SANTA CLARA – Trent Williams’ season is officially over, with an ankle injury sidelining him the final seven games of the 49ers’ NFC championship reign.
Williams, an All-Pro left tackle the three previous seasons, was placed on the injured reserve list Thursday by the last-place 49ers, who are having to juggle their offensive line in the wake of season-ending injuries to Williams’ backup, Jaylon Moore, and left guard Aaron Banks.
Matt Hennessy was signed to a two-year deal Thursday, a day after they added fellow offensive lineman Charlie Heck. Also, Sebastian Gutierrez was re-signed to the practice squad.
The 49ers (6-9) host the NFC-leading Detroit Lions (13-2) on Monday night in a rematch of last season’s NFC Championship Game, which the 49ers wons 34-31.
Williams and his family have been grieving the past month since his wife, Sondra, gave birth to a stillborn son, Trenton O’Brien Williams Jr.; a twin daughter was lost earlier in the complicated pregnancy.
Moore started the past five games in place of Williams. A hip issue hindered Moore in practice last week, then he left with a quadriceps injury during Sunday’s 29-17 loss at Miami.
Williams, 36, last played in a Nov. 17 loss to Seattle, lining up for all 63 snaps after taking a painkilling shot beforehand to his ankle. He boycotted training camp and did not report to the 49ers until they awarded him a three-year, $82.66 million deal including a $25.7 million signing bonus and $48 million guaranteed.
When he signed that contract Sept. 3, he expressed a desire to play until he was 40 and do so at an All-Pro level, though this season’s 10-game performance likely wasn’t enough to earn him a fourth All-Pro nod. He’s been a Pro Bowler each of the past 11 seasons he’s played.
“At my age, I know there are not a lot of people who’ve played at an All-Pro level outside of a quarterback. I want to bust those barriers and show this is a new age,” Williams said three months ago. “The research we’ve done, how they’ve done and sculpted our schedules to keep us fresher and keep the banging off of our bodies, it allows you to play longer and I want to take advantage of that.
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“… I’m going to play as long as I can. As long as I feel I’m a productive player and I have something to offer, I want to play football. It’s all I’ve done since the second grade,” Williams added. “But Father Time is undefeated as what we’ve seen. You can fight him off for a bit. Going through the process, that was the goal.”