3 reasons why SF 49ers must re-sign Trent Willams in 2021
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: Lack of O-line depth on current SF 49ers roster
In an ideal world, the SF 49ers would have someone in mind who could step up and into the place of Trent Williams in 2021, should he depart via free agency.
The original plan, of course, was to have right tackle Mike McGlinchey eventually bump over to the left to eventually place now-retired tackle Joe Staley, whose leaving prompted the Niners to trade for Williams in the first place.
That trade tells you what San Francisco’s probable plans for McGlinchey moving forward truly are. Kyle Shanahan isn’t going to pull that swap if he wasn’t going to already. McGlinchey, the 2018 first-round pick, could potentially be a free agent in 2022 if the team declines to pick up his fifth-year option, which is entirely possible.
Behind Williams and McGlinchey, the SF 49ers are looking at Justin Skule, rookie Colton McKivitz and their reserve/opt-out players like Shon Coleman and Jake Brendel, who are both tabbed for free agency in 2022 after sitting this year out amid the pandemic.
Neither of those two should be considered starting-caliber options either.
Skule’s struggles in Week 9 paints the ugly picture about the offensive line’s potential future sans Williams, and it doesn’t look good.