Trent Williams Trying to Be the Tom Brady of Offensive Linemen

San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams proved he's still one of the best in the business in 2021. No tackle received a higher overall grade last year than Williams' 91.9, per ProFootballFocus. The mauler was rewarded handsomely for his efforts, signing a six-year, $138 million deal to remain in SF.

The length of the contract may have given some fans reason for concern, though, as Williams is a 32-year-old tackle. He's doing his best to silence those doubts, giving an extremely confident quote about his NFL future. In fact, it sounds like Williams is trying to become the Tom Brady of offensive linemen.

I've been to the Pro Bowl the last eight years I've touched the field so I'm not really worried about a decline at the moment. I know six years is a lot to actually go and suffice but I do think it's possible and I do appreciate the 49ers for adding that incentive, to go and get that fifth and sixth year.

- Trent Williams

Williams will be turning 33 before next season kicks off, so if he finishes his entire six-year deal, he'd be 39 years old. That sounds like a pretty ambitious goal, but it's not unprecedented. Not by a long shot.

Tom Brady may get all the attention for being the NFL's resident elder statesmen, but there are others who are quietly following in his footsteps.

Andrew Whitworth and Jason Peters are both 39, and both proved to be more than serviceable players last year. That's especially true of Whitworth, who was PFF's fourth-highest graded tackle, though he did miss some time due to injury.

It certainly sounds like Williams is hoping to do something similar down the road.

I think just going off of that and kind of knowing the medicine now and the way the NFL takes care of their players now, yeah, I think playing 'til 40 is well within reach... I have something to prove. Can I play at a high level 'til I'm 40? We'll see.

- Trent Williams

Quotes like that have to be music to 49ers' fans ears.

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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.