San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers are a professional sports franchise founded in 1946 by Tony Morabito and currently compete in the National Football League. They are assigned to the National Football Conference and play in the western division along with the Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals, and St Louis Rams.

The 49ers have won 5 Super Bowl championships in their history, ranking them second all-time behind only the Pittsburgh Steelers. They are however the only team in the league to have played in multiple Super Bowls and maintained a perfect record, 5 wins and 0 losses/http://www.49ers.com/team/history/historical-highlights.html.

49ers 2010 Draft Picks

• 1st Round (11) - OT Anthony Davis ~ Oklahoma
• 1st Round (17) - OG Mike Iupati ~ Idaho
• 2nd Round (49) - S Taylor Mays ~ USC
• 3rd Round (91) - OLB Navorro Bowman ~ Penn State
• 6th Round (173) - RB Anthony Dixon ~ Mississippi State University
• 6th Round (182) - TE Nate Byham ~ Pittsburgh
• 6th Round (206) - WR Kyle Williams ~ Arizona State
• 7th Round (224) - CB Phillip Adams ~ South Carolina State

The 1940s

On June 6, 1944 (D-Day in Europe) the San Francisco 49ers were officially granted Franchise status and joined the All American Football Conference (AAFC), a startup rival league to the already established NFL. Tony Morabito was the team owner and he and his partners decided to name the team the “49ers” as a tribute to the 1849 California gold rush. Just a few short years later in 1950 the AAFC folded and the 49ers, Cleveland Browns, and Baltimore Colts were allowed to join the NFL. The 49ers became the first true professional sports franchise to be hosted in San Francisco.

The 1950s

The Niners didn’t take long to get use to their new surroundings in the NFL. Playing out of Kezar stadium, the team quickly picked up several eventual Hall of Fame players and were contenders for the championship every year. To this day the 49ers of the 50’s are still widely known for having quite possibly the best backfield to ever be assembled on one team. ‘’’Four’’’ eventual Hall of Famers played in one backfield, including quarterback Y.A. Tittle, running backs Hugh “The King” McElhenny and John Henry Johnson, and fullback Joe “The Jet” Perry. Other future Hall of Fame players that played on the 49ers teams of the 50’s include defensive tackle Leo Nomellini, and offensive tackle Bob St Clair.

In 1957 the 49ers lost their original owner Tony Morabito to a tragic heart attack in the middle of a game. Then Head Coach Frankie Albert addressed his team, who was trailing 17-7, by simply saying “Tony’s Gone”. The 49ers would storm back in the second half, scoring 14 unanswered points and ultimately winning the game 21-17. That win would propel the 49ers to the Divisional Championship game, just one game away from the NFL championship. They played the Detroit Lions and jumped out to an early 27-7 lead, however the Lions battled back and scored 24 unanswered points en route to a 31-27 win. The Lions would defeat the Cleveland Browns in the NFL Championship by a score of 59-14.

The 1960s

In the 60’s the 49ers installed a new and revolutionary offense, the shotgun. With 5 games left in 1960, head coach Red Hickey installed this new "shotgun offense" and the 49ers finished the year winning 4 out of their last 5. Despite the success of the new formation, the 60’s wouldn’t yield a whole lot of success for the 49ers. John Brodie would replace Billy Kilmer at quarterback in 1961 and would remain the starter through the rest of the decade. Brodie had several excellent seasons and established himself as an elite passer in the league. Brodie would never make it into the Hall of Fame, however two other 49ers from the decade would. Linebacker Dave Wilcox who was enshrined in 2000, and defensive back Jimmy Johnson who as enshrined in 1994, would be mainstays throughout the 60’s.

The 1970s

The 70’s started off with a bang for the 49ers right off the bat in 1970. Newly crowned head coach Dick Nolan, father of Mike Nolan, was now calling the shots. John Brodie would have his best year as a pro and would win the NFL MVP. The 49ers would finish with a 10-3-1 record and would capture their first Division Title in the Super Bowl era. In the conference championship game the 49ers would go on to lose to the Dallas Cowboys 17-10 at Kezar Stadium. The next year the 49ers would again with the NFC West posting a 9-5 record, and they would again lose to the Cowboys just one game from the Super bowl, this time by a score of 14-3. In 1972 the 49ers would win their third straight NFC West title behind another very strong year from John Brodie. For the third straight year the 49ers would play the Cowboys in the NFC championship, and this time they would hold a 28-13 lead entering the 4th quarter, only to collapse and lose 30-28. The rest of the decade didn’t pan out so well for the Niners. After three heart breaking losses in a row, the 49ers failed to make the playoffs again. The 49ers did sport a Hall of Fame player in this decade. OJ Simpson signed with the team in 1978 and played the last two years of his career there. When he was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 1985, despite playing for the Buffalo Bills for eight seasons, he wanted to be remembered as a 49er. In 1977 the 49ers were sold to Ohio businessman Edward Debartolo Jr. Two years later in 1979 Debartolo would hire a new head coach named Bill Walsh. The 49ers would finish 2-14 that year, however before the season started the 49ers had one of their more solid drafts. One of their picks was a young skinny quarterback out of Notre Dame who they got in the third round…his name was Joe Montana.

