The 49ers tried to trade up to ensure they drafted Mykel Williams, especially with one NFC rival potentially honing in on the edge defender.
One of the more provocative tidbits from the San Francisco 49ers' top selection in the 2025 NFL Draft, Georgia defensive end Mykel Williams, is the fact the Niners attempted to trade up in Round 1 to select him.
Such was revealed to Williams himself during general manager John Lynch's phone call to the rookie right before San Francisco's pick at No. 11 overall was announced.
"We've been sitting here nervous about going up," Lynch told Williams. "I tried to go up, and it didn't work. But we got you here."
“My dawg, what’s up man?”@MykelWilliams_ was hype to get the call 📞 pic.twitter.com/Nk3U0eW8om
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) April 25, 2025
In the aftermath of the draft, it was hard to figure out exactly why the 49ers were looking to trade up.
More specifically, what other teams were potentially threatening them in the bid for Williams.
"We were hanging on," Lynch subsequently told the media after picking Williams. "We thought there were a number of instances where he might go, and just kept kind of watching the deal, and other guys kept showing up."
A little over a week after the draft's conclusion, fans finally have the answer behind why Lynch and Co. were worried.
49ers were scared of Saints drafting Mykel Williams
In his weekly MMQB column two Mondays after the draft, Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer revealed which team was potentially honing in on Williams and why the Niners were aggresively trying to move up:
"The Niners’ feelings on [Williams] were pretty clear when they tried to do a deal with the Carolina Panthers at No. 8, and jump the New Orleans Saints, who were said to be smitten with Williams, to get him."
According to Breer, the Saints were in line to fully ruin San Francisco's draft hopes. Picking one spot ahead of the 49ers, NOLA pivoted and selected offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., which allowed Lynch and his staff to breathe a sigh of relief and take Williams at No. 11 overall.
From Carolina's vantage point, it probably felt Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan wouldn't be available after a would-be trade-down with the Niners, so rebuffing whatever offer Lynch had was the ultimate course of action.
Breer also added how some envisioned Williams to potentially be a No. 1 overall pick, had he stayed in college another year and especially in light of the fact he played on an injured ankle for all of 2024, which added another dimension to why San Francisco was so worried about the edge defender not falling beyond the top 10.
Thankfully, at least from the 49ers' perspective, the Saints ultimately didn't derail Lynch's hopes, and Williams fell right into the Niners' hands.