Staley Will Start

It appears rookie Joe Staley will be taking over at right tackle sooner rather than later with the 49ers. Coach Mike Nolan announced late Tuesday that the first-round draft pick has beaten out incumbent Kwame Harris for the job, something team insiders have seen coming for weeks. But is this the right move, and how will it affect team chemistry? The answer in both cases seems rather obvious. And that, quite simply, is that the 49ers now have a better player protecting the vision side of quarterback Alex Smith, which is something the team was seeking all along when it maneuvered on draft day to collect an extra first-round selection to grab Staley with the No. 28 overall pick.

Occasionally, I have been a Harris basher – and who hasn’t? – this is not meant as a slam on amiable Kwame, a gentleman if there ever was one. Actually, the fifth-year veteran had his best training camp with the team this summer, and he didn’t relinquish his starting job easily. But it became painfully obvious during the team’s exhibition games – as it has during several games San Francisco has played since using its first-round draft pick in 2003 to acquire him – that Harris was going to continue to struggle sporadically in pass protection, the Achilles’ heel in his game. Or was it all the false start penalties he's good for each game that did it?

Enter Staley, who has made significant progress during the past month grasping the finer details and complexities of playing offensive tackle in the NFL. Combined with his natural talent to play the position, Tuesday’s decision became almost a slam dunk for San Francisco coaches who have no intention of putting anything but their best players on the field.