49ers, Trent Williams in another ‘standoff’ entering contract’s last year

Left tackle Trent Williams, a 12-time Pro Bowler, could be running out of time with the 49ers.

Williams is scheduled to count $39 million against the 49ers’ salary cap in 2026, the final season of a three-year pact he agreed upon just before the 2024 season after a training camp holdout.

The 49ers again are in a “standoff” with Williams and he could become a free agent in two weeks if no resolution is reached, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

General manager John Lynch is expected to address reporters Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. PT from the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis.

Williams is due a $10 million bonus April 1 and a $22 million salary this coming season, according to Spotrac.com.

If released or traded, the 49ers would incur $34 million in dead money against the cap but thus save nearly $5 million off the expected outlay to Williams. Or, as Spotrac’s Michael Ginnitti noted on social media, the 49ers could lower his salary to the minimum $1.3 million and designate him a post-June 1 release, thus pushing his dead-money hits to $13.3 million for 2026 and $20.8 million in 2027.

After the 49ers’ blowout divisional-round playoff loss in Seattle, Williams praised both the 49ers’ against-all-odds season and their future. He also said it was “accurate” to say there’s no question he’d continue his career and wouldn’t be retiring. He turns 38 on July 19.

When Williams reported to training camp last July, he talked about career longevity and whether his could proverbially fall off a cliff. “My cliff might be different than others. Some people don’t ever hit a cliff and might want to retire on top,” Williams said. “For me, I love to compete so much I probably don’t see myself stopping with effective football left in the tank.”

Three weeks ago, Williams was part of the Pro Bowl Games in San Francisco, as was Los Angeles Rams outside linebacker Jared Verse, who said of a potential career decline by Williams: “He hasn’t done it yet and is not doing it. He’s good.”

Verse was the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2024 and he recalled Williams providing a welcome-to-the-NFL moment. “It was the first time in my life I’d been reached and I couldn’t get off the block,” Verse recalled Feb. 2. “I tried to move his hands and he wouldn’t move and he just started laughing. I said, ‘Get off with me.’ He said, ‘You’re so funny, Verse.’ I said, ‘No, I’m not joking. You’re too strong for this.’ ”

Two years ago, Williams ended another contract standoff and reported five days before the season opener, having secured a three-year, $82.66 million deal. “A guy of my stature with my age, security was important,” Williams said then.

Williams played in all but one game last season, that being the regular-season finale after sustaining a hamstring strain trying to halt a pick-six on the opening snap of their penultimate game against Chicago. Only one offensive lineman has made more Pro Bowls, Bruce Matthews with 14.

After the 49ers got eliminated by the eventual champion Seahawks, Williams said of the season: “It was extremely special to me, because I’ve never been a part of a team that’s so behind the 8-ball but just found a way to compete every week,” Williams said after that loss. “We went up against so many rosters that were fully loaded while we were playing with guys that we got a week ago, two weeks ago. … I’m super proud of this team. It didn’t go the way we wanted but the future is really bright.”

If the 49ers move on from Williams, they have no obvious heir apparent at left tackle, and although Colton McKivitz filled in there for Williams a few years ago, McKivitz’s play at right tackle earned him a contract extension last year. Journeyman Austen Pleasants is an exclusive rights free agent but not seen as a game-ready starter.

In terms of finances, only defensive end Nick Bosa counts more on this coming season’s salary cap at a $41.6 million cost and $22.7 million salary that could be adjusted with bonus money to lower his cap figure. Third on the cap-cost list is quarterback Brock Purdy at $24.4 million as part of last year’s record contract (five years, $265 million).

Meanwhile, at the combine, here are other 49ers-related soundbites:

PURSUING MAC JONES?

If the 49ers opt to trade Brock Purdy’s backup, Mac Jones, a few teams have acknowledged they’re in the market for a quarterback. One is the Minnesota Vikings, and executive vice president Rob Brzezinski said, per ESPN’s Kevin Seifert: “I don’t know if we’re ruling anything out. … We have not a ton of time but we have a couple of weeks and so we’re exploring every option that could be out there.”

ANOTHER TO WASHINGTON?

A year after Washington general manager Adam Peters traded for 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel, he didn’t feed speculation that the Commanders could be a landing spot for Brandon Aiyuk, who didn’t play last season for the 49ers and was placed on the reserve/left squad list in December. The 49ers voided Aiyuk’s 2026 guarantees ($27 million) last July and have indicated he is not expected back, though they’ve yet to release him.

“Brandon Aiyuk is a player on another team under contract so I can’t comment on that,” said Peters, formerly of the 49ers’ front office. “… Love the person but I can’t really comment on the player.” Samuel, by the way, is slated for free agency in two weeks.

SALEH’S GRATITUDE

Robert Saleh thanked the 49ers for a second stint as their defensive coordinator en route to becoming the Tennessee Titans’ coach.

“San Francisco, it is a championship organization, with a championship ownership, championship head coach, championship GM, championship everything,” he said. “To go back there, having been a head coach, to go back and piece the puzzle together of what a championship organization looks like and how it operates, just grateful I was given that opportunity to do that again, and everything I learned, hopefully we can take it to this next step.”

Saleh took former 49ers assistant head coach Gus Bradley with him to serve as the Titans’ defensive coordinator. “Gus is like a second dad to me,” Saleh said. “He’s had amazing impact on my life and not to mention he’s one of the better D-coordinators in all of football. To have him on staff, especially this cycle when there was a lot of competition for his services, is a blessing for all of us.”

QUINN’S 49ERS LESSONS

Washington’s Dan Quinn reflected on his NFL coaching entry with the 2001-04 49ers in terms of evaluating players.

“From my first time being in the NFL at the 49ers, a number of the people there taught me what excellence could look like in pro football, (including) a guy by the name of Bill McPherson, who’d been a coach and was the pro director at the time,” Quinn said. “…Since that time I’ve been much more interested in what a player can do and how we would feature them, than the traits they don’t have.”