Congrats are in order for two members of the San Francisco 49ers following the release of the Associated Press 2021 All-Pro list. Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel each earned first-team All-Pro honors for the first time in their careers, as determined by a vote of 50 media members of the Associated Press.
San Francisco's left tackle closed out his second year in San Francisco as one of the top offensive linemen, if not top player, in the entire NFL in Year 12. According to football analytics site Pro Football Focus, Williams finished the year with an overall grade of 98.3, the highest ever given to any player in a season.
Williams was named an AP second-team All-Pro in 2015, yet, has never earned first-team honors despite being PFF's highest-graded left tackle in 2013, 2016 and 2020. Williams tied for the most votes of any offensive lineman with 46. He was one of only 12 players to cross the 40-vote threshold.
Samuel is coming off of a standout performance in Year 3, where the wideout took significant strides while leading San Francisco's pass catchers. He finished the year notching 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 total touchdowns (6 receiving and 8 rushing) on the year. His 14 total touchdowns are the most by a member of the 49ers since Terrell Owens had 14 touchdowns in 2002 (13 receiving and one rushing).
The third-year wideout becomes the first 49ers receiver to be voted onto the list since Owens in 2001. Samuel earned the third-most votes (21) in the receiver category behind Green Bay Packers Davante Adams (50) and Los Angeles Rams Cooper Kupp (50).
This marks the first time San Francisco notched multiple first-team selections since 2012 when the team had six: LG Mike Iupati, LB Aldon Smith, LB Patrick Willis, LB NaVorro Bowman, S Dashon Goldson and P Andy Lee.
