San Francisco 49ers Mystery Cache

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The San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team located in the San Francisco Bay Area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The team currently plays its home games at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, located 45 miles (72 km) southeast of San Francisco in the heart of Silicon Valley. Since 1988, the 49ers have been headquartered in Santa Clara.

The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and joined the NFL in 1949 when the leagues merged. The 49ers were the first major league professional sports franchise based in San Francisco. The name "49ers" comes from the prospectors who arrived in Northern California in the 1849 Gold Rush. The team is legally and corporately registered as the San Francisco Forty Niners, Ltd. The team began play at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco before moving across town to Candlestick Park in 1970 and then to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara in 2014.

The 49ers won five Super Bowl championships between 1981 and 1995, led by Hall of Famers Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Ronnie Lott, Steve Young, and coach Bill Walsh. As of the 2016 NFL season, the team has won a total of six conference championships, with the first in 1981 and the last in 2012. They have been division champions a total of 19 times between 1970 and 2012 winning nearly back to back games during the late 80s and early 90s, making them one of the most successful teams in NFL history. The 49ers have been in the league playoffs a total of 26 times: 25 times in the NFL and one time in the AAFC.

The team has set numerous notable NFL records, including a tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers for most conference championship game appearances (15), most consecutive road games won (18), most consecutive seasons leading league scoring (1992–95), most consecutive games scored (1979 to 2004), most field goals in a season (44), fewest turn-overs in a season (10), and most touchdowns in a Super Bowl. According to Forbes Magazine, the team is the 4th most-valuable team in the NFL, valued at $3 billion as of July 2016.[9] In 2016, the San Francisco 49ers were ranked the 10th most valuable sports team in the world, behind the Los Angeles Lakers and above Bayern Munich.

1988-1989: Back-to-back Super Bowls

During the off-season, a quarterback controversy between Joe Montana and Steve Young had begun after Montana's poor performance in the playoffs the previous year. Many speculated that the 1988 season would be his last year with the team. In the 1988 NFL season, the 49ers struggled to start the season; Walsh would constantly switch QBs between Montana (who suffered an elbow injury week 1 that would linger for most of the season) and Young. At one point, they were 6–5 and the team was in danger of missing the playoffs. Before week 11, Ronnie Lott called a players-only meeting; after the meeting the team came together and defeated the defending Super Bowl champion Washington Redskins in a Monday night game, Montana had fully recovered from his injury and retook the starting quarterback job as the team eventually finished the season at 10–6. They gained a measure of revenge by routing the Minnesota Vikings 34–9 in the divisional playoffs. The 49ers then traveled to Chicago's Soldier Field for the NFC championship against the Chicago Bears, where the wind chill factor at game time was -26°. However, despite the weather, Joe Montana picked apart the Bears' top-rated defense by scoring three touchdowns as the 49ers dominated the Bears with a 28–3 victory, earning the team's third trip to the Super Bowl, to go against the Cincinnati Bengals. In Super Bowl XXIII, despite numerous trips deep into Cincinnati territory by the 49ers, the game was tied 3–3 at halftime. Early in the fourth quarter, Montana tied the score at 13; however, Cincinnati regained the lead on a Jim Breech field goal to put the Bengals ahead 16–13 with just over three minutes left on the clock. Following the kickoff, and a holding penalty, the 49ers took over on their 8-yard line with 3:08 left on the clock. Joe Montana began the final drive by stepping into the huddle and remarking to offensive tackle Harris Barton, during a television timeout, "hey, there's John Candy", as he pointed to the stands on the other side of the field. His calm demeanor reassured the 49ers, and he then engineered what some consider the greatest drive in Super Bowl history, as he drove the team 92 yards for the winning touchdown on a pass to John Taylor with only 34 seconds left, as they captured their third Super bowl championship with a score of 20–16. Jerry Rice was named Super Bowl MVP.

After Super Bowl XXIII, Bill Walsh retired as head coach; his defensive coordinator and handpicked successor, George Seifert, took over as head coach. In the 1989 NFL season, Joe Montana threw for 3,521 yards and 26 touchdowns, with only 8 interceptions, giving him a 112.4 quarterback rating, which was then the highest single-season passer rating in NFL history, and was named NFL Most Valuable Player. Jerry Rice, in his fifth year in the league, continued to dominate; he led the league with almost 1490 receiving yards, and 17 touchdowns. The 49ers clinched their fourth straight division title, beating the Los Angeles Rams 30–27 after a dramatic second-half comeback; they finished 14–2, gaining home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Their two losses were by a combined five points.

