Tag: Joe Staley

49ers knew before draft Joe Staley was planning to retire

Joe Staley told the 49ers early that he was planning to retire, which gave them time to work out the Trent Williams trade.

After 13 years of leaving everything on the field for the 49ers, Joe Staley did them one last favor. The veteran left tackle told the club Monday before the draft he was planning on retiring according to general manager John Lynch in his post-draft video press conference.

Lynch in his Monday media session expressed optimism that Staley would return since he hadn’t heard differently from the 13-year veteran. Staley informed the club after Lynch spoke with the media Monday.

The move allowed the 49ers to set the wheels in motion for replacing Staley. They had an opportunity to select a top tackle with the No. 13 pick when Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs fell to them. Instead they traded back one spot and took South Carolina defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw. In the meantime, they worked on acquiring seven-time Pro Bowler Trent Williams from Washington.

It took a fifth-round pick in 2020 and a third-round selection in 2021 to pry the veteran left tackle away from his former club.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has a good relationship with Williams after working with him as Washington’s offensive coordinator for the first four years of Williams’ career. He said he had confidence they could make the move for Williams, which is why they passed on a tackle earlier in the draft.

The deal for Williams wasn’t something long in the works either. Lynch said talks began Monday once Staley informed the team he wouldn’t be back.

Williams was available for a trade after missing all of last season due to a holdout and then a non-football injury. He’d been seeking to get out of Washington after they failed to work out an extension for his deal that ends after the 2020 season. San Francisco never had real talks about Williams until Monday before the draft according to Lynch.

Now he has a new home in San Francisco where he’ll play out the final year of his contract. The 49ers didn’t rule out an extension after the 2020 campaign, but they’re still waiting to see how he performs after a year away from football.

Replacing Staley won’t be easy, but the fact he told the 49ers of his retirement ahead of time allowed them to take the necessary steps to replace him with another Pro Bowler who’s five years younger. Staley did a lot of remarkable things for San Francisco, and his last act as a member of the organization set them up well for life without him.

49ers LT job changes in big way after trade, retirement

The 49ers trade for Trent Williams and Joe Staley announces his retirement.

Arizona Cardinals outside linebacker Chandler Jones has a new one-on-one opponent this coming season when the Cardinals take on the San Francisco 49ers twice this year. The 49ers had two big things happen at left tackle.

First, they made a deal with the Washington Redskins, trading for left tackle Trent Williams. They gave up a fifth-round pick in the 2020 draft and a third-round pick in 2021.

Williams has one year left on his contract and is 32 years old. He did not play in 2019 and has not played a full 16 games in a season since 2013. He was a Pro Bowler every year from 2012-2018.

Following the announcement of the trade to acquire Williams, longtime starting left tackle Joe Staley announced his retirement.

Injuries limited him to seven games in 2019 and he has a neck issue that continues to bother him.

He is nearly 36 years old. In 13 seasons with the 49ers, he was selected to six Pro Bowls.

The 49ers lose one of the greatest at his position but also acquire one who is his equal when healthy.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.

Ep.265

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Ep. 264

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Joe Staley officially announces his retirement on Instagram

Joe Staley’s retirement was expected, but he made it official in a heartfelt post on Instagram.

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The writing was on the wall when the 49ers traded for left tackle Trent Williams. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported after the trade that Joe Staley was expected to retire. Staley made it official in an Instagram post Saturday afternoon.

Staley, a 13-year veteran, captioned the post “To everyone who impacted and followed my career, I thank you. It’s been a hell of a ride!!”

Schefter reported health concerns were the reason Staley was calling it quits. He confirmed as much in his post, writing last season “was by far the most difficult on me and my family. My body was breaking down with a variety of injuries and a deteriorating neck condition, and the constant discomfort affected every aspect of my life.”

Staley was a first-round pick by the 49ers in 2007 and he immediately became a mainstay on the offensive line. He started all 16 games his first year,  and went on to start all 181 games he played in during his career. He was a six-time Pro Bowler, and twice anchored offensive lines that spearheaded runs to the Super Bowl.

49ers CEO Jed York issued a statement following Staley’s announcement.

How does Joe Staley’s retirement affect 49ers salary cap?

The 49ers will get some salary cap relief without much dead money when Joe Staley officially retires.

The 49ers are expecting to lose long-time left tackle Joe Staley to retirement this offseason. ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the first to report the impending move.

Staley is still under contract through the 2021 season after signing a two-year extension before last year. Health concerns following a season where he played a career-low seven games were cited as the reason for the 35-year-old walking away with two years left on his deal.

The 49ers were set to pay Staley $10.5 million guaranteed in 2020. He’d carry an $11.5 million cap hit and $11.05 million in dead money had San Francisco opted to release him. His retirement changes the financials some.

