49ers looking to find long-term Trent Williams replacement despite $50 million contract update

49ers looking to find long-term Trent Williams replacement despite $50 million contract update originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Injuries have been very prevalent for the San Francisco 49ers over the past few years. That's the harsh reality of what this organization has dealt with, and something that will need to be fixed. If the 49ers want to be the team they know they can be, a lot of it will start with being healthy.

It'll be interesting to see what the organization decides to do during the NFL Draft, as drafting young players who have proven they can stay on the field might be a priority.

Addressing this health issue among young guys should be a priority, as should eventually replacing some of the older guys. One of those guys is Trent Williams, who recently agreed to a new contract. It doesn't look like Williams is leaving relatively soon, but finding his replacement should be a priority. From the sound of things, it will be.

“Also, at some point the Niners are going to have to find and groom Trent Williams’s successor. Someone like Arizona State’s Max Iheanachor would be appealing along those lines as an athletic freak who could begin as a right tackle (his college position) with the hope he could eventually move over to take Williams’ spot. And with fewer picks overall than normal, trading down is something that the Niners will certainly seriously consider,” Albert Breer wrote.

Offensive line picks are typically not ones that fans get too excited about. However, these are the type of moves that can truly come back to put San Francisco in a position to win a Super Bowl. I'd love for the 49ers to take a tackle and have him learn from Williams, one of the best in the NFL over the past decade.