| 1987 San Francisco 49ers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. |
| General manager | John McVay |
| Head coach | Bill Walsh |
| Defensive coordinator | George Seifert |
| Home stadium | Candlestick Park |
| Results | |
| Record | 13–2 |
| Division place | 1stNFC West |
| Playoffs | LostDivisional Playoffs (vs.Vikings) 24–36 |
| Pro Bowlers | QBJoe Montana WRJerry Rice RBRoger Craig NTMichael Carter FSRonnie Lott |
The1987 San Francisco 49ers season was thefranchise's 38thseason in theNational Football League and their 42nd overall. The 49ers won the division for the second consecutive season, ended the season as the top seed in theNFC and were heavily favored to represent the conference in the Super Bowl. The season ended with an upset loss to theMinnesota Vikings in the divisional round of the playoffs.
The 49ers lost the first game of the season to Pittsburgh. In their second game, against Cincinnati, it appeared that they were going to start the season 0–2, down by 6 points with just 2 seconds to play. However,quarterbackJoe Montana threw a 25-yard pass towide receiverJerry Rice as time expired. The 49ers used the victory as a springboard to a 13–1 run to end the season with the best record in the NFL.
The 49ers scored 459 points, the most in the NFL in 1987; they also scored 206 more points than they allowed, best in the league as well. The 49ers gained the most total yards (5,987), the most rushing yards (2,237) and second most passing yards (3,750) in the NFL in 1987.[1]
Wide receiver Jerry Rice was namedNFL Offensive Player of the Year and theBert Bell Award (for Player of the Year). Rice caught 22 touchdown passes in astrike-shortened 12 games (1 game was canceled because of the strike, and Rice didn't play in the next 3 games while the strike was on). This record stood for twenty years.[a] Rice led the league in receiving yards per game (89.8), total touchdowns (23: 22 receiving, 1 rushing), and points scored (138). Quarterback Joe Montana (who crossed the picket line during the strike) led the league with 31 touchdown passes. He also led the league inpasser rating (102.1) and completion percentage (66.8%).
The San Francisco defense was also very strong, surrendering the fewest total yards (4,095), fewest passing yards (2,484) and fifth-fewest rushing yards (1,611) in the NFL in 1987. The 1987 49ers have the bestpasser rating differential (offensive passer rating minus opponents' combined passer rating) of the Live Ball Era (1978–present), with +52.4.[2]
When theTampa Bay Buccaneers selected quarterbackVinny Testaverde first overall in the1987 NFL draft, Tampa BayquarterbackSteve Young was traded to the 49ers on April 24, 1987. The Buccaneers received 2nd and 4th round draft picks in the trade, which they used to draftMiamilinebackerWinston Moss, andArizona Statewide receiverBruce Hill.
| 1987 San Francisco 49ers draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Harris Barton * | Tackle | North Carolina | |
| 1 | 25 | Terrence Flagler | Running back | Clemson | |
| 2 | 37 | Jeff Bregel | Guard | USC | |
| 5 | 134 | Paul Jokisch | Wide receiver | Michigan | |
| 6 | 162 | Bob White | Linebacker | Penn State | |
| 7 | 189 | Steve DeLine | Kicker | Colorado State | |
| 8 | 217 | David Grayson | Linebacker | Fresno State | |
| 9 | 245 | Jonathan Shelley | Defensive back | Ole Miss | |
| 10 | 275 | John Paye | Quarterback | Stanford | |
| 11 | 301 | Calvin Nicholas | Wide receiver | Grambling State | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least onePro Bowl during career | |||||
Source:[4]
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
After the league decided to use replacement players during theNFLPA strike, the following team was assembled:
| 1987 San Francisco 49ers replacement roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
| Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
| Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
| ||||
In 1987,Jerry Rice led the NFL with 22 touchdown receptions. The runner-up wasPhiladelphia Eagles receiverMike Quick with 11. This marked the first time in NFL history that a category leader doubled the total of his nearest competitor.[5]
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 13 | atPittsburgh Steelers | L 17–30 | 0–1 | Three Rivers Stadium | 55,735 | |
| 2 | September 20 | atCincinnati Bengals | W 27–26 | 1–1 | Riverfront Stadium | 53,498 | |
| – | September 27 | Philadelphia Eagles | Canceled | ||||
| 3 | October 5 | atNew York Giants | W 41–21 | 2–1 | Giants Stadium | 16,471 | |
| 4 | October 11 | atAtlanta Falcons | W 25–17 | 3–1 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 8,684 | |
| 5 | October 18 | St. Louis Cardinals | W 34–28 | 4–1 | Candlestick Park | 38,094 | |
| 6 | October 25 | atNew Orleans Saints | W 24–22 | 5–1 | Louisiana Superdome | 60,497 | |
| 7 | November 1 | atLos Angeles Rams | W 31–10 | 6–1 | Anaheim Stadium | 55,328 | |
| 8 | November 8 | Houston Oilers | W 27–20 | 7–1 | Candlestick Park | 59,740 | |
| 9 | November 15 | New Orleans Saints | L 24–26 | 7–2 | Candlestick Park | 60,436 | |
| 10 | November 22 | atTampa Bay Buccaneers | W 24–10 | 8–2 | Tampa Stadium | 63,211 | |
| 11 | November 29 | Cleveland Browns | W 38–24 | 9–2 | Candlestick Park | 60,248 | |
| 12 | December 6 | atGreen Bay Packers | W 23–12 | 10–2 | Lambeau Field | 51,118 | |
| 13 | December 14 | Chicago Bears | W 41–0 | 11–2 | Candlestick Park | 63,509 | |
| 14 | December 20 | Atlanta Falcons | W 35–7 | 12–2 | Candlestick Park | 54,698 | |
| 15 | December 27 | Los Angeles Rams | W 48–0 | 13–2 | Candlestick Park | 57,950 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •49ers | 0 | 7 | 13 | 7 | 27 |
| Bengals | 10 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 26 |
| 1 | CIN | Larry Kinnebrew 2-yard run (Jim Breech kick) | Bengals 7–0 | |
| 1 | CIN | Jim Breech 23-yard field goal | Bengals 10–0 | |
| 2 | SF | Mike Wilson 38-yard pass fromJoe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) | Bengals 10–7 | |
| 2 | CIN | Rodney Holman 46-yard pass fromBoomer Esiason (Jim Breech kick) | Bengals 17–7 | |
| 2 | CIN | Jim Breech 42-yard field goal | Bengals 20–7 | |
| 3 | SF | Jerry Rice 34-yard pass from Joe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) | Bengals 20–14 | |
| 3 | SF | Ray Wersching 24-yard field goal | Bengals 20–17 | |
| 3 | SF | Ray Wersching 31-yard field goal | Tie 20–20 | |
| 4 | CIN | Jim Breech 41-yard field goal | Bengals 23–20 | |
| 4 | CIN | Jim Breech 46-yard field goal | Bengals 26–20 | |
| 4 | SF | Jerry Rice 25-yard pass from Joe Montana (Ray Wersching kick) | 49ers 27–26 | |
| NFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| San Francisco 49ers(1) | 13 | 2 | 0 | .867 | 5–1 | 10–1 | 459 | 253 | W6 |
| New Orleans Saints(4) | 12 | 3 | 0 | .800 | 4–1 | 8–3 | 426 | 283 | W9 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 6 | 9 | 0 | .400 | 1–5 | 5–7 | 317 | 361 | L2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 3 | 12 | 0 | .200 | 1–4 | 3–8 | 205 | 436 | L3 |
| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisional | January 9 | Minnesota Vikings (5) | L 24–36 | 0–1 | Candlestick Park |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 3 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 36 |
| 49ers | 3 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 24 |
atCandlestick Park,San Francisco, CA
The 13–2 49ers suffered one of the biggest upsets in playoff history as the 8–7 Vikings came into Candlestick and beat the 49ers 36–24. Vikings QB Wade Wilson threw for 298 yards, and Anthony Carter caught 10 passes for 227 yards. Joe Montana struggled so much that Steve Young came in to relieve him. Though he played better, it was not enough. The Vikings took a 20–3 halftime lead, and held on for the major upset. Vikings advance to the NFC Championship but there were defeated by the Washington Redskins 17-10
