49ers reportedly make big move amid Trent Williams contract dispute

The San Francisco 49ers and star left tackle Trent Williams have spent the offseason involved in a dispute over the fact that his current contract has no guaranteed money or years left beyond the 2026 season. 

As noted by Nick Wagoner of ESPN, 49ers general manager John Lynch expressed optimism in late March that the two sides will come to an agreement that will result in Williams remaining with the organization through at least the upcoming campaign. It sounds like Lynch wasn't bluffing when he shared that update. 

Are 49ers close to locking Trent Williams down via revised agreement?

According to NFL insider Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom US, "the 49ers made another push to try to get closure in this situation and sent over a revised contract to Williams within the last few days." 

On Monday, La Canfora added that it's thought there's a chance the Williams-49ers situation "gets resolved early this week" if the 37-year-old is pleased with the club's latest offer. 

"The 49ers are willing to pay Williams basically $36M guaranteed over the next two years, with about $24M to be paid to him in 2026," La Canfora wrote. "That $24M salary for next season would still put him in the top 10 among offensive linemen, though one could certainly argue that Williams is still a top-three tackle in the league."

Why 49ers should want to resolve Trent Williams dispute as soon as possible

As Wagoner and others have pointed out, no like-for-like replacement for Williams currently exists on the 49ers' roster or on the open market. Thus, one would think that Lynch and Co. would want to hold onto who has become the most important protector for quarterback Brock Purdy.

The NFL Draft gets underway on April 23, so Lynch should also want to know whether or not he'll need to bolster his club's offensive line via the player-selection process. 

"While the 49ers are couching this situation as one with an inevitable return for the stalwart, rival executives remain very interested to see how this plays out over the coming weeks, as interest in Williams is legitimate," La Canfora shared. "San Francisco might be banking on it waning after the draft as teams address that need with high draft picks." 

That could be a dangerous game for Lynch to play if Williams remains displeased over what the 49ers are willing to pay him through the fourth Thursday of April.