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It was a relief when the San Francisco 49ers reworked offensive lineman Trent Williams' contract to give him a three-year, $82.66 million, ending the holdout. While multiple aspects could have led to the signing of the contract including the shooting and recovery of 49ers receiver Ricky Pearsall, it was also a short message sent by head coach Kyle Shanahan.
There is no doubt that the 49ers wanted to sign back Williams who is a bonafide inductee into the Hall of Fame in the future as Shanahan showed his want for the offensive lineman to come back to the team. The blunt message that Shanahan said on the phone to Williams eight days before the Week 1 opener was “we need you” according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic.
Williams, entering in to his 14th season, came to an understanding after hearing that emotional request from his head coach, who the two have had a long friendship since Shanahan was the offensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders in 2011 when he was a rookie. The 36-years old star would talk about his motivation to be back on the field while also wanting the financial stability for his family.
“You know the only way you are taking me off the field is on a stretcher,” Williams said to Shanahan via Russini. “I am fully committed to giving you all of my physical and mental being if you can provide the security I need off the field for my family.”
Trent Williams set goals for himself after signing contract with 49ers
Williams said after signing the contract with the 49ers about the goals he wants to set, especially being his age still playing at an elite level.
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“I just want to continue to knock barriers down,” Williams said. “There haven’t been a lot of people to play at an All-Pro level (at this age) outside of quarterback. I want to continue to show that this is a new age. … For me, it’s just more logs in the fire that I can prove I can be something they’ve never seen before.”
In terms of the contract, Williams made sure to be handled since his previous contract expired when he would be 38-years old.
“I was under contract until 38, so it's hard to ask somebody to guarantee an eight-figure salary when I'm 38,” Williams said. “I get that, and I feel like in my heart of hearts I'll be the same player, and I feel like I work hard enough that I can keep that brand of football the same. But I understand it.
“I've been around long enough to where I get both sides of it, so I didn't take that as disrespect. But that was one of the key points is like yeah, I was under contract until I was 38. It is hard to tell somebody, ‘Hey, they ain't never seen it before.' … We've never seen people play and be the best at their position that's not a quarterback, so I get it. And to me it's just more logs in the fire to kind of prove that I can be something that we haven't seen before.
At any rate, the 49ers open the current season in an anticipated matchup against the New York Jets Monday night after their Super Bowl loss.
