49ers' Trent Williams dethroned as NFL's top offensive tackle in ESPN rankings

San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams may have missed the final seven games of the 2024 season due to an ankle injury. However, he still earned the highest Pro Football Focus (PFF) grade among the team's offensive linemen by a significant margin. Despite the shortened campaign, Williams posted an 85.6 offensive grade from PFF, his lowest in five seasons with the 49ers, yet still solid among his peers.

Williams allowed 17 pressures over 381 pass-blocking snaps (649 total), per PFF. As he inches closer to the end of his career, he's still viewed as one of the NFL's elite offensive tackles, and his eventual enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame—expected five years after he retires—is all but guaranteed.

Each offseason, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler surveys NFL executives, coaches, and scouts to rank the league's top players by position. Williams held the No. 1 spot among offensive tackles for four consecutive years. However, with the veteran lineman set to turn 37 in the coming days, he saw a slight dip in this year's rankings.

Ahead of the 2025 season, ESPN has ranked Trent Williams as the No. 4 offensive tackle in the NFL.

"The top-ranked tackle from the previous four years basically has played like a 25-year-old for more than a decade," Fowler wrote. "But the injuries have started to pile up as Williams approaches his 37th birthday, as ankle issues have cost him games in each of the last two seasons.

"He's still excellent, allowing four sacks in 10 games in 2024 and driving the 49ers' potent running attack. But, somewhat surprisingly, Williams did not garner his normal share of No. 1 votes."

Williams fell behind Tristan Wirfs of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Penei Sewell of the Detroit Lions, and Lane Johnson of the Philadelphia Eagles in the rankings.

Fowler added, "Williams allowed an average time to pressure of 3.78 seconds last season, per Next Gen Stats, the longest among left tackles with at least 25 pressures allowed."

One veteran offensive coach told Fowler that Williams remains among the best in the game.

"When he's clicking, there's still nobody better," he said. "He's the most powerful tackle I've ever seen."

Williams remains one of quarterback Brock Purdy's most reliable and trusted blockers, providing the peace of mind that his blindside is secure.

"He does this ninja move thing, and then pushes guys in the ground," Purdy recently said. "And then, outside of that, just pass [protection] and stuff, he's locked down over there. And so, year after year, for me, blindside as a quarterback, right-handed quarterback, knowing that my left side is good, I can't even describe to you. It's like a sense of freedom."

Williams was recently asked about his NFL future and admitted that retirement isn't something he's ready to consider. In fact, the 11-time Pro Bowl selection believes he could continue playing into his 40s if he maintains a high level of performance and meets his own elite standards.

"It's one of them things to where I'm gonna do everything possible to play as long [as I can]," Williams said, "and to put a good product of football out there, and then, when it's not going my way, then I'll know. But I could play until I'm 41. Who knows?

"But that is a goal of mine. I'm definitely not going to retire with some left in the tank."

For Purdy, who signed a five-year, $265 million contract extension this offseason, that's welcome news.

"We always ask ourselves every year when he comes back, we're like, 'Is Trent gonna be the same? Is this still the Trent Williams [we know]?'" Purdy shared. "Dude, year after year, he's the same guy. Absolutely love him. For me to be a quarterback in the NFL and have that guy blocking for me, dude, it doesn't get any better."