San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams is back to being at the top of the rankings after injuries held him back a year ago. In 2024, Williams played in just 10 games before becoming inactive in Week 12 due to injury. To say that made him drop as one of the best tackles in the league is a bit of an understatement.
Pro Football Focus released their annual Top-101 players, finishing with the top 20 on Friday. Williams was highest on the list at No. 20. In the aforementioned 2024 season, Williams just
barely made the list at 98. Despite being inactive for seven games, he still cracks the list of the best 101 players, which should say something about how the 49ers are a very, very different team with and without him.
Behind Williams were quarterback Brock Purdy (81), tight end George Kittle(27), running back Christian McCaffrey (54), and offensive tackle Colton McKivitz (63).
“Despite being 37 years old for the entirety of the 2025 season, Williams was still one of the best left tackles in football. His 91.1 PFF overall grade ranked third among all offensive tackles and first among left tackles. His 80.3 PFF pass-blocking grade ranked tied for eighth, and his 92.0 PFF run-blocking grade placed second.“
37 years old, and he’s No. 20 against the best of the best in the league. It’s not worth it to argue with Williams that he doesn’t have a few more years left in him if he’s going to produce this at that age. In fact, it’s probably imperative now more than ever that the 49ers extend him to provide some cap relief as well as much-needed stability on the offensive line.
McKivitz’s rank at No. 63 isn’t too surprising. The 49ers did extend him afterall. The team can do much, much worse than Dominick Puni; it’s now just the other guard spot and center that need attention. Hopefully, the 49ers can get the Trent Williams succession plan figured out sooner, rather than later, with a left tackle of the future who can play guard in the meantime (asking a lot, but who knows). The last thing anyone wants is for Williams and the 49ers to go their separate ways, and there’s no answer for the position.
Then again, maybe the 49ers have a bit more time to work out that succession plan.
