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00:00The players are the ones that represent the team concept more than anything else.
00:08They've always been the players who wanted to do it because it meant something about winning.
00:14That they would become winners and part of a winning organization.
00:27When I think of San Francisco, I think of diversity, the Golden Gate Bridge, Summer of Love, Hade Ashbury.
00:35I think of Rice-A-Roni, Land of Innovation, you have Google, Facebook.
00:44In a part of the country known for creativity, the San Francisco 49ers have always found their own way to
00:54win.
00:57There was a certain vibe about the 49ers that they were above the fray.
01:02Yeah, the Bears and the Giants and the Redskins were out there bludgeoning each other.
01:06But the 49ers, they've got beautiful plays and the symphony plays when they get the ball.
01:12They think of the West Coast as a finesse.
01:14The 49ers are a finesse team.
01:17The finesse-ass 49ers will come in the backyard of the Bears and kick at us.
01:22All we care about is, are we going to win on Sunday?
01:25It sort of makes a case for itself with the five Lombardis sitting in the facility.
01:31For a team named after a gold rush, choosing the top ten brightest Nuggets is no easy task.
01:39A great 49er is somebody who embraces the past and has to produce on the field, but also bring an
01:45extra flair.
01:46He's high-stepper!
01:47It's a...
01:49...who will often pizzazz into it.
01:50It is very difficult to crack that conversation of the top ten 49ers without a Super Bowl ring.
01:56See, that's where we get into that thing about, you know, who's on this list and who's not, right?
02:00And what's the right order?
02:01I'm wondering why there aren't any coaches on that list.
02:03Coaches have made some generous offers.
02:06In some cases, maybe in a lot of sense.
02:08Hey, I got your toe today, buddy.
02:10Thanks for your support.
02:11That's not a Raider hat, is it?
02:12Don't pass up a profit.
02:13But this list is strictly players only.
02:17Come on!
02:18Okay, okay.
02:19A lot of people are going to say, hey, wait a minute.
02:21Now we need to start the list over.
02:22And the number ten 49er of all time.
02:26Running back, Frank Gore.
02:29The inconvenient truth.
02:31Gore's out the open!
02:32It's a foot race!
02:32There's not a more consistent football player than Frank Gore.
02:36Persistent, methodical, but also very gifted.
02:38What explosion!
02:40And I've never been around a player with the heart that Frank Gore has.
02:45I think you ought to wait to see what the book is on Frank Gore when it's all said and
02:48done.
02:49He's on the fringe.
02:49He might be 11, he might be 10 and a half.
02:52There's no question that Frank Gore belongs on the list.
02:54He should be higher on the list than 10.
02:56Best running back.
02:57The best running back.
02:58The best running back the 49ers have ever had.
03:07Like the Golden Gate Bridge, great running backs are a fact of life in San Francisco.
03:12There's been Joe Perry, Ken Willard, and Roger Craig.
03:16But Frank Gore has run for more yards and touchdowns than all of them.
03:22Get to Gore.
03:23Frank running right.
03:24Driving in.
03:25Touchdown!
03:25Considering the fact now that Frank Gore has become the all-time leading rusher in 49er history,
03:31he not only deserves to be on the list, but maybe even a couple steps higher than 10.
03:34When you talk about a complete back, this guy does it all.
03:38He can run the football.
03:39Gore cutting left 50.
03:40Gore still going to the 45.
03:41Frank Gore still on his feet.
03:43He can pass block.
03:44He's like, you want to play big boy football?
03:46Let's do it.
03:46He can catch.
03:47Now throws the ball up the sideline.
03:49Gore's got it on the run of the 40.
03:50He has no weaknesses.
03:54A thousand-yard rusher, a team record six times.
03:57Gore carried the 49ers during a six-year stretch without a winning season.
04:02And yet he's put up this kind of production.
04:07He's put on bad teams.
04:09Hey, he had to deal with that.
04:13Gore has been through all that and has emerged as a great team leader, a great player.
04:18Going to the right, driving in.
04:19Touchdown, 49ers.
04:2249ers don't win without Frank Gore.
04:26Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore, Gore,
04:31Despite four trips to the Pro Bowl and an NFC Championship, not everyone thinks Gore should be on our list.
04:3820, 10, touchdown, 49ers.
04:41Where it gets a little tough is to compare careers that aren't done with careers that are finished.
04:47For him to be 10th, I could really push him up.
04:50I think, Frank Gore, I'm sorry, buddy, until you have a ring, there's some serious jewelry on the rest of
04:55those boys.
