After a tumultuous summer that saw San Francisco 49ers star offensive lineman Trent Williams join his teammate wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk on the sideline while negotiating a new contract, the will-they-or-won’t-they nightmare appears to be over.
Williams’ agency, Elite Loyalty Sports, reported on X that Williams was traveling back to San Francisco to finalize a new deal, paving the way for his return to the 49ers starting left tackle spot that has been his home since 2020. As of publishing, no official details on a contract have been reported.
The Rushing Attack Is Ready
The momentum is all going the right way on the ground for the 49ers as they head into their Monday night opener against the New York Jets, as it’s being reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN.com that phenom running back Chrisitan McCaffery has been cleared to practice and will report today, Tuesday, September, 3.
McCaffery, the 27-year-old reigning Offensive Player of the Year, had been dealing with a strained calf for the majority of the preseason. He’s coming off of a fantastic season in which he led the NFL with 1,459 yards rushing, 2,023 yards from scrimmage and 21 combined rushing and receiving touchdowns.
While he’s only played one season-opening game for the 49ers, it was arguably his best of the 2024 season. Visiting the Pittsburgh Steelers, McCaffery ran the ball 22 times for 152 yards and a touchdown in a dominating 30-7 win.
Purdy’s Protection & Security Blanket
For a quarterback, there are two things that cannot be easily replaced: continuity and familiarity. Having Williams protecting Purdy’s blindside is a luxury that no matter how hard Jaylon Moore tried, can’t be duplicated. Having the league’s best RB not only hand the ball off to but also as a significant threat out of the backfield, provides an embarrassment of riches other teams only dream of.
Then, there’s the receiving corps. Without Aiyuk, the 49ers still boasted one of the league’s top-10 TEs in George Kittle and a top-20 WR in Deebo Samuel. The return of Aiyuk means the 49ers are able to bring back the NFL’s third-best scoring offense (491 points scored), second-best in yards gained (6,773) and first-overall team in net yards per passing attempt (8.4).
All of the reps that this team has put in over the past two years worth of practice and game situations have molded them into the team they are today. Just in the 2023 season, they went through a number of highs and lows together, winning their first five games by a combined 167-68 score, then following that up with significant diversity, going more than a calendar month without a win, before finishing the season on a 7-2 run.
Whether or not you believe in numerology, there’s a reason to raise an eyebrow here. Last year there were three playoff games, all three of them were decided by three points, Williams ended his holdout on the third and this just so happens to be Purdy’s third season. Oh, and our punter wears number three, and was born on March 3rd (3-3). His nickname is Boomin’ Onion.
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