The 1980s

The 49ers started the 1980’s out very much like the 1960’s…there wasn’t much to get excited about. However prior to the 1981 season they drafted a few new faces for the defensive, namely safety Carlton Williamson and cornerbacks Eric Wright and Ronnie Lott. All three would start that year along with veteran Dwight Hicks, and both Hicks and Lott would wind up make the Pro Bowl. The young Joe Montana had his best year yet and was also voted to his first Pro Bowl. The 49ers would wind up taking the NFC West title for the first time in 9 years and would finish with a 13-3 record. They would advance all the way to the NFC Championship and play their old nemesis from the 70s the Dallas Cowboys. From beginning to end the game was back and forth, and with 58 second left on the clock Montana would loft a pass high into the back of the end zone where Dwight Clark would bring it down in what is now simply known as “The Catch”. That play would put the 49ers ahead and they would finally beat the Cowboys 28-27. The 49ers would go on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI 26-21, and thus a dynasty was born. Bill Walsh would be named the Coach of the Year, and Joe Montana would be named the Super Bowl MVP.

Two years later the 49ers would draft a versatile halfback out of the University of Nebraska named Roger Craig. Craig was moved to fullback to play alongside the recently acquired Wendell “The Truth” Tyler and each would play a pivotal role in the 49ers offense in the coming years. Just one year later in 1984 the 49ers would post a league best 15-1 record, and would once again reach the Super Bowl. There they would face off against the Miami Dolphins and their phenom quarterback Dan Marino. Marino had set multiple single season records that year, and expectations were for the Dolphins to light the 49ers up on the field. When the game was over and the dust settled the 49ers emerged victorious 38-14, and a new single season record for wins had been set with 18. Joe Montana would win his second Super Bowl MVP.

The following April at the 1985 NFL draft, Bill Walsh would draft an impressive but supposedly slow Wide Receiver out of a tiny college in Mississippi in the first round. His name was Jerry Rice. Two years later the 49ers would acquire more young talent, only this time it was via trade with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Buccs had deemed their young quarterback Steve Young a bust and decided to draft Vinny Testaverde with the first overall draft pick. They traded Young to the 49ers, and in return received a 2nd and 4th round draft pick. Young would serve as Montana’s backup for the next three years, making occasional and impressive appearances during that span. 1988 would be Bill Walsh’s last year as a coach, and the 49ers would finish the year 10-6 winning the NFC West Title yet again. They would reach the Super Bowl for the third time in eight years, and would play the Cincinnati Bengals for the second time in the big game. Rookie kicker Mike Cofer missed a Super Bowl record 19 yard field goal for the 49ers early in the game. Those 3 points would come back to haunt the 49ers. In the 4th Quarter the 49ers would trail by 3 points with only 3 minutes remaining, and it was up to the Joe Montana led offense to travel the length of the field and tie or win the game. Two and a half minutes later Montana found third year wide receiver John Taylor open on a post pattern in the end zone, putting the 49ers ahead 20-16 and essentially sealing the victory. The 49ers had once again defeated the Bengals in the biggest game and were Super Champions. Roger Craig would be voted the Offensive Player of the year, while Jerry Rice would take home Super Bowl MVP Honors. Defensive Coordinator George Seifert would be named the new 49ers head coach shortly after Bill Walsh’s retirement.

The very next year would be Joe Montana’s finest as a quarterback, and he would set a then NFL record for the highest single season passer rating. The 49ers finished with a league best 14-2 record, and would coast through the playoffs en route to the Super Bowl yet again. Standing in the 49ers way in their quest for back-to-back titles were the John Elway led Denver Broncos. Super Bowl XXIV would be the most lopsided Super Bowl in league history. The 49ers dominated in practically every facet of the game, winning by a score of 55-10. Joe Montana would win his 3rd Super Bowl MVP, a record that still stands today, and would also take home league MVP honors. The 49ers would be named the “Team of the Decade” in the 1980’s with a total of 4 Super Bowl wins.

• Fred Dean (1981-1985)
• Jimmy Johnson (1961-1976)
• John Henry Johnson (1954-1956)
• Ronnie Lott (1981-1990)
• Hugh McElhenny (1952-1960)
• Joe Montana (1979-1992)
• Leo Nomellini (1950-1963)
• Joe Perry (1948-1960, 1963)
• Jerry Rice (1985-2000)
• O.J. Simpson (1978-1979)
• Bob St. Clair (1953-1963)
• Y.A. Tittle (1951-1960)
• Bill Walsh (1979-1988)
• Dave Wilcox (1964-1974)
• Steve Young (1987-1999)