49ers want to win Super Bowl for veteran left tackle Joe Staley
MIAMI
Given the 17 wins the San Francisco 49ers, his longtime employer, had recorded over the previous four seasons and how he was closing in on age 35, no one would have blamed Joe Staley for testing free agency when he became eligible after the 2018 season.
Through all those bad years Staley had remained a consistent, Pro Bowl-level left tackle. His talents and impact weren’t necessarily being wasted in San Francisco. But with left tackle such a critical position these days, the help he provided would certainly benefit a more viable team.
In fact, Staley remarked at the time that the prospect of testing free agency for the first time was “exciting.”
But something kept drawing him back to the 49ers, and it wasn’t just the $28 million they offered him in a two-year contract extension last June. Granted, that is a lot of money, but Staley could have earned plenty more on the open market.
Not one to overanalyze or think too deeply about such things, Staley today doesn’t have any Dr. Phil answers for why the pull to remain with the 49ers won out over the chance to become a free agent.
Sometimes you just know.
In spite of the 47 losses between 2013 and 2018 and three last-place finishes, Staley saw the foundation general manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan were building and the way in which Shanahan understood offenses and attacking defenses and decided to turn his back on free agency and sign the extension.
“I definitely believed we were on the right track and we were going to get (to the Super Bowl) one day with Kyle and John once they got here,” Staley said. “Just kind of seeing their vision. I really believed in them as coaches and people. Seeing … the high character guys they were bringing in hasn’t changed my opinion … guys that just really love football.”
Staley’s faith was rewarded this year as the 49ers went 13-3 to earn the top seed in the NFC playoffs, then steamrolled their way to Super Bowl LIV against the Kansas City Chiefs. As he sits at the cusp of his second Super Bowl, Staley’s teammates want to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy as much for their 14-year veteran as for themselves.
“He deserves it,” said former 49ers running back Frank Gore. “Joe, I think he’s a Hall of Fame tackle. I know what he brings to the game of football. I played with him for almost my whole (49ers) career. A great person. … I would love to see him get this ring this Sunday.”
Said 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo: “Guys like Joe Staley, he’s been through everything you could be through in a career with one team. Guys like that, that’s who you play for.”
Ironically, the 2019 season hasn’t always been the most individually rewarding for Staley, who was the starting left tackle in the 49ers’ 34-31 loss to the Baltmore Ravens in Super Bowl XLVII in 2013. He suffered a broken fibula in Week 2 and upon returning against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10 was badly beaten by Jadeveon Clowney for a sack and five tackles.
The loss ended the 49ers’ eight-game winning streak to open the season, and the fan’s negative reaction to Staley’s subpar performance was not befitting a six-time Pro Bowler, three-time second-team All-Pro and the rock the 49ers leaned on during so many down years.
Staley also broke a finger against Seattle, missed three games and struggled in his return against the New Orleans Saints.
But from Week 15 on, Staley has regained his form and been a steadying force. That includes two playoff wins in which Staley and the 49ers’ offensive line powered a run game that amassed 475 yards.
After playing just seven games during the regular season, he is back to form and again setting an example for the rest of the locker room.
“Every day talking to that guy you just feel it,” said Garoppolo. “You see it in his eyes. You hear it in his voice how much this means to him. Whether it’s breaking it down after a practice or just a simple talk in the locker room, he lives for this stuff. Everything he’s been through, with this organization, it would mean a lot to get this one for him.”
Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore onTwitter.
