SF 49ers: Ranking 5 best trades under John Lynch

No. 2: SF 49ers land a perennial Pro Bowl tackle in Trent Williams

To be fair, this trade for perennial Pro Bowl offensive tackle Trent Williams wasn’t just because of the SF 49ers being a savvy-smart team.

Though it helped there were very few rumors or leaks about the retirement of stalwart left tackle Joe Staley, thereby reducing speculation, and it was especially important Williams had forced himself out of Washington and wanted to be in San Francisco, the trade still had to happen.

When the trade was first reported, the SF 49ers had struck gold, particularly in landing the dominance of Williams, when healthy, and made better by the likely addition of a third-round compensatory pick in 2022 if Williams left after one season.

Well, with the majority of the season gone by, it’s become very clear Williams will be worth every penny he signs for. He has played as a top-three tackle in the entire league, and even then, there have been signs of rust and ways for him to improve. He is essentially a must-sign for the SF 49ers, and should they fail to do so, he will assuredly get a contract large enough for a compensatory pick.

The SF 49ers’ best-case scenario would be a third- and a fifth-round selection for their left tackle for the next five to seven years.

Worst case? they traded a fifth to shore up the blind side for a year. That’s a win-win trade.