SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The text message arrived on San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan's phone on Tuesday. The sender was left tackle Joe Staley and the message was simple: "I'm playing."

The note caught Shanahan off guard considering that about only nine days earlier Staley had suffered a fractured orbital bone under his right eye and was expected to miss at least two games and return for the Nov. 26 game against Seattle.

Excited by the prospect of getting his Pro Bowl left tackle back, Shanahan immediately set about tempering his expectations.

"I told him not to mess with my emotions when he did that, because I've been told that before and then it doesn't happen," Shanahan said. "So I tried to slow-play it all week to not get too excited about it. But the way he looked in practice, he looked good each day."

By Friday, Shanahan said it would be up to Staley whether he would play Sunday against the New York Giants. Not long after that, Staley told reporters he was going to play, that he knew all week that was going to happen, but he wasn't sure if he should share it publicly until it was more certain.

As it turned out, Staley didn't even appear on the injury report Friday and sure enough, he was in the starting lineup Sunday. Just before kickoff, Staley said the glue covering the gash below his eye fell off. He also wore a protective visor intended to help protect his eye.

So how important was Staley's return to the Niners' 31-21 win against the Giants? So important that it could actually be seen in real time.

In Staley's absence against Arizona, the Cardinals hit rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard 16 times, including five sacks. On Sunday, the Giants hit Beathard only twice without a sack. Staley also was integral in a running game that mustered a season-high 186 yards, including 162 yards before contact, which was their second-most in the past three seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

"It was big to have Joe back in there," Beathard said. "A veteran guy, this is his 11th year in the league. Just the veteran leadership, he's an All-Pro guy. Not only to have him on the field, but have him in the huddle. Gives your team more confidence."

Beyond his production on the field, Staley also delivered an impassioned speech to his teammates in a Saturday night meeting. Having him on the field only added to the words he spoke, according to Shanahan.

"I think it made a lot [of impact]," Shanahan said. "Joe's definitely one of the better tackles in this league, one of our best players. So any time you go into a game without him you're definitely missing some stuff. It was great to get him out there. For him to come out there today I think pumped a lot of guys up because that's not something he had to do by any means. It was something he wanted to do and we really appreciated it."