In the divisional playoffs, they easily defeated the Vikings, 41–13. In the NFC championship game, they played against the Rams for a third time; the previous two games were decided by a total of 4 points, but they were able to blow out the Rams 30–3 earning another trip to the Super bowl, where they defeated the Denver Broncos in relatively easy fashion by a score of 55–10 in Super Bowl XXIV – setting a record for points scored and widest margin of victory in a Super Bowl. Montana himself set many Super Bowl records (some since tied or surpassed) en route to his third Super Bowl MVP. In winning the Super Bowl, the 49ers became the only team to win back-to-back Super Bowls under different head coaches. This 1989 championship team is often regarded as one of the most dominant teams in NFL history, winning three playoff games by a combined 100 points.

1990-1993: Failed three-peat/Steve Young steps in

In 1990, the 49ers won their first 10 games, and they eventually finished 14–2. They ripped through the season, and the coveted third consecutive Super Bowl victory seemed within reach. In the playoffs, the 49ers dispatched the Washington Redskins 28–10, setting up a conference championship game with the New York Giants. Despite not scoring a touchdown in the game, the Giants took advantage of a fourth-quarter injury to Montana and converted a faked punt attempt to thwart the 49ers attempt at a "three-peat." The Giants kicked a last-second field goal after recovering a Roger Craig fumble in the final minutes of the game, winning 15–13 and going on to win Super Bowl XXV.

During their quest for a "three-peat" between 1988 and 1990, the 49ers set a league record with 19 consecutive road victories. Joe Montana missed almost all of the following two seasons with a recurring elbow injury. Following the 1990 season, the 49ers left team stalwarts Roger Craig and Ronnie Lott unprotected and let them go to the Los Angeles Raiders via Plan B free agency.

In 1991, Steve Young injured the thumb on his throwing hand and later was sidelined with an injured knee. After 10 games, the 49ers had a record of 4–6. Backup quarterback Steve Bono helped the team win its next five games with Young sidelined. In the final game of the season, Monday night versus the NFC's number two seed, Young returned and the 49ers beat the Chicago Bears 52–14, finishing 10–6. However, the team missed qualifying for the playoffs by virtue of losing the head-to-head tiebreaker to the Atlanta Falcons, which had beaten the 49ers on a last-second Hail Mary pass earlier in the season. The 1992 and 1993 seasons saw a resurgent 49er team under the leadership of Steve Young, but a subpar and aging defense could only take them to the NFC championship game before falling to the Dallas Cowboys each time.

In 1992, Joe Montana came back after missing almost two full seasons due to an elbow injury in his throwing arm, and started the second half of a Monday night game versus Detroit on December 28, 1992. With the 49ers clinging to a 7–6 lead, Montana entered the game and looked as though he had not missed a single snap, completing 15–21 for 126 yards and 2 TDs, as the 49ers defeated the Lions 24–6. The 49ers finished the 1992 season with a 14–2 record and home field advantage in the playoffs. San Francisco defeated the Washington Redskins 20–13 in the divisional playoff game, but lost to the Dallas Cowboys 30–20 in the NFC championship at Candlestick Park.

At the end of the 1992 season, partly fueled by media hype, the biggest quarterback controversy in football history was in full swing. After discussions with the owner and the coach, Montana asked for, and was granted, a trade to the Kansas City Chiefs prior to the 1993 season. Despite Eddie DeBartolo wanting Montana to stay and start, Montana realized that he and Young could not stay with the 49ers without a controversy. Montana was later quoted as saying, "If I had stayed and started, there would have been problems. If I had stayed and Steve Young had started, there would have been problems." When Joe Montana left for Kansas City, Steve Young took over and had to fill some big shoes. Fans made it difficult as they had high hopes and if he did not fill those hopes, questions would be brought up from the fans as why would they get rid of Joe Montana. But with the 5th Super Bowl Win in 1994 that eliminated many of the fans questions if he was good enough.

The 49ers finished the 1993 season, the team's first without Joe Montana on the roster, with a 10–6 record and no. 2 seed in the playoffs. San Francisco defeated the New York Giants 44–3 in the divisional playoff game, but lost to the Dallas Cowboys 38–21 in the NFC championship at Texas Stadium.

For more information about the San Francisco 49ers, you can visit this page.

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This series was inspired by JLO84's NFL Series in Eastern Illinois. Thank you to JLO84 for permission to use the idea! If you are ever in Eastern Illinois, take some time to do her outstanding series. You can visit the final to her series by clicking here!