Trent Williams Traded By The Washington Redskins To The San Francisco 49ers
The Washington Redskins have finally found a taker for Trent Williams. Ian Rapoport announced on Twitter on Saturday that the Redskins have agreed to a deal with the San Francisco 49ers. The deal was announced just minutes after the third day of the NFL Draft kicked off.
Rapoport says the 49ers have acquired Williams in exchange for their fifth-round pick this year and their third-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. The NFL insider pointed out the Minnesota Vikings had thought they could get a similar deal done on Friday, but that deal eventually fell through.
While various sources have said the deal was canceled for different reasons, Rapoport added one reason Williams is headed to San Francisco and not to Minnesota is the expectation of an extension. The Vikings were expected to offer a new contract to Williams. The 49ers are reportedly making this trade and offering up two draft picks for a one-year rental.
That doesn’t mean there won’t be some work done on Williams’ contract. Adam Schefter tweeted out the 49ers are expected to rework the final year of the offensive lineman’s contract. The ESPN NFL expert did add that Williams is expected to report and play for the 49ers this season. That would mean a return to the field for the first time since December of 2018.
Another NFL insider, Mike Garafolo, pointed out on Twitter the deal for Williams seems to cement what the 49ers feel is going to happen with Joe Staley. The longtime franchise stalwart has reportedly been thinking about retiring this season. The analyst believes this deal means the team believes he isn’t likely coming back in 2020.
The trade ends an offseason of rumors and conjecture about what the Redskins were going to do with one of the best offensive tackles in the NFL. Williams made it clear during the 2019 season he didn’t intend to set foot on the field for the Redskins again. Since that time, the front office has talked to several teams. They’ve reportedly gotten close to an agreement several times with both the Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings.
The 49ers were relatively late arrivals, becoming serious players in the last week. Some have posited their entry into talks is one of the factors in Williams’ supposed rejection of a trade to the Vikings. The situation was slightly different for the Browns, who were said to not be offering enough in return. Both the Vikings and Browns eventually decided to beef up their offensive line through the first two days of the draft. That opened the door for the 49ers to step through.