04:55He's ahead of some Hall of Famers, but he should be.
04:59Do you know what 49er is?
05:02Incredible.
05:03The number nine 49er of all time.
05:05Charles Haley.
05:06The elephant.
05:07Charles Haley.
05:09Charles Haley.
05:10So intense.
05:10A holy terror.
05:11The man made so many plays so often.
05:13Pressure by Haley, and the ball slips out of his hand.
05:16Charles Haley is one of the great players in the history of this game.
05:19One of the most tortured guys I've ever come in contact with.
05:23He should have been on the Raiders.
05:26Huh.
05:29The Raiders were a bit of talent away.
05:31San Francisco is so known for their offenses, you sometimes fall asleep and forget about the guys that they had
05:36on defense.
05:37Our number nine 49er was hard to overlook, leading a defense that ranked in the top 10 in each of
05:44his first six years, thanks to his animal instincts.
05:47They created a position for Charles Haley, essentially, the elephant position.
05:52And the elephant was a combination defensive end and rush linebacker, because he had the size, the strength, and the
05:58speed to be able to do that.
05:59Just a speed move by Charles Haley.
06:01Nightmare.
06:02Charles Haley was a nightmare.
06:04We handed the ball off in a shotgun, and I was supposed to bootleg the other way, and we tried
06:08to throw it back to the quarterback, and Haley didn't fall off him.
06:11I think it goes back to what an athlete Charles Haley is.
06:15Great player.
06:16He was a guy that you always had to account for.
06:21Haley was hard to handle on the field, as well as off.
06:25Charles had some issues, but playing football, you play with a lot of guys that have issues.
06:31The most famous Charles Haley story is the one after Ronnie Lott had left the 49ers, and the 49ers go
06:37to play the Raiders at the L.A. Coliseum, and they lost.
06:41Haley was so upset to lose a game with Ronnie Lott on the other side that, you know, he kind
06:47of lost it a little bit.
06:48Haley and the 49er locker room went absolutely berserk.
06:51Somebody said, let's call Ronnie, because he was one of the few people that understood Charles, and he had to
06:56come into the 49er locker room and calm him down so he wouldn't just tear up the whole locker room.
07:00And when it was later, you know, it came out that he was bipolar.
07:04Then it all fell into play.
07:06It was like, oh, yeah, exactly.
07:12Despite his issues, Haley had 66 and a half sacks in a pair of Super Bowl titles as a 49er.
07:19That's Charles Haley.
07:20Yeah, Haley got him.
07:21You might think he was an odd duck, but in the NFL, it's pretty much about what you do on
07:26Sunday.
07:26Haley just speed rushed to the outside.
07:28He wasn't just the guy on those teams.
07:30He was the guy on the defensive side of the ball in all of those Super Bowl years.
07:41We're from the new school.
07:42We use technique and get the job done to the max.
07:45For all Haley did in San Francisco, his move to Dallas still feels to some, like Fredo taking sides against
07:53the family.
07:54You can't just flip over to the Cowboys and act as though everything's kosher.
07:58Some people might think of him as a cowboy, and that's a problem.
08:01Haley's got to be docked some points for that.
08:03He is one of the great 49ers ever, and the fact that he went to the Dallas Cowboys later is
08:07irrelevant.
08:07After he left the 49ers, people appreciated him more, because then it became,
08:12oh, if they'd only catch him, how many more Super Bowl rings would the 49ers have?
08:17This has got to be the alley-oop. There's no time for any young.
08:20When it comes to clutch catches, no team has had more than the 49ers.
08:25Oh, it's a double team.
08:26He goes up.
08:26He's got it.
08:27Young almost falls down.
08:29Throws to the end zone.
08:31Oh, he caught it.
08:32He caught it.
08:33He caught it.
08:34Alex looking.
08:3512-time receiver Dwight Clark.
08:37Dwight Clark.
08:38When you have one of the most iconic catches in football history,
08:42I think you deserve to be on the list.
08:44He's known for one play.
08:48He had two great seasons his entire career, like RIP Dwight Clark,
08:54but he's known for one play.
08:57Broke out of candlestick.
08:5849er fans have never seen anything like that.
09:00It's a madhouse at candlestick.
09:03And that was a heck of a day for the 49ers.
09:06The catch got us over the hump and said,
09:08we really have arrived.
09:09Dwight Clark started the dynasty.
09:13I know a couple of things about Dwight Clark outside of the catch.
09:16Number one, he started the movie straight to video,
09:19Kindergarten Ninja.
