SANTA CLARA, CALIF. (AP) —In his fifth season as the starting left tackle for the San Francisco 49ers, Joe Staley considers himself the big brother of the team’s young and improving offensive line.
The veteran took pride in the growth the unit displayed during last week’s season opener, when the line shrugged off its preseason struggles and produced a strong effort that kept quarterback Alex Smith practically untouched in the pocket.
“We want not to be noticed, and that was a pretty good first step,” Staley said Friday. “We’re on the same page, and I think it was night and day from where we were last year at this point.”
The 49ers didn’t allow a sack and Smith was hit just once during a 33-17 victory over Seattle. That was definite progress after a shaky preseason when the team’s offensive line appeared unsettled while quarterbacks Smith and Colin Kaepernick absorbed several big hits and were sacked 12 times.
But the line’s problems in pass protection during August looked like a distant memory against Seattle. Smith had plenty of time to work in the pocket, connecting on 15 of 20 passes for his highest completion percentage in a game since 2006.
San Francisco’s line is looking to take another step forward this week when the Dallas Cowboys come to town with a defense that might give the unit a better measure of where it really stands.
“It will be a big test for us and a great challenge, no question about it,” 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said. “They make it tough for you to protect the passer - that area and many others. But I think our guys are up for it.”
The 49ers have been preparing this week to face the Cowboys’ most feared pass rusher, DeMarcus Ware, who led the NFL last year with 15 1/2 sacks.
Harbaugh called Ware “probably the best pass rusher in football,” and the 49ers have been using rookie outside linebacker Aldon Smith to simulate Ware’s role in practice this week. Smith, San Francisco’s first-round draft pick, is one of the 49ers’ best pass rushers and physically similar to Ware.
The 49ers ranked 27th in the NFL last year in sacks allowed per play, and Smith missed three games in the middle of the season after suffering a separated shoulder when he was hit attempting to pass in an October loss at Carolina.
The 49ers were breaking in two rookie starters along their line last year in first-round draft picks Anthony Davis and Mike Iupati. Davis started all 16 games at right tackle and Iupati started every game at left guard.
Those youngsters continued to struggle in pass protection during the preseason, and Staley sent a message to the rest of the line in August when he said he was “disgusted” by the play of the unit.
But the line started to jell against the Seahawks.
“The communication is 10 times better than it was at this point last year,” Staley said. “Going into their second year, Mike and Anthony’s knowledge is so much greater. You could see it last week. We all knew where each other was going to be, and when one guy’s playing well it’s because the guys around him are playing well too. That’s the way it should be and that’s what we expect of ourselves.”
Staley works on the left side next to Iupati, who was named to the NFL’s All-Rookie team last season. Davis had an up-and-down rookie season on the other side of the line, but he also took a step forward in the opener.
According to statistical figures, Davis was the only tackle in the NFL last season that was responsible for double-digit totals in penalties, sacks and quarterback hits. But Davis says that is behind him.
“We’ve gotten a lot better,” Davis said. “It’s nothing we didn’t know we could do. Now we just have to keep working at it. If you’re working hard enough, you don’t have time to see what everyone else is talking about.”
