San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams and his wife, Sondra, announced the stillbirth of their son, Trenton O’Brien Williams Jr., in an Instagram post on Sunday.
Trenton Jr. was born at 35 weeks on Nov. 24. His twin died earlier in the pregnancy, Sondra said.
“As much as I tried to prepare myself for our meeting, I wasn’t prepared nor would I ever be,” Sondra said in the post. “After losing your twin early in the pregnancy, I prayed and hoped that your diagnosis of Trisomy 13 wasn’t true and wouldn’t be the fate of my long awaited beautiful Son-shine.
“My firstborn and only son, I’ve always wanted you, but God wanted and needed you more.”
Trisomy 13, also called Patau syndrome, is a genetic disorder that affects the development of the face, brain and other organs, according to Mount Sinai. It occurs in about one out of every 10,000 newborns.
Trent and Sondra have three daughters, who they grieved with at the hospital last week.
“He was there at the hospital with (Sondra) and got to meet (his baby) and say bye,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday. “Then he had to cremate him on Friday. So he’s been dealing with that and he’s working through it. But we’re all just trying to be here for him through it all.”
Shanahan said Tuesday that whatever any player on the team endures, “the good or the bad, we go through it together.”
“When you’ve got to deal with tragedies like this, it’s hard as a coach, it’s hard as a friend, it’s hard as a family member, it’s hard for everybody,” Shanahan said in a statement.
The 49ers mourn the passing of Trent Williams’ son and send him and his family all our love.
Always in it all together ❤️💛 pic.twitter.com/BQLg73TDNr
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) December 3, 2024
Williams, 36, did not attend the past two 49ers road games at Green Bay and Buffalo due to an injury. Williams previously described the injury as a bone bruise on his heel, which made tasks as simple as walking painful. The star left tackle was seen last week using a scooter to get around the team facility.
(Photo: Brooke Sutton / Getty Images)
