49ers General Manager John Lynch confirmed the team has reached a two-year deal with left tackle Trent Williams. The two-year, $50 million contract includes $37 million fully guaranteed and a $22 million signing bonus.
Williams is entering his seventh season with the 49ers.
"As I told Trent when we started this thing, my hope is that his name, his number are up in those rafters with a lot of great players that have played here," Lynch said Monday, via David Bonilla of 49erswebzone.com. "There's a buzz in the building. The players are back. It's the first day back for phase one [of the offseason program], but there's a buzz because of what Trent means to this place. So, we're very excited."
The uncertainty about Williams' contract situation led many to mock a left tackle to the 49ers with the 27th overall pick. Williams' new agreement eases the urgency to find a potential successor, though Lynch insists the 49ers always were going to draft the best player available.
"Probably not a whole lot," Lynch said of how the agreement changes the 49ers' approach to the draft. "I think, in general, what free agency did this year, what signing a guy like Trent and having some finality there, probably leaves you a little more comfortable in various scenarios. But I think what I liked about what we did in free agency this year is that there's not a ton of needs."
Lynch had a "great deal of confidence" all along that the 49ers would get a deal completed with Williams, even as a report indicated a possible split between the 12-time Pro Bowler and the team. Now, they expect to have Williams as their starting left tackle for the next two years, giving them at least two years to find a successor.
"We did a two-year deal with Trent, with great confidence that Trent's going to be here for a couple of years," Lynch said. "The way he takes care of himself, where his heart's at. I think in the inception of this offseason, what I did — I sat down with Trent, 'Where you at, man? What's on your mind? What's on your heart?' And so that gave us a great feel."