49ers hand Williams richest offensive tackle contract ever
As the NFL opened its business year Wednesday, veterans Trent Williams, A.J. Green and Emmanuel Sanders prospered.
Some teams officially announced deals that consistently leaked during the “legal tampering” period that began Monday, and others stayed pretty silent. That trio of players with a total of 31 pro seasons made out very well despite not getting big offers immediately.
The 49ers held onto the best tackle who could have become a free agent by giving Williams the richest contract ever for an offensive lineman. Williams is a particularly intriguing case. His agents at Elite Loyalty Sports said the deal agreed to early Wednesday will pay Williams $138.1 million over the next six years, surpassing the $138 million deal David Bakhtiari got from Green Bay a year ago. Williams also will get the biggest signing bonus ever for an offensive lineman at $30.1 million, as well as $55.1 million guaranteed.
Basically, he gambled on himself. Seeking to get out of Washington, where Williams believed the medical staff botched a cancer diagnosis, he sat out 2019. Midway through that season, he hoped to be traded before the deadline, which didn’t occur. Williams
was banished from the Washington facility by former team president Bruce Allen.
He landed in San Francisco in a draft-day trade for a 2020 fifth-round pick and a 2021 third-rounder.
“Trent’s a game changer,” said fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who signed a five-year contract to stay in San Francisco earlier in the week. “He’s somebody that teams have to scheme around. They have to change what they’re doing because he’s out there, and he’s a guy that we can just completely count on and know that he’s going to get his job done and then some. You can’t pay too much for a guy like that. Those are guys that really make a difference and put you over the top and and put you into that championship caliber.”
Green joins the Cardinals and ends a decade in Cincinnati, though he has been plagued by injuries recently and sat out 2019. Arizona, which also acquired center Rodney Hudson from the Raiders for a thirdround draft pick, already has a No. 1 receiver in DeAndre Hopkins, and long-time star Larry Fitzgerald has not made a decision on returning for an 18th season. He got a one-year deal worth $8 million.
Elsewhere:
• The Bills are adding receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who turned 34 Wednesday. He will join his fourth team in three years and gives a Buffalo a versatile presence to go with All-Pro receiver Stefon Diggs. Sanders has played for Pittsburgh, Denver and New Orleans, winning a Super Bowl with the Broncos.
• Raiders coach Jon Gruden, who likes speedy wideouts as much as he enjoys watching game film, added John Brown, recently cut by Buffalo. Brown could be a veteran deep threat in Las Vegas after Nelson Agholor left in free agency for New England. But Brown, who turns 31 in April, is coming off the second-least productive season of his career and was limited to nine games because of knee and ankle injuries.
• Detroit took away one of division-rival Green Bay’s offense pieces, giving a two-year contract to running back Jamaal Williams. Williams was a backup to Aaron Jones, and figures to fill the same role in Detroit behind D’Andre Swift and Kerryon Johnson. The Lions also arranged a trade with the Rams for steady defensive tackle Michael Brockers as they attempt to rebuild one of the NFL’s worst units.
• The Falcons acquired tight end Lee Smith from the Bills for a seventh-round draft pick next year. Mostly a blocker, the 11-year veteran has played in 133 games, with 64 receptions.
The last team to cut the nets down as Division I national champions is preparing for this year’s NCAA Tournament in a way different than everyone else.
Virginia is the only team not yet in Indianapolis, the site of this year’s tournament, because of a positive COVID-19 test that forced the Cavaliers to pull out of last week’s Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament before the semifinals, where they were the top seed.
The Cavaliers (18-6) are seeded fourth in the West Regional and will face 13thseeded Ohio (16-7) on Saturday night. Guard Sam Hauser said Wedneday the team’s preparation has involved individual workouts and conditioning sessions and Zoom strategy calls.
If things go well, the Cavaliers will have their first — and only — practice on Friday in Charlottesville, Virginia, before departing for Indianapolis. It’s not the way any team would prefer to get prepared for the marquee event to finish a most unusual season, but far better than the alternative.
“We didn’t know if our season was over or if we were still going to have a chance to be able to play,” he said. “Lucky enough we’re going to have a chance to play hopefully.”
The deadline for teams to be replaced came and went Tuesday night, so the field of 68 is set. If Virginia or any other team cannot play this weekend, the opponent automatically advances to the next round.
NCAA senior vice president for basketball Dan Gavitt said Virginia will still have to be tested twice and quarantine until both tests are returned negative. Gavitt said he believe Virginia will have the opportunity to get a practice in before they play.
Hauser said the rest the Cavaliers are getting could be a benefit.
“Once we step in the floor, I think the guys will be ready to go,” he said.
Like Virginia, Kansas had to pull out of the Big 12 Tournament after starting forward Jalen Wilson and backup forward
Tristan Enaruna tested positive before that tournament. The third-seeded Jayhawks could have starting center David McCormack available for the first round against No. 14 seed Eastern Washington.
Enaruna wouldn’t be available until after the opening weekend. Wilson’s quarantine period would expire in time for him to fly to Indianapolis on Monday and play in the second round — barely.
“If we’re fortunate enough to advance, we don’t know what time the game is,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “There are certain protocols that have to be met getting here. If it’s later in the day, that would probably help, but we don’t have any control over that.”