09:20Hey, you guys got the wrong car.
09:24Obviously, he deserves to be on this list.
09:27Okay.
09:30He wasn't just a one-hit wonder.
09:32He was a very good football player for the 49ers for a lot of years.
09:36A 10th round draft pick,
09:38Clark earned the 8th spot on our list
09:39with a stellar 9-year career
09:41that included two Pro Bowls and two World Championships.
09:45Number 87 retired in 1987
09:47as the 49ers' all-time leading receiver.
09:51Dwight Clark, I believe,
09:53is the best all-around receiver in football today.
09:55His ability to make the big play when it counts.
09:57I don't think there's anyone in the league
09:58that does any better than he can do.
10:01He came into the league
10:03with enough kind of sparkle and pizzazz to him.
10:06Had that kind of Hollywood good looks
10:08and a girlfriend who was Miss Universe.
10:10I'm Sean Weatherly,
10:11and I'm Miss Universe from 1980,
10:12and my three favorite football players
10:14are Dwight Clark and the San Francisco 49ers.
10:17Dwight Clark and Dwight Clark.
10:19He was a pretty boy,
10:20but he didn't play like a pretty boy.
10:23I usually go across the middle
10:24and try to mix up the linebackers.
10:26Could not intimidate him on the catch.
10:28Regardless of how many guys hit him,
10:31wasn't going to drop the football.
10:35Dwight and Joe had such chemistry and trust.
10:39They did everything to see them together,
10:41on and off the field.
10:42I'm married now,
10:43and Joe's living with my wife and I,
10:46and so it's like a three's company deal.
10:48We were friends first,
10:49before we became better friends on the field
10:51and got that connection.
10:52That connection paid off
10:54in the 1981 NFC title game,
10:56producing a play that launched a dynasty.
10:59Throws his pass.
11:00Caught by Clark.
11:01Clark got a touchdown.
11:03Dwight Clark has it.
11:04Seven seconds have changed my whole life,
11:06and our fans and our teams.
11:10Right.
11:1190% of the reason why Dwight Clark is on this list
11:14is because he made that catch.
11:15And good for him!
11:15Dwight Clark is immortal in San Francisco.
11:18If he never did anything else after that one play,
11:20I'm sure he'd be immortal in San Francisco.
11:23Dwight Clark has to be thought of
11:25as one of the all-time great 49ers,
11:26maybe in the top six.
11:28What is he, number seven?
11:29Eight.
11:30All right, well,
11:30boy,
11:32you really stiffed him at eight.
11:33Move him up in the top five.
11:34Just do it.
11:36Coming up,
11:37one 49er on our...
11:40The number seven 49er of all time.
11:44Running back,
11:45Roger Craig.
11:46When you're trying to cast a mold
11:48on a football player,
11:49Roger Craig's got to be one of those casts.
11:52As the man of steel
11:53in the 49ers' multifaceted offense,
11:56Roger Craig earned the number seven spot on our list.
12:00He could do it all.
12:01Could run the football,
12:02could catch the football.
12:03And I'll tell you,
12:04Roger Craig can do so many things for you.
12:06He was a ferocious running back.
12:09A discouraging run for the defense
12:11by Roger Craig.
12:13Roger Craig had those knees, man.
12:15The high knees.
12:16Those knees.
12:17That high knee action
12:18keeps those feet going like two pistons.
12:21During the period that he was doing it,
12:24there was nobody in football better than him.
12:28All right.
12:29Roger Craig was the revolutionary back
12:32who could hurt you just as much
12:34catching the ball out of the backfield
12:36as running it.
12:36Roger Craig was a guy
12:38running the wishbone in Nebraska
12:40who got like 16 passes
12:41in his entire four-year career.
12:43But in working him out before the draft,
12:46Bill Walsh saw that,
12:47hey, this guy can catch the football.
12:49He brought the receiving skill
12:51to the running back position
12:52at the same time
12:53that Bill Walsh wanted to invent that.
12:55Bill Walsh kind of tailored the system around me.
12:59Craig's natural ability as a receiver
13:01has turned the dump-off pass
13:03into a devastating weapon.
13:04Roger can take the ball deep or short
13:06and can run excellent pass patterns.
13:08You find ways from that point
13:10to get him open.
13:12He was a match-up nightmare.
13:13Bill Walsh used him that way.
13:14We know that this guy will have to cover Roger,
13:17which is scary for them.
13:22Our number 749er of all time,
13:25Craig produced one of the greatest seasons
13:27by an offensive player in NFL history.
