Trent Williams on Nick Bosa: ‘When it’s all said and done, he’ll be one of the best’
New left tackle Trent Williams had an idea about Nick Bosa from afar. But his opinion if the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year has shifted after going against him in training camp practices for the past week.
“He’s better than I even thought he was and I already knew he was top three, four in the game but just going up against him every day, seeing how smart he is, seeing how hard he works and just seeing how seriously he takes the game. I honestly see his trajectory as being one of the best in the game,” Williams said.
Williams said he’s spent the first portion of camp knocking off the rust after sitting out last season with Washington. But it hasn’t showed.
He’s consistently been one of the 49ers’ best players on either side of the ball, and he’s gotten the better of Bosa during most of their one-on-one reps in practice — which draw more eyeballs than anything else happening on the field.
Bosa, of course, has talked at length about how going against former left tackle Joe Staley in practice helped him out ahead of his excellent rookie year. The same is happening with Williams, though Williams might even provide the 49ers an upgrade over Staley, which is no small feat.
And for Williams, he said practicing against Bosa has been invaluable in his transition to his new team. He expects the former Ohio State star to solidify himself as one of the best in the league.
“When it’s all said and done, I think when you say who is the best pass rusher/all around D-end, I think Nick Bosa’s name will probably be the first name to come out of a lot of people’s mouth,” Williams said. “And it’s a blessing for me because I’m able to go against him every day. We’re able to talk, kind of walk each other through how we’re thinking and it’s been a great help to me. I couldn’t have planned a better camp as far as learning wise and knocking the rust off.”
The 49ers could have one of the best left sides of the offensive line in the NFL with Williams playing next to left guard Laken Tomlinson, who has quietly had his best camp since coming to San Francisco just before Week 1 in 2017.
Tomlinson, like Williams, was a former first-round draft pick. He didn’t pan out with the Lions, which allowed the 49ers to get him for a 2019 fifth-round draft choice. Tomlinson during the 2018 offseason signed a three-year, $18 million extension through 2021.
According to Williams, Tomlinson is on a path toward getting recognized as one of the best left guards in the league. And one of the reasons first-round pick Javon Kinlaw has been quiet in the early going, particularly in one-on-one drills, has been because he’s had to go against Tomlinson.
“I talk to Lake a lot. I tell him, he’s got everything that you would need in an All-Pro guard. He’s got size, the power, the movement, the brains, he’s got the skills. He’s got it all. I think last year, Lake really put it together. If you watch him on film, I think he played as one of the best guards in the league last year. Believe it or not, no matter what people say. You watch the film, I think he proved it.”