San Francisco 49ers left tackle Joe Staley will get a chance to protect Jimmy Garoppolo’s blind side for the foreseeable future, and he is excited about Thursday’s developments. Staley had a radio interview scheduled with SiriusXM, and he learned of Garoppolo’s new contract shortly before getting on air.
Staley said he has been excited about Garoppolo from the get-go. He talked about how there was no feeling-out period for him, and he took control of practice from the moment he joined th huddle. He had a commanding presence, and people quickly bought in.
“I think from day one when he got there, everybody was really excited about the opportunity to play with him. Because, just kind of where he came from and getting to be around the guy, the guy is pretty special. But then, just on the practice field and seeing everything that he does, the way he prepares, guys were really excited to see what he can do on the game day when we get out there and play with him.
”And then he came out there, we played well, we won, came back at the end of the game against Chicago, won that game, and then guys just slowly gained more confidence in him. I think once you have a lot of confidence in what the quarterback’s doing, it kind of raises everybody’s level around him. I think you just kind of saw that at the end of the year, he was kind of raising everybody’s level of play throughout the season as he went. We’re excited to have him for the entire offseason, and training camp, and then the full season after.”
Staley did not see any sort of arrogance or pressure from Garoppolo. He felt that playing behind Tom Brady helped him learn a tremendous amount, and it is showing in his time with the 49ers.
”He’s a great guy. I can’t say enough positive things about him. I think the franchise is in good hands with him at the helm.”