Offensive tackle Trent Williams has a new home as the Pro Bowl lineman is going to the San Francisco 49ers. Williams has been one of the best offensive linemen in the entire NFL throughout his career. His breakup with the Washington Redskins was messy, though, as both sides made some mistakes. In fact, Williams lost a lot of money during his time on the Redskins. 

Trent Williams has been one of the best

In college at Oklahoma, Trent Williams was one of the best offensive linemen in the country. In 2009, he was even a consensus All-American. This led to the Washington Redskins selecting him with the fourth overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft.

Williams was, of course, pretty good during his first two seasons. However, from 2012 through 2018, Williams went to seven straight Pro Bowls. Additionally, in 2015, Williams was a second-team All-Pro selection, according to ESPN. He has truly been one of the best players in the entire league. This is what ESPN wrote about him recently. 

“But replacing Williams’ on-field talent won’t be easy,” ESPN’s John Keim and Nick Wagoner wrote. “His athleticism made him a unique player. Teammates often cited him as the Redskins’ most athletic player. It allowed him to block well in the open field and for the Redskins to execute certain runs or screens.”

ESPN’s John Keim and Nick Wagoner

While Williams has been consistently one of the best players in the NFL, there has been plenty of drama with him and the Redskins. This led to the Redskins trading him to the San Francisco 49ers. 

Having a messy breakup with the Redskins

The dispute between Trent Williams and the Washington Redskins goes back to June 2019, according to ESPN. Williams asked to be traded or released. He said that he was upset about inadequate medical treatment for a cancerous growth on his scalp. However, sources with the team said he asked to be traded/released because he wanted a new contract, according to ESPN. Going into last season, Williams had two years on his contract but no guaranteed money, ESPN reported.

He did not report to the Redskins last season until late October and said that he was upset that the organization did not shop him. The team then flunked his physical and placed him on the reserve/non-football injury list, according to ESPN.

Then, this offseason Williams’ camp got upset that new Redskins coach Ron Rivera met with Greg Olsen before contacting him. Rivera has reportedly not wanted to extend any contracts, according to ESPN.

The Redskins traded Williams to the 49ers on Saturday for the 156th overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft and a third-round pick in the 2021 NFL draft, according to the 49ers’ Twitter account. 

Williams has lost a good amount of money over the years

During his 10 seasons with the Redskins, the NFL suspended Trent Williams twice for substance abuse, once in 2011 and once in 2016. Both suspensions were four games each, according to NBC Sports. For those suspensions, Williams forfeited over $4.36 million, according to Spotrac.

That is not all he has lost, though. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Sept. 15, 2019, that Williams owed the Redskins $743,000 for the time he had been away from the team to that point of the 2019 season. Schefter also reported that Williams racked up $1.2 million in fines for 30 days of missed training camp. Williams did not return to the team until late October, so who know if he was eventually fined for even more than that.

Additionally, Sports Illustrated reported on Nov. 8, 2019, that the Redskins paid him when he returned to the team but announced that they were not going to pay him the remaining $5.1 million of his base salary that season. 

So, when it comes down to it, Williams lost well over $9 million during his time on the Redskins. 

Trent Williams now gets a fresh start on the San Francisco 49ers. He gets a chance to play for a winning team too. The 49ers went 13-3 and went to the Super Bowl in 2019. The Redskins, on the other hand, went 3-13. Time will tell which side wins in the end, though.