Since the 49ers aren’t cutting or trading Staley and he’s retiring instead, they’ll only be on the hook for his bonuses. He had $500,000 in bonuses due in each of the next two seasons. If he officially retires before June 1, those bonuses will accelerate into the 2020 season and count as a $1 million cap hit for San Francisco in 2020.

If Staley retires after June 1, his bonuses would count for $500,000 against the cap in each of the next two years.

Either way it’s not a huge cap burden for the 49ers, and they’ll save $10.5 million against the cap this year. In an offseason where they had to get their salary cap under control, the savings from Staley’s retirement should be helpful in both the short and long-term.

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49ers rewind: Joe Staley throws epic block to spring Alex Smith for TD

Joe Staley’s block against the Saints in the 2012 NFC divisional round will go down as one of the best plays in 49ers history.

Joe Staley is expected to retire after spending his entire 13-year career with the 49ers. Offensive linemen are often under-appreciated because their play in the trenches is typically not flashy. The grimy work offensive linemen do goes overlooked by most football fans while they watch where the ball is going instead.

For one play in the 2012 NFC Divisional Playoffs though, Staley changed that.

With the 49ers trailing the Saints 24-23 and facing a third-and-7 from the Saints’ 28-yard-line, quarterback Alex Smith caught the shotgun snap and sprinted toward the left sideline.

New Orleans was caught off guard, Smith got the first down with ease. A first down would’ve been all he got on the play had it not been for Staley flying up the field and throwing a devastating block that cleared out safety Roman Harper and allowed Smith to cruise into the end zone and give the 49ers a 29-24 lead.

Former NFL offensive lineman Ross Tucker called it the most athletic block he’d ever seen by an offensive lineman.

While the entire four minutes of that game will go down as some of the craziest in NFL playoff history thanks to a number of huge plays from both offenses, Staley’s block stands out among them.

Conversations about Smith’s eventual game-winning touchdown pass to Vernon Davis are always intertwined with a flashback to the Staley block on the previous drive.

Joe Staley will go down as a 49ers legend for a number of reasons – his block against the Saints in the 2012 playoffs is near the top of the list.

Report: Joe Staley expected to retire after 13 seasons with 49ers

The long-time 49ers left tackle has been a stalwart for the last 13 seasons.

It looks like the 49ers will have a new left tackle for the first time since 2006. ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Saturday reported Joe Staley is expected to retire due to health concerns.

The announcement comes on the heels of reports that the 49ers will trade two draft picks for Washington left tackle Trent Williams.

49ers general manager John Lynch on Monday before the draft expressed confidence that Staley would return for a 14th season. That seemed to be confirmed on Day 1 of the draft when the club passed on top tackle prospect Tristan Wirfs. The trade for Williams confirmed the opposite, and was a major indicator that San Francisco knew they wouldn’t have their left tackle returning next year.

2019 was perhaps the most difficult season of Staley’s career from an injury perspective. He played a career-low seven games after breaking his fibula in Week 2, and then dislocating a finger that required surgery when he returned in Week 10. He’s set to turn 36 before the start of the 2020 season

Staley was a first-round pick of the 49ers in 2007 out of Central Michigan and started all 181 regular season games he played. He helped anchor two offensive lines that went to the Super Bowl, and earned six Pro Bowl nods during his career. If this is it for Staley, he’ll go down as one of the greatest 49ers of all-time.

John Lynch optimistic Joe Staley will be back with 49ers next season

The 49ers believe they’ll have left tackle Joe Staley back for a 14th season.

The 49ers ended the 2019 season on the lowest note. Their Super Bowl LIV loss may not have hit any player harder than 13-year veteran left tackle Joe Staley. He expressed his extreme disappointment to reporters after the game, and reflected on the difficulties of bouncing back after losing on the biggest stage. The loss wasn’t enough to push Staley into retirement though. At least as far as general manager John Lynch knows.

Lynch on Monday told reporters in a video conference call that he’s optimistic the 49ers will have their left tackle back for a 14th consecutive season.

“He’s doing his typical routine down with this family in San Diego, working out and we’re encouraged,” Lynch said. “We’ve heard nothing that would lead us to believe that Joe’s not going to play. So, we are encouraged with that. We’ll see where that goes. That is something with each and every player particularly as they get closer, you give them that time that they need, but we are encouraged that Joe’s going to be a part of us moving forward.”

Staley, aside from the Super Bowl defeat, also dealt with a broken fibula and dislocated finger that required surgery and ultimately limited him to a career-low seven regular-season games.

He earned a two-year extension last offseason that keeps him under contract through the 2021 season. Staley once considered retirement after the 2016 season, but the culture change that arrived with Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan rekindled Staley’s desire to stay in the league. Now it appears he’ll give it at least one more go in 2020.

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Ranking 49ers pairs of 1st-round picks

The 49ers have selected two players in the first round of the NFL draft 14 times since the AFL-NFL merger.

