I'd like to thank John Morgan from Field Gulls, and a frequent contributor here for putting together a review of Joe Staley. Morgan has been keeping an eye on him and is most definitely a fan of the deal. Thanks again.

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The key to understanding why trading up to grab Joe Staley was such a coup for the 49ers is less about his talent and more about how the NFL draft is structured, but no one wants to hear that. So, first let's talk about his talent, because that, and not his contract, will be wearing the pads next season.

I'm sure San Francisco fans know Staley's story by now. He came onto campus a 225 pound tight end, bulked up but didn't lose speed and became one of the nation's top tackle prospects. Staley started 39 games for the Chippewas, that's a good indication of his pro-readiness. Staley is a little rough in his technique, but nothing like teammate Kwame Harris.

Harris is an interesting study into why a seemingly very good prospect can become a complete dud as a player. Looking over many scouting reports and combine performances, the one thing that seems to always portend bust is some glaring weakness. In Harris' case it was concerns about his body position on the outside rush combined with a poor showing in agility drills (7.98 on the cone). Harris also never posted a 225 bench number, benching a single rep 450 is all well and good, but NFL players' need fast twitch strength, explosiveness. It can be assumed that Harris knew his showing would have been poor and therefore eschewed the drill fearing it would hurt his stock. With that said, Harris posted a strong number in the vertical, 35 ½", implying that he has a very explosive leg drive--were he not so tall, he looks like he would make an excellent guard. A position where his power exploding off the snap would be an asset, while his inability to seal off the edge rush wouldn't matter as much.

While Harris is a dupe for the ol' speed rush to the outside, Staley has the agility (7.09) to wall off defenders. He also shows good explosion off the snap and the upper-body strength to deliver a jarring hand punch (27 bench reps). Staley is well rounded: Agile, quick off the snap, strong enough in the upper body and with long enough arms (33 ½) to win hand fights (poor explosive upper body strength (24) combined with short arms (32 ¼") and small hands (9 ¼") has been uberprospect Robert Gallery's undoing). He also doesn't have any questions about his effort or commitment to the sport, a major red-flag that's impact doesn't always show up early, but can stunt a player's long-term development.

Still, Staley will take his fair share of lumps as a rookie. Offensive line has perhaps the latest peak age of any professional sport, with Pro Bowlers regularly in their early to mid thirties. Staley has the well rounded skill set to one day excel, but you can expect some boners in the early going. If this trade can be knocked for anything, it's that if Staley is the presumed starter at RT, the Niners are once again at square one of an offensive lineman's development curve.

The real reason Staley is such a great pickup for the Niners is that he was attained with the 28th pick in the draft. Casual NFL fans assume that the lower a pick is in the draft, the more valuable it is, but in the modern salary cap era--that's just not true. On face value the Niners traded a, likely, high-teen/low-twenty pick for the 28th pick. In reality, San Francisco scored a potential franchise left tackle for 28th pick money. Left Tackle is the second highest paid position in the NFL, but Staley's contract will be set by his draft position. This not only means that he will be a bargain if he matches his potential, but also greatly reduces his risk as a bust. Prognostication is a tricky alchemy of careful analysis, gut feeling and luck, but good drafting is a skill. Even if Staley never becomes a dominant drive blocker in the run game (his presumed largest weakness) his downside, short of injury, is that of an NFL regular. An NFL regular at a premium position for the relative bargain of 28th pick money? Congratulations, Niners' fan, that's a no lose pick.