© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
It’s Trent Williams against his old team, the Washington… Football Team (choose a name, you weirdos).
In many ways, it’s very personal. But not with the actual team. Williams’ beef, as he made clear on Thursday, has nothing to do with anyone in the locker room. So when he sees them at “home,” in Arizona on Sunday, there won’t be any chip on his shoulder.
Trent Williams meets Washington, has lofty 49ers aspirations
Williams doesn’t appear any more eager to face Washington than any other team. Maybe he was just being tactful about his answers, but he tends to wear his heart on his sleeve. When Williams doesn’t want to answer a question, he won’t, or he’ll tiptoe around it.
He did a bit of that when asked about what went wrong with his old team, but more as a way to not reopen old wounds. Williams was honest about his feelings for both his old and new franchise, saying that “it was about respect,” which he felt he wasn’t receiving from Washington. That said, he also holds no ill will towards his former teammates.
“Those guys in the locker room supported me from day one to now. They never wavered, “Williams said. “They always publicly showed support and privately showed support. So it’s hard for me to say, ‘Yeah man, I want to go out there and and prove something.’
“I have nothing to prove to those guys who are gonna be taking the field. To me I’m not gonna sit here hold grudges for no reason… I’m not gonna sit here and just carry some grudge just because people expect me to carry it.”
With some Washington reporters on the Zoom call, Williams was asked about his legacy. What did he think it was?
He left that up to interpretation, saying “it depends on who you ask,” but made clear that his only goal was to, “be a good teammate, and to put a good product on the field,” which he thought he did.
As for his goals as a 49er, he was pretty specific.
“My goal is try to end up in their ring of fame,” Williams said. “Hopefully I can string together, a ring-worthy string of seasons.”
Arik Armstead tipped for Walter Payton Man of The Year, but has to explain lack of production
From a human perspective, it’s been a phenomenal year for Arik Armstead. As usual, he’s been active in the community, helping donate laptops and learning materials to communities around his hometown, in the greater Sacramento area. He reads to kids through his charity, the Armstead Academic Project, which seeks to encourage reading at a young age.
And this season, he has normally prepared a subject to talk about at the outset of his press conferences. He chooses a social issue, whether it be police brutality or race-based disadvantages in education, and talks for a few minutes about why the causes are so important to him.
He was thus honored on Thursday as the 49ers’ nominee for the Walter Payton May on the Year Award.
Arik Armstead has been nominated for the 2020 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.
Watch Armstead receive the nomination on a surprise video call with his family ??? pic.twitter.com/YRxKnjB0at
— KNBR (@KNBR) December 10, 2020
He has been an exemplary and generous human.
But you have to separate that when you’re evaluating his play. And for a man the 49ers gave a five-year, $85 million deal to this offseason, he hasn’t come close to performing to what they expected.
Yes, there have been double teams and limited opportunities, especially early in the year. But as of late, he’s getting plenty of one-on-ones. Against the Bills, he wasn’t double-teamed until there were 40 seconds left in the first half, and that was once he shifted inside. He simply wasn’t getting pressure, and Josh Allen was giving him enough time to do so.
So, the question was posed to Armstead, who hasn’t sacked a player since Week 4 against the Philadelphia Eagles: Why do you have 1.5 sacks on the year?
“I wanted to be more productive and make more plays and help my team in more ways,” Armstead said. “I’m my biggest critic. I’m hardest on myself, more than anyone… In terms of getting sacks, there’s various things that go into that, game situations. Situations that arise and opportunities that arise throughout a game to get a sack or be in a position to get that stat, that’s a game-by-game basis depending on how games go.”
He said there have been less opportunities, which is obviously going to be the case without Nick Bosa or Dee Ford or DeForest Buckner.
But Kerry Hyder has 7.5 sacks. To Armstead’s credit, many of those Hyder sacks have come when Armstead collapses the pocket or creates pressure, but Armstead himself is not finishing.
In other words, Armstead, who has gotten into Twitter spats and blocked reporters, is not his own harshest critic.
This is not to try and simply be disparaging for the sake of it. He has not been abysmal, but he’s been mostly effective in holding and closing gaps in the run game, and is not creating consistent pressure when the 49ers are desperate for it. Teams don’t pay for run-stopping edges, though, they pay for pass rushers.
He needs help from other players to be effective, which begs the question of whether the 49ers are getting value for their money.
Practice Report
Limited
- C Hroniss Grasu (knee)
- WR Deebo Samuel (foot)
- CB K’Waun Williams (ankle)
Did not practice
- G Tom Compton (concussion)
- DT Kevin Givens (not injury related)
- DT D.J. Jones (ankle)
- CB Emmanuel Moseley (hamstring)
Note on Kevin Givens: He posted on his Instagram that he had his first child. According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, Givens won’t be eligible to return by Sunday, given the number of COVID tests he needs to pass.
#49ers DL Kevin Givens missed practice WED to be on hand for the birth of his daughter. (Aria was born today). Due to COVID-19 protocols, Givens must miss Sunday's game against Washington. Givens has played well in recent weeks and his snap counts have been steadily increasing.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) December 10, 2020