A new wrinkle has emerged for Sunday’s NFC West matchup between the 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.
On Friday, the Seahawks’ starting center, Connor Williams, abruptly decided to retire from the NFL immediately, Seattle coach Mike Macdonald announced.
The 27-year-old Williams was in his seventh NFL season, also playing for the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins. Williams signed with Seattle during training camp and had played every offensive snap this season after suffering a torn ACL in 2023 with Miami.
In his place, the Seahawks will turn to second-year center Olu Oluwatimi to start Sunday at Levi’s Stadium. The 2023 fifth-round pick has played just four offensive snaps in 2024; he had 129 snaps across 16 appearances last season — with one start. Oluwatimi didn’t play at all on offense during the two Seahawks-49ers matchups in 2023.
Seattle’s offensive line already was struggling this season and frequently has been ranked among the worst units in the NFL. Earlier this week, for example, Pro Football Network labeled …