SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Defensive end Mykel Williams spent nearly a year working his way back after a torn knee ligament cut short his rookie season for the San Francisco 49ers.
The grueling rehabilitation process is now complete and Williams is ready to make his return to the field on Sunday when the 49ers take on the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.
“I’m going crazy. I’m losing my mind,” Williams said Wednesday. “I’m ready to go. I can’t wait to play ball. I miss playing ball. It’s been almost a year since I played, so I just want to get back on the field.”
The Niners’ anticipated decision to activate Williams from the physically unable to perform list later this week couldn’t come at a better time, with San Francisco missing several key players on the defensive line ahead of the showdown against Seattle. Star passer Nick Bosa remains sidelined with a calf injury and rookie defensive tackle James Thompson Jr. is expected to miss a second straight game with an ankle injury.
San Francisco also has three other key defensive linemen on injured reserve, with Alfred Collins, CJ West and Sam Okuayinonu out for a significant amount of time. The 49ers are tied for the sixth-fewest sacks in the league with six and had none last week against Denver.
“It killed me just to see it unfold the way it did,” Williams said. “I’m just ready to get back on the field.”
Williams was the 11th overall pick in 2025 and made an immediate impact on San Francisco’s run defense last season before getting injured. The 49ers improved their yards per carry allowed by 0.28 per carry before his injury.
Williams has 20 tackles, with 19 pressures, four tackles for loss, a sack and a fumble recovery, but he felt he had a lot more to give.
“I wasn’t happy with what I did, to be honest,” he said. “I know the type of player I am and I don’t think I represented myself well on tape last year. Whether it was for different reasons or… I just didn’t play to the best of my abilities.”
Williams said he worked on several areas during the offseason once he was healthy enough to practice, including his downhill speed, pad level, hand usage and pass rush scheme.
He also became slimmer after improving his diet by cutting back on sweets such as ice cream and his favorite peach cobbler. The hope is that this will help him get the ball down quicker.
“We’ll see on Sunday,” he said.
Other injury news for the 49ers
San Francisco will also be without guard Kyle Juszczyk (knee) and S Marques Sigle (ankle) this week after they both suffered injuries last week.
Cornerback Upton Stout (shoulder) also missed Wednesday’s practice, but he still has a chance to play this week. Receiver Mike Evans (ribs) and running back Kaelon Black (illness) were limited.
Running back Christian McCaffrey, left tackle Trent Williams and linebacker Dre Greenlaw all had the day off Wednesday and missed practice.
The team also placed receiver Dante Pettis on the practice squad injury list after he injured his calf last week and signed receiver Xavier Smith to replace him.
___
See the AP’s full NFL coverage here
Gn sports
