Trent Williams delivered another dominant performance in 2023, with Pro Football Focus grading the San Francisco 49ers tackle as one of the top two offensive linemen in the NFL that season.
Williams boasts a respectable 86.0 offensive grade this year, ranking him 10th among all offensive linemen. However, this is his lowest grade since joining the 49ers. His 84.2 run-blocking grade also marks a decline over the past five seasons. Last season, Williams allowed 18 pressures (excluding the playoffs), and through just seven games this year, he has already given up 12, according to Pro Football Focus.
Williams missed all of training camp due to a contract dispute, only reporting to the team just before the first regular-season game. Given these factors and the fact that he's now 36 years old, it's reasonable to consider whether this slight decline is reflected in Pro Football Focus' analytics. However, one 49ers coach isn't convinced.
"Yes, he's fine," said run game coordinator and offensive line coach Chris Foerster. "He's been playing as well as he's ever played. There might be some protections, but I thought it was the same as last year. And some things are actually better than a year ago."
Regarding Pro Football Focus' analysis, Foerster commented, "Who knows what it is? I don't know their scales. At least it's consistent. So, whatever they grade him as, and however they do it, I'm not there to discuss theirs. But I know that, definitely, from our perspective, to me, he's playing the same as he played a year ago."
Foerster emphasized that he doesn't like to compare players, so he's not ready to declare Williams the best in the game. He concluded, "I'm not doing that, but I do know he's playing almost exactly the same as he played a year ago."
Tight end George Kittle echoed Foerster's assessment, stating, "I think Trent, on a bad day, is still better than 31 other teams' left tackles. So, I'm not saying that Trent has bad days, but Trent is still playing at a high level for us, which is awesome because we need that."
Following a disappointing Week 7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Williams and the 49ers are preparing for Sunday's game against the Dallas Cowboys, aiming to climb out of the 3-4 hole they've dug themselves into.
