trouble in the Bay as the San Fransico 49ers and Trent Williams have been unable to find a path towards 2026 as financial difficulties could force the Rams’ most hated rival to say goodbye to the anchor of their offensive line.
“With five-time All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams scheduled to carry a $39 million cap number this season, he and the 49ers currently are struggling to find a contractual solution, per league sources,” stated Williams. “If the two sides can’t bridge their differences in their standoff, Williams would be expected to join this year’s free-agent class, making him one of the premier players available.”
Williams has been a member of the 49ers since the 2020 NFL season, making the Pro Bowl every year since joining the franchise. Williams also secured four All-Pro selections during his time with the 49ers.
Kyle Shanahan has never entered a season as a play caller without having a Pro Bowl/ All-Pro caliber player at left tackle, the most important position to the Shanahan offense. Since 2008, Shanahan has had Duane Brown, Joe Thomas, Jake Matthews, Joe Staley, and Trent Williams at the position.
Williams and Sean McVay do share a relationship from McVay’s six years with the Washington Commanders. 2010 serves as both men’s first season with the franchise, as Williams was McVay’s standout weapon during his run as the Commanders’ offensive coordinator, lasting from 2014-2016.
Williams earned his first ever All-Pro with McVay and was selected to the Pro Bowl during McVay’s three seasons as a play caller.
Despite the history, unless Alaric Jackson is willing to move to right tackle, there’s little room for Williams on the Rams, and even if there was an opening, Williams financial demands would likely be too much for the franchise.
If Williams does leave San Francisco, he would mark the first domino in a line of 49ers who are set to depart from the franchise over the next three to four seasons, players whom are either pillars of the franchise or were crucial to their success.
Brandon Aiyuk is already expected to depart this offseason, and due to injuries in the past, the long-term futures of George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey are murky at best.
Regardless of what happens to Williams, expect the 49ers to invest heavily in the draft once again.
If Williams does leave, that would put the 49ers in a bad spot and, for a position the Rams have failed to exploit since…, forever, this could signal a window for the Rams to collapse Brock Purdy’s blindside repeatedly.
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