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San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams left a major void in the trenches during a three-game skid, and the wait for his return could end this weekend.
The 10-time Pro Bowler returned to practice in limited capacity on Thursday, November 9, amid recovery from an ankle injury. Williams went down during a Week 6 loss to the Cleveland Browns in October.
His extended absence, especially with a missed practice on Wednesday this week, raised the question of how serious it is. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan acknowledged that Williams’ recovery was more than expected.
“I think obviously there is. Just when he’s got a lot of history like that and stuff. It didn’t show up as a high [ankle] or anything like that. But when you’ve had that over your career, there’s a number of things. And it’s taken longer than expected to heal,” Shanahan told reporters on Wednesday, November 8.
Williams is arguably the top tackle in the game with a Pro Football Focus grade of 81.9 overall. The 49ers struggled without him as the offense dipped from 33.4 points per game to three straight games of 17 points.
San Francisco made due with Jaylon Moore stepping in for Williams though not on par with the talent and skill level. Moore graded at 73.6 overall per Pro Football Focus.
49ers Had 4 Other Players in Limited Participation
Besides Williams, the 49ers had limited participation from defensive end Drake Jackson (knee), linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (ankle), and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (knee) per Thursday’s injury report. Guard Aaron Banks (toe) didn’t practice for a second-straight day.
San Francisco had a few others on the injury report, who had full participation in practice back-to-back days. That crew included defensive end Robert Beal (hamstring), linebacker Dre Greenlaw (shoulder), cornerback Darrell Luter (knee), and cornerback Samuel Womack (knee).
The 49ers’ Week 10 opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars, didn’t have any players away from practice due to injury this week. Defensive backs Tyson Campbell (hamstring), Andre Cisco (hamstring), and Daniel Thomas (hamstring) were all limited. Linebacker Yasir Abdullah (illness) returned to practice on Thursday, and cornerback Gregory Junior had full participation.
49ers Focused on One-Game Season vs. Jaguars
Jacksonville comes into the game on a five-game winning streak amid San Francisco’s skid. All the more reason to adopt a single-game season philosophy.
“I think it’s important every week, but especially when you’ve lost three in a row, you’ve got to get back to the part of that’s all that ever matters,” Shanahan said. “It’s always a one-week season and it’s not about going on a run or anything like that. It’s about trying to beat a really good football team this week.”
In addition, Shanahan welcomed the timing of the bye week before the Jaguars game to put the third-straight loss behind them. The 49ers fell 31-17 to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 8 where Shanahan acknowledged the team looked fatigued.
“I think it showed up more on our tape in Cincinnati than it had the other in a while, which was concerning,” Shanahan said. “So I was glad for the break, but I also think the trip got to us a little bit. I mean, those are all reasons, slash excuses, which are the exact same thing to me. But yeah, our guys are a lot fresher right now. They look good to go and hopefully they’ll have a good week of practice, play the right way on Sunday and keep it that way.”
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