San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

49ers OT Trent Williams reworks contract

Originally posted on Pro Football Rumors | By Ben Levine | Last updated 9/24/22

The 49ers have opened up a chunk of cap space this morning. According to ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter), left tackle Trent Williams has converted a part of his base contract into a signing bonus.

Specifically, the team took $5.45M of Williams’ base salary and turned it into a signing bonus. This move ended up saving the front office about $4.36M against the cap.

Williams joined the 49ers prior to the 2020 campaign, and following a season where he earned Pro Football Focus’ top grade among offensive tackles, San Francisco handed him a whopping six-year, $138.06M deal, making him the highest-paid OL in NFL history. The contract included more than $55M in guaranteed money and a $30M signing bonus.

The veteran started all 15 games for the 49ers in 2021, and he earned his first career first-team All-Pro nod as a result of his performance (Williams earned second-team honors in 2015). He once again graded as PFF’s top offensive tackle, and through two games this season, he current sits 12th on the site’s list among 66 qualifying OTs.

This article first appeared on Pro Football Rumors and was syndicated with permission.

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