No Average Joe

Staley setting new standards as atypical star offensive tackle

- Craig Massei

There has always been something different about Joe Staley.

That’s what sets him apart from any other offensive tackle in the NFL today. That’s what puts him in a category separate from any other tackle in the long and illustrious history of the 49ers. That’s what makes him distinct from any of his current San Francisco teammates.

Staley is not your typical born-and-bred, cornfed, hit- ’em-in-the-head, looking-for-cred types that were groomed from childhood to inhabit the football trenches of America. His journey to reach the top trench of professional football is atypical from all of the rest.

Staley is the first to admit that being here today with the 49ers, 10 seasons into a standout career that has seen him develop into one of the NFL’s premier left tackles, is not a place he would have expected to be when he first starting taking football seriously some 15 years ago.

“My 10th year, you know, it’s something I look at and smile about,” Staley said. “It’s pretty exciting. I don’t really reflect too much on anything I’ve done, but that was one of my goals setting out in the NFL, was just to play 10 years with this organization. And you know, here I am, it’s the 10th year. It’s gone very fast.”

Fast is how Staley got here. But more on that later.

Staley’s career with the 49ers began picking up speed as soon as he was selected by San Francisco in the first round of the 2007 NFL draft after what turned out to be one of greatest draft-day maneuvers in team history.

He’s never really slowed down since on his way to 143 career starts (through mid-October), three consecutive appearances on the Associated Press All-Pro second team and five consecutive berths in the Pro Bowl — the first offensive tackle in 49ers history to earn five trips in a row to the NFL’s All Star game.