San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams is placed on reserve/did not report list amid training camp holdout over new contract

Two standout San Francisco 49ers were not on the field for Wednesday's practice.

Alongside wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who was present in Santa Clara on Tuesday but remained on the sidelines in a "hold-in" situation, the 49ers were also missing their star left tackle, Trent Williams. Unlike Aiyuk, who is attending camp but not participating, Williams did not report at all, as he is holding out due to what head coach Kyle Shanahan referred to as "contract-related" issues.

The 49ers on the reserve/did not report list after he didn't report for training camp this week and the team moved him off of their 90-man roster on Thursday, according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter.

Shanahan said: "It was something I knew could be a possibility. I was hoping he would be here, but I knew it could be a possibility. I feel pretty confident it will all work out in the long run and he’ll be here and we’ll get on the same page with everything, but it’s just one day of practice and I think Trent will be alright missing a few practices.

"A lot of things play into it but I’m not going to get into the personal parts of the contract."

Williams signed a six-year, $138.06 million extension after being traded to the 49ers from Washington in 2020. Last year, this contract was restructured, converting $18.23 million of his base salary for 2023 into a $30 million signing bonus proration through 2027 (still on the hook), freeing up nearly $15 million in salary cap space for the team.

The 36-year-old 11-time Pro Bowler is set to bank $20.8 million in 2024 and $23.35 million in 2025. However, all of the guaranteed money has already been paid out, and several offensive tackles have eclipsed him in terms of average annual earnings.

Williams is most likely looking at the four-year, $112 million agreement that the Detroit Lions handed out to offensive tackle Penei Sewell in April as the benchmark. Even though he just turned 36 years old, he still believes he's the best offensive lineman in the league and wants the same treatment as Christian McCaffrey, who was made the highest-paid running back recently.

The 49ers must work things out with Williams because he is their most valued player, maybe more so than starting quarterback Brock Purdy. Without Williams, the 49ers' offensive line would be mediocre at best, limiting their offensive capabilities. They are 3-6 without Williams since 2020.

Williams' contract squabble comes in the midst of the ongoing saga with Aiyuk, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract and has been looking for a hefty extension all offseason.

The last time the 49ers handed Williams an extension was in 2021 as they made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in the NFL with an average annual value of $23 million per year. Now, Minnesota Vikings tackle Christian Darrisaw ($28.25 million per year), Detroit Lions tackle Penei Sewell ($28 million per year), Houston Texans tackle Laremy Tunsil ($25 million per year) and New York Giants tackle Andrew Thomas ($23.5 million per year) have all eclipsed him.

Despite his advancing years, Williams is still considered as NFL's most dominant lineman and was selected to his 11th Pro Bowl last season, the most among active players. He has been selected as first-team All-Pro in each of the past three seasons.

For each day of training camp he misses, Williams is subject to a mandatory $50,000 fine, which cannot be waived.

Extended contract disputes are not uncommon for the 49ers. Williams finds himself in a situation similar to that of running back McCaffrey, who held out before signing a restructured contract extension in early June.

Likewise, wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. chose a similar path during the initial days of camp in 2022 before finalizing his extension on July 31, while defensive end Nick Bosa held out for all of last year's training camp and didn't agree to a deal until Sept. 6, just days before the regular-season opener.

While the timeline for reaching a new contract agreement remains uncertain, it's reasonable to expect that the 49ers will splash the cash to resolve the situation, as they are eager to make a return to the Super Bowl after suffering a narrow overtime defeat in Super Bowl LVIII.