49ers News: OL Joe Staley Says 'I Want to Play as Long as I Can'

San Francisco 49ers offensive tackle Joe Staley is 34 years old and entering the last season on his contract, but he wants to continue playing for years to come if his latest comments are any indication.

"Haven't had any discussions, but I made it very clear to I think everybody that I want to play as long as I can," Staley said Wednesday, per Kirk Larrabee of 247Sports. "Still love the game, so I feel like I can play at a high level. Still feel like I'm valued on the football team. I know this is my last year under contract but I'm not worried about that. I'm just going to go out there and do everything I can to help us win games this year."

Staley's comments are quite the turn from when he contemplated retirement following the 2017 campaign.

Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area noted as much in January 2018, but Staley said conversations he had with head coach Kyle Shanahan changed his mind and refocused him on building something with the organization.

Fortunately for the 49ers, he continued playing as one of the anchors of their offensive line.

He is a six-time Pro Bowler who started all but four games during the last eight years for the NFC West team. He also showed few signs of slowing down in 2018, earning a grade of 82.2 from Pro Football Focus.

The mark was the sixth-highest for an offensive tackle in the entire league.

San Francisco missed the playoffs in each of the last five years, but expectations are high again with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo returning from injury. It will be up to Staley and the rest of the offensive line to keep him upright and continue building toward the future.