11:08pm: Speaking with the media on Tuesday, 49ers general manager John Lynch sounded optimistic about Williams’ future (via Clayton Holloway of NFL Network). “Good and productive meetings,” Lynch said. “Trent loves being a Niner. We love having Trent as a Niner. We’re all on the same page… I feel very positive where that’s going.”
3:09pm: Future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams still has one year left on his contract with the 49ers, but he could end up on the free agent market early. Williams and the 49ers are struggling to reach an agreement on an amended deal that would lower his $38.84MM cap hit, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. If they don’t find common ground, a release would be expected, per Schefter.
Williams would be a shocking addition to this year’s class of free agents. Although the 12-time Pro Bowler is set to play his age-38 season in 2026, he would immediately become the best offensive tackle available. For now, the Packers’ Rasheed Walker is in line to lead the market. The 26-year-old Walker has age on his side, but he is not on Williams’ level as a blocker. Case in point: Pro Football Focus ranked Williams third among 84 qualifying tackles in 2025. Walker checked in at No. 53.
Williams has been consistently elite since he entered the NFL as Washington’s first-round pick (No. 4 overall) in 2010. The former Oklahoma Sooner came off the bench once in 14 games as a rookie, but he has started in every other one of his 204 career appearances. Williams made the Pro Bowl in seven straight seasons with the Commanders from 2012-18. He remained under contract in 2019, but a standoff with the team led Williams to sit out for the entire season.
Washington traded the disgruntled Williams to San Francisco for third- and fifth-round picks in April 2020. The 49ers did not hand Williams a new contract immediately, but he played out another Pro Bowl season and inked a six-year, $138MM extension in March 2021. The pact made Williams the game’s highest-paid offensive lineman.
After Williams posted three straight first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl seasons to begin his contract, the 49ers reworked it in September 2024. The three-year, $82.66MM agreement came with a guaranteed $48MM, a record for a non-quarterback over the age of 35. That deal is still in place, but it doesn’t appear that will be the case for much longer.
If there’s any knock on Williams (other than age), it’s durability issues. Excluding the year he held out, Williams has missed between one and seven games in every season since 2014. He played his third 16-game season in 2025, yet another Pro Bowl campaign, but it could go down as his last in San Francisco.
Not only would the 49ers subtract an O-line cornerstone in releasing Williams, but it would hurt from a cap standpoint. If done by April 1, it would yield $34.15MM in dead money and just $4.69MM in savings. Designating Williams a post-June 1 cut would save the 49ers $15.52MM in 2026, though they would have to spread approximately $44MM in dead money over the next two seasons.
This guy cries about his contract every year.
It’s not him crying if you read article
Trent Williams does two things: play left tackle and secure the bag. Say what you will about the man, but he’s elite at both.
This is where people differ. Some see his 22 million dollar salary and say he is underpaid and others, like me, don’t forget he has already been paid nearly 16 million in bonus’s for this season and there is your 38 million hit. That bonus money still counts even if you already been given it 2 years ago.
This could be more of if they want to kick the can down the road in a restructure or maybe even an extension for an extra year. This isn’t specific enough.
And let’s not forget that except for this past season, he’s not played a anywhere near a full season….and 10 games in 24….hurt or not, he’s being paid for a 17 games season while not playing 17 games…..
Kyle sure knows how to pick them for the big money
Guy is just getting to old and will miss to many games to pay that kind of cash
Kinda hard to whine about what he’s making when you compare Purdy’s stats with versus without him.
Same for those screens & sweeps Shanahan is so fond of calling
Their WR Squad is looking meh for the first time in a long time but maybe after the inevitable WR draft pick, look for that heir-not-so-apparent … diamond in the rough … kinda player?
Another player for Lynch to play the “We love you / we hate you” game with. Every season the 49ers treat us to this same movie…lol.
Yeh…Trent loves one thing more than being a “Niner” …loves getting paid top dollar man….
Another side note…..the Niners are 41 million under the cap. They have all the time in the world to figure this out. I think somebody found this as a slow news day and stirred the pot.
They technically don’t because he is due money by like March. Either way they will just get him an extension but they don’t want to pay him $38mill in 1 season.
They don’t but with an extension, that bonus money in March becomes part of the deal. Still, no rush. The Niners hold the leverage in this situation.
Injured or not this year, he can still maul people when he is playing. If only the Patriots could have had this guy in the SB … the 49ers need him and he knows it but his health has to be a concern.