Had the San Francisco 49ers found a way to get Trent Williams in trade from Washington last season, Williams may have found himself playing guard.
The 49ers looked into the possibility of acquiring Williams last season when both starting tackles Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey were sidelined with injuries during the middle of the season.
“We had made a call about it in the last season when Joe and McGlinchey were hurt, thinking, wow, this could be an option,” General Manager John Lynch said in the 49ers’ virtual State of the Franchise event this week, via David Bonilla of 49ers Web Zone. “When those guys come back, maybe we play him at guard.”
Both Staley and McGlinchey would eventually return to action for the 49ers. Had Williams also been with the team team following a trade, it would have necessitated some adjustment to keep all three in the lineup at the same time. Almost all of Williams’ career has been spent at left tackle in Washington. The lone exceptions have come in a pinch due to injuries elsewhere on the line that necessitated a temporary move inside.
However, the trade never happened last year and didn’t come together until the final day of this year’s NFL Draft. There would also be no logjam at tackle moving forward either as Staley announced his retirement shortly thereafter.