Joe Staley named to Pro Football Focus Week 13 team

The San Francisco 49ers don’t have a great offensive line, but they have a couple great offensive linemen. One of those guys is left tackle Joe Staley, who had himself a game against the Chicago Bears in Week 13. Staley was rock solid even while Laken Tomlinson crumbled next to him, saving Jimmy Garoppolo from a larger beating than the one he did eventually take.

Staley was recognized by the folks at Pro Football Focus, who make it a point to recognize good offensive line play. Staley was named to their Week 13 team as the left tackle. They gave him a grade of 86.9, and their “elite stat” says he allowed zero pressures against the Bears, meaning no sacks, no hits and no hurries. Garoppolo got hit a lot, but none of it was Staley’s fault.

Here is what they had to say about Staley’s performance, as well as the performance of the Chicago pass rush.

The Chicago Bears have been struggling to generate pressure on the edge all season, and Joe Staley was able to take advantage of that for one of the best games of his season. He had a perfect day in pass protection, keeping new quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo clean on all 40 of his pass-blocking snaps. Staley at his best is also a powerful run blocker too, and graded well against Chicago’s formidable defensive front in that aspect.

Of all the features, I enjoy the PFF Weekly teams the most, I think. I like getting a small glimpse at which players stood out each week, and it never seems like people are being picked for name recognition.

Staley has had his fair share of bad performances this season — more than he probably has had in any one season of his career — but how much of that can be blamed on being next to Tomlinson and Zane Beadles for so long? Hopefully the left guard position is upgraded in the offseason, though I’m not holding my breath given other needs on the team.