| 1972 San Francisco 49ers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Josephine Morabito Jane Morabito |
| General manager | Louis Spadia |
| Head coach | Dick Nolan |
| Home stadium | Candlestick Park |
| Results | |
| Record | 8–5–1 |
| Division place | 1stNFC West |
| Playoffs | LostDivisional Playoffs (vs.Cowboys) 28–30 |
| Pro Bowlers | CForrest Blue GWoody Peoples WRGene Washington TE Ted Kwalick OLBDave Wilcox CBJimmy Johnson |
The1972 San Francisco 49ers season was thefranchise's 23rdseason in theNational Football League and their 27th overall. The 49ers appeared in the playoffs for the third consecutive year.
After an ankle injury to quarterbackJohn Brodie in a loss to theGiants to fall to 2–3,[1]Steve Spurrier stepped in and turned things around with brilliant performances to get the 49ers back in the playoff picture by going 5–2–1 in the next eight games. In the regular season finale, Brodie returned late in the third quarter and threw two touchdown passes in the fourth to rally the 49ers to a 20–17 victory over theMinnesota Vikings for an 8–5–1 record and third straight division title.[2][3]
In the divisional playoffs atCandlestick Park, the 49ers looked poised for a return to the NFC Championship game, leading theDallas Cowboys 28–13 at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Cowboys scored seventeen unanswered points to win by two.[4][5]
This was the third consecutive season that San Francisco lost to Dallas in the playoffs, and the 49ers' last postseason appearance fornine years.
| 1972 San Francisco 49ers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Terry Beasley | Wide receiver | Auburn | |
| 2 | 28 | Ralph McGill | Defensive back | Tulsa | |
| 2 | 44 | Jean Barrett | Tackle | Tulsa | started playing for the 49ers in 1973 |
| 3 | 71 | Jubilee Dunbar | Wide receiver | Southern | |
| 4 | 96 | Windlan Hall | Defensive back | Arizona State | |
| 5 | 123 | Mike Greene | Linebacker | Georgia | |
| 6 | 148 | Jackie Walker | Defensive back | Tennessee | |
| 7 | 175 | Ed Hardy | Guard | Jackson State | started playing for the 49ers in 1973 |
| 8 | 200 | Tom Wittum * | Punter | Northern Illinois | started playing for the 49ers in 1973 |
| 9 | 227 | Jerry Brown | Defensive back | Northwestern | |
| 10 | 252 | Steve Williams | Defensive end | Western Carolina | |
| 11 | 279 | Tom Laputka | Defensive end | Southern Illinois | |
| 12 | 304 | Steve Setzler | Defensive end | Saint John's (MN) | |
| 13 | 331 | Leon Pettigrew | Tackle | Cal State Northridge | |
| 14 | 356 | Eric Guthrie | Quarterback | Boise State | |
| 15 | 383 | Bob Maddox | Defensive end | Frostburg State | was ineligible to be drafted. |
| 16 | 408 | Ron Davis | Guard | Virginia State | |
| 17 | 435 | Ted Alexander | Running back | Langston | |
| Made roster * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches |
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB) Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Practice squad
Reserve
|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 5 | vs.New York Jets | L 10–17 | 0–1 | Gator Bowl | 41,920 |
| 2 | August 13 | Cleveland Browns | W 20–13 | 1–1 | Candlestick Park | 58,364 |
| 3 | August 19 | atSan Diego Chargers | L 16–17 | 1–2 | San Diego Stadium | 47,308 |
| 4 | August 27 | Denver Broncos | L 24–27 | 1–3 | Candlestick Park | 58,115 |
| 5 | September 3 | Oakland Raiders | W 34–21 | 2–3 | Candlestick Park | 61,237 |
| 6 | September 8 | atLos Angeles Rams | W 17–14 | 3–3 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 60,807 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 17 | San Diego Chargers | W 34–3 | 1–0 | Candlestick Park | 59,438 | |
| 2 | September 24 | atBuffalo Bills | L 20–27 | 1–1 | War Memorial Stadium | 45,845 | |
| 3 | October 1 | atNew Orleans Saints | W 37–2 | 2–1 | Tulane Stadium | 69,840 | |
| 4 | October 8 | atLos Angeles Rams | L 7–31 | 2–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 77,382 | |
| 5 | October 15 | New York Giants | L 17–23 | 2–3 | Candlestick Park | 58,606 | |
| 6 | October 22 | New Orleans Saints | T 20–20 | 2–3–1 | Candlestick Park | 59,167 | |
| 7 | October 29 | atAtlanta Falcons | W 49–14 | 3–3–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 58,850 | |
| 8 | November 5 | atGreen Bay Packers | L 24–34 | 3–4–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 47,897 | |
| 9 | November 12 | Baltimore Colts | W 24–21 | 4–4–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,214 | |
| 10 | November 19 | atChicago Bears | W 34–21 | 5–4–1 | Soldier Field | 55,701 | |
| 11 | November 23 | atDallas Cowboys | W 31–10 | 6–4–1 | Texas Stadium | 65,124 | |
| 12 | December 4 | Los Angeles Rams | L 16–26 | 6–5–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,214 | |
| 13 | December 10 | Atlanta Falcons | W 20–0 | 7–5–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,214 | |
| 14 | December 16 | Minnesota Vikings | W 20–17 | 8–5–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,214 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||
| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 3–2–1 | 6–4–1 | 353 | 249 | W2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 3–3 | 5–5 | 269 | 274 | L2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6 | 7 | 1 | .464 | 4–2 | 5–5–1 | 291 | 286 | L2 |
| New Orleans Saints | 2 | 11 | 1 | .179 | 1–4–1 | 2–8–1 | 215 | 361 | L3 |
| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | December 23 | Dallas Cowboys | L 28–30 | 0–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,214 |
 | This article relating to anAmerican footballseason is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |
