The San Francisco 49ers made it to the Super Bowl last season on the arm and legs of quarterback Colin Kaepernick, but one of the most important parts to the success of the team was the strength of the offensive line, including left tackle Joe Staley.
Staley has been one of the most consistent players for the team over the past few years and according to Pro Football Talk, the All-Pro will be recovering after arthroscopic knee surgery, but should be back in time for training camp. The report says that the knee had bothered Staley for most of last season and although he could have played on it again without further damage, he decided to get it scoped.
Staley is considered to be one of the best offensive lineman in all of the NFL and he has been to two straight Pro Bowls, but his injury means that two of the team's best lineman, along with Mike Iupati, will be out at points during the offseason. Staley joins a seemingly growing list of players dealing with injuries, including Justin Smith, Aldon Smith, Kendall Hunter, Mario Manningham and more recently Michael Crabtree, who was injured in OTAs and will be out for at least six months.
Last season the 49ers went 11-4-1 while winning the NFC West and after Colin Kaepernick took over at quarterback the team was hard to beat and made it to the Super Bowl against the Baltimore Ravens. The team ranked 23rd in passing yards per game and fourth in rushing yards with nearly 160 per game. The defense was nearly unstoppable and ranked fourth in both passing and rushing yards allowed per game. The team will get its bye in Week 9 and will have four home games and four away games in the first half with only four division games, one against the Rams, Cardinals and Seahawks each.
The team has a tough schedule in the second half with games on the road against the Saints and Redskins as well as home games against Seattle, Atlanta and Carolina. Jim Harbaugh drafted 11 players this past April with Eric Reid in the first round and Marcus Lattimore later in the fourth round. The team ended up making a massive move in the offseason by trading for Anquan Boldin and after Crabtree's injury he could play a big part in the offense.