Joe Staley didn't forget the man who turned him into a widely-shared GIF.
The recently-retired left tackle, who played 13 seasons with the 49ers, identified retired edge rusher DeMarcus Ware as one of his toughest opponents during a Wednesday interview on 95.7 The Game's "Damon, Ratto & Kolsky" show. Ware's spin move flummoxed Staley during a 2014 game against the Denver Broncos on "Sunday Night Football," and he pinpointed what made Ware so good.
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"DeMarcus Ware was always a challenge going against him in a game situation," Staley said. "I never felt like I came out of the game with any kind of positive thoughts about my play. He was just a really hard player to play against [and] prepare for. [He was so] unique in everything that he did with power, and speed, and length and the technique that he used. He was just unbelievable."
Ware recorded 7.0 of his 138.5 career sacks in just four games against the 49ers, including 6.0 in the three games that Staley played. The defensive end picked up 3.0 sacks in that 2014 contest at Mile High Stadium, including the aforementioned ankle-breaking spin move.
"When I re-watched that play on film, I was just shaking my head," Staley said in 2017 (H/T Robert Klemko). "From my perspective, I felt real good about what I was doing. I'm gonna spin with him. In the middle of that play I was like, 'I got him.' I'm gonna turn around, and he's gonna be right there. It was pretty athletic for me to be able to do that, but it looked so terrible because he faked me out. I saw him at the Pro Bowl that year and the first thing I said was, 'You made me a freaking viral sensation with that!' He was just laughing."
[RELATED: Staley explains special bond with ex-49ers teammate Gore]
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A Pro Bowl is a good place to reminisce over a lowlight, and Staley's five other nods -- plus his presence on the NFL's All-Decade team for the 2010s -- indicate that Ware's spin move was the exception rather than the rule in the O-lineman's 13-year career.
That doesn't mean Staley will forget Ware going viral at his own expense, though.