Breaking: Former Detroit Lions most favorite starting DT Signs a One-Year Contract with 49ers.
The San Francisco 49ers signed veteran defensive tackle Nick Williams because they were about to have surgery on defensive tackle Kalia Davis’s knee.
To go along with Williams’ one-year contract announcement, the 49ers also declared the release of linebacker Ezekiel Turner.
As he heals from surgery, Davis is anticipated to miss at least half of the 2024 regular season. The precise amount of time that the Niners’ DT will be out is unknown.
On the inside of the defensive line, San Francisco will start Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins. Jordan Elliott, Kevin Givens, T.Y. McGill, and Shakel Brown are behind Hargrave and Collins.
The 6-foot-4, 310-pound Williams should have no problem establishing a rotational position for himself given his expertise.
More About Nick Williams’s Signing as a New San Francisco 49ers DT
Williams, 34, began his 2014 career on Pittsburgh’s practice squad until being added to the Kansas City Chiefs’ active roster. He was originally selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the seventh round of the 2013 draft.
He played 222 defensive snaps over his three seasons with Kansas City. Williams joined with the Chicago Bears in 2018 after sitting out the whole 2017 campaign, and he ended up enjoying his greatest season to date there.
Williams only appeared in two games for Chicago in 2018, but he seized the chance to step in when former Bears defensive lineman Akiem Hicks was injured in 2019. He recorded career highs in tackles (42), tackles-for-loss (5), quarterback hits (9) and sacks (6.0) in 16 games (five starts) for Chicago that season.
Williams initially collaborated with Brandon Staley, the current assistant head coach of the 49ers and the linebackers coach for the Bears, in Chicago.
Following a successful 2019 season in Chicago, Williams signed a new contract with the Detroit Lions, where he started 30 games in 2020 and 2021. During his two seasons as a starter with the Lions, he only recorded six TFLs, five QB hits, and 1.5 sacks. His numbers somewhat declined after that.
Williams has spent the last two seasons in supporting roles. In 2022, he played in eight games (seven starts) and saw action in 45% of New York’s defensive plays while he was a member of the New York Giants.
Williams signed a contract with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2023. He played 42% of the defensive snaps with the Chargers in his 14 games (six of which he started).
49ers DC DT Group is told by Nick Sorensen to “Show Us What You Have.”
When questioned about how his team will replace Davis—who had been playing well before getting hurt—49ers defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen responded.
As with any position, the next guy up is Sorensen, who stated as much on August 14. It’s their chance to showcase their assets to us. There are two weeks and two preseason games left for you. Even though Kalia was doing a great job, let someone else take the lead and be that reliable. How quickly can I develop in this system while acting aggressively and correctly? They seem to be a competitive group, in my opinion. It is, in my opinion, extremely competitive on all three levels.
Regarding Davis, the group anticipates having him available in the second half of the season. On August 12, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan stated, “We plan on Kalia being around here and we plan on him coming back and helping us this year.”
Williams should be a good stand-in in the interim.
