Williams knew after being traded from Washington Redskins in April, the 49ers didn’t ‘need' him to win after Super Bowl LIV appearance.
"I say this all the time: It was an attractive destination, not just because of Kyle and the quarterback (Jimmy Garoppolo), of course, but they don't need me to win, " Williams said.
Mark Tenally/Associated Press |
“To me, it gives me the chance to come in and not feel like the world is on my shoulders and I have to do everything, I’m just a small piece of the puzzle to a well-tuned machine,” Williams said, per NBC Sports.
It could be argued their offensive line was upgraded after losing Pro Bowl tackle Joe Staley in the offseason.
"We just always had a real close relationship,” Williams continued. “Even when he left, when he went to Cleveland and Atlanta, we always kept in touch. We talked about reuniting the day he left his office in Washington and it was spoken into existence."
Shanahan, John Lynch, the 49ers general manager, knew trading for the thirty-one-year-old tackle without an extension in place was an assumed risk.
“We felt like even though we were assuming some risk without the Trent Williams thing being done, that was a risk we were willing to take," Lynch said, via ESPN.com.
"I think the plan was to land him right now and then let the rest kind of work itself out," Lynch added.
Last month, the 49ers restructured Williams' contract – prorating a portion of the $12.5M he's due on an expiring five-year, $68M.
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