The 49ers enter the 2020 NFL draft with two first-round picks. If they wind up using two selections on the first day of the draft, it’ll be the 15th time since the AFL-NFL merger that the organization has used a pair of first-round selections in one draft.

Some of those turned out well, others did not. We went back through all the team’s first-round duos since the 1967 draft and ranked them in order from worst to best.

No. 14 | 2017 draft

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Pick 3: DL Solomon Thomas
Pick 31: LB Reuben Foster 

Thomas hasn’t been a necessarily bad player, but he was selected to be a dominant force on the edge for the 49ers. He’s fallen into a more rotational defensive tackle role. Thomas has just 6.0 sacks and 16 tackles for loss in his three NFL seasons.

The 49ers traded back into the first round to take Foster with the 31st pick. He is no longer with the 49ers after being accused of multiple domestic violence incidents, including one at the team hotel in Tampa Bay that led to his release. His rookie season was marred by injury, and his second year was derailed by his legal issues. Foster had 101 tackles in 16 games across two seasons.

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Four 49ers land on NFL All-Decade team

Frank Gore, Joe Staley, Richard Sherman and Patrick Willis all made the NFL all-decade team.

The 49ers were well-represented on the NFL’s All-Decade team released Monday.

Four current and former 49ers made the list, including running back Frank Gore, left tackle Joe Staley, linebacker Patrick Willis and cornerback Richard Sherman.

Gore was one of four running backs to make the list, along with Marshawn Lynch, Adrian Peterson and LeSean McCoy. Darren Sproles made it as a specialist. He’s the only other running back besides Gore left from the 2005 NFL draft.

The third-round pick out of Miami finished his career with the 49ers as the franchise’s all-time leading rusher, and he’s continued to churn ahead to No. 3 on the all-time rushing list. Gore was a stalwart at running back for the 49ers through their best and worst years, and racked up more than 1,200 yards from scrimmage in an NFL record 12 consecutive seasons.

The argument can be made that Gore was never the best running back in the league in the 2010s, but he was easily the most consistent player among that group.

Staley is another no-brainer choice. He earned a nod alongside Joe Thomas, Tyron Smith and Jason Peters. Staley has been an outstanding player at left tackle since the 49ers took him in the first round of the 2007 NFL draft.

Injuries bookended the decade for Staley, but in those 10 years, he made all six of his Pro Bowls and went to two Super Bowls. There’s a really good chance Staley winds up in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the strength of his performance through the 2010s will be what carries him there.

Willis’ dominance as a player is underscored by the fact he made the All-Decade team despite playing just half the decade. In his five seasons in the 2010s though, Willis made four Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams while anchoring one of the NFLs best defenses for the first part of the decade.

Making an impact on a short timeline is a perfect metaphor for Willis’ career. He’ll make the Hall of Fame despite spending fewer than 10 years in the league. He was so singularly great in the time he was on the field that his effect on the 49ers and the league is impossible to ignore. It’s how he winds up on an All-Decade team with Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner with only five years of his production under his belt.

There’s no denying that Sherman has been excellent in two years with the 49ers, but the bulk of his dominance in the 2010s came with the Seattle Seahawks’ Legion of Boom defense. Those Seattle teams helped defined the early part of that decade, and Sherman was the outspoken face of it.

He was going to land on the All-Decade team anyway, but closing the 2010s strong with two good years in San Francisco surely solidified his standing. Sherman joined Patrick Peterson and Darrelle Revis in the group of cornerbacks.

Here are the full teams:

What should the 49ers do with the 13th overall pick?

After trading DeForest Buckner to the Colts, the 49ers have new flexibility with the 13th overall pick. How should they spend it?

The biggest news on Monday so far has been the Houston Texans trading DeAndre Hopkins and a fourth-round pick in 2020 to the Arizona Cardinals for running back David Johnson and a fourth-round pick in 2021. The wisdom of that deal for the Texans has been hotly debated — well, actually not hotly debated as much as it’s been universally (and rightly) panned.

After that, the second-biggest news was unquestionably the San Francisco 49ers signing defensive lineman DeForest Buckner to a five-year, $85 million contract and then trading him to the Indianapolis Colts for Indy’s first-round pick, which is the 13th overall.

It’s an interesting move for the 49ers, who have Nick Bosa, Dee Ford, and Arik Armstead on their defensive line already. Buckner has been a relative multi-gap force since San Francisco selected him with the seventh pick in the 2016 draft, but given what the Colts gave up, this sets the defending NFC champions up nicely to restock an already stacked roster.

So, what should the 49ers do with that 13th overall pick? They also have the 31st overall pick, so they could ostensibly trade up even higher than 13 if they wanted to, but if they stand pat, there are all kinds of interesting options. Let’s look at positional need and draft possibility.

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