13:30Bill Walsh, he came up to me and said,
13:32we need 1,000 yards out of you, Roger.
13:34I covered both areas.
13:35I wasn't sure which category.
13:36So I did the receiver 1,000 yards
13:38and the rushing 1,000 yards.
13:41Roger Craig has done something
13:43that no one else has ever done
13:45in the history of the NFL.
13:47He's gotten over 1,000 yards rushing
13:49and over 1,000 yards receiving.
13:52And the next person to do that
13:54was Marsha Fogg 14 years later.
13:56That's it.
13:56I was the first and Marsha Fogg was the second,
13:58which is pretty amazing.
14:02Oh, what a bonanza!
14:04My favorite run for Roger Craig.
14:06It's a draw in the middle of the Craig
14:08and he breaks loose and runs loose.
14:09He gets used from the 30 to the 25.
14:11He's down to the 20.
14:12Breaks loose again.
14:13He's on the catch.
14:15But touchdown 49ers!
14:17Oh, what a bonanza!
14:19Spectacular run by Roger Craig!
14:21And I can still see him in my mind
14:23just churning over those guys,
14:25just kneeing them in the face.
14:27He knocked a couple people down,
14:29knocked a couple of his own
14:29players out of the way.
14:31Might be the best run of his career.
14:36As a 49er,
14:38Craig gained over 11,000 total yards.
14:41So why isn't he higher on our list?
14:44Good question.
14:45He deserves to be.
14:46Perhaps the 1990 NFC title game
14:49played a part.
14:50The Giants had the ball!
14:52I think the fumble versus the Giants
14:54when we had a chance to win three in a row
14:56sort of tarnishes some of the things
14:59that he did.
15:02I think he's one of the top 10
15:04all-around backs that's ever played the game.
15:06He absolutely belongs on the top 10 list.
15:09I have no argument with number seven.
15:11I think he should be higher than where he is.
15:13Seven's a good spot for Roger Craig.
15:15I think he'd take that.
15:17You're like I'm in heaven right now.
15:19The number six 49er of all time,
15:22linebacker Patrick Willis.
15:24That's pretty high.
15:26Wow.
15:27Patrick Willis is six.
15:29That is shockingly high.
15:30There's so many snaps that the other team takes
15:32and then Willis is right there.
15:33Yes, sir.
15:35Gosh, six?
15:36Talk about passion for the game.
15:37This guy has it.
15:38We closed the door.
15:40It's time to play.
15:41Boom, man.
15:42Let's go.
15:43Let's go.
15:44Can we wait until the guy's career is half old?
15:46Just half old.
15:47A revolutionary force in linebacking.
15:50The speed.
15:51His career was mostly over by this point.
15:55He only played two more years.
15:57With which he goes side to side.
16:00Tracked out from behind.
16:01Gorgeous play.
16:02The ferocity that he uses to lay hits.
16:04It's the ferocity of the hit
16:07which defines Patrick Willis.
16:12He was one of those guys
16:13when you saw him as a rookie,
16:15just the way he hit,
16:17it was like,
16:19holy ****.
16:21With expletive talent,
16:23our number six 49er
16:25has made it to six Pro Bowls
16:26in his first six years.
16:29Patrick Willis came into the league
16:31as a first-round draft pick
16:32and Patrick Willis was a star
16:34from the moment he stepped on the field.
16:37He's the prototypical linebacker.
16:39He does even cover.
16:40Victor Cruz with Willis covering him.
16:42He can rush the passer.
16:44He's fast.
16:46He can stop the run.
16:48I'll tell you one thing,
16:48I'll run at that 52.
16:49We're not looking for guys
16:50like Dick Buckus anymore.
16:52They're looking for guys
16:52like Patrick Willis.
16:55You hurt my feelings, Todd.
16:57I did?
16:57When Visa Signature asked everybody
16:59what upgraded experiences
17:00really mattered,
17:01you suggested a luxury car service
17:02instead of strength training
17:03with Patrick Willis.
17:05Willis made it to Madison Avenue
17:07and the number six spot
17:08on our list
17:09with his toughness
17:10and passion.
17:11Number one,
17:12he's a leader.
17:12He's a guy who plays
17:13with a lot of intensity.
17:15Come on,
17:16hey, bring it!
17:16The way he hits people out there,
17:18you gotta respect him
17:19so somebody we all look up to.
17:21You're the best we've seen, man,
17:22by far, man, by far.
17:23There's a desire in Patrick Willis
17:25that I think is almost second to none.
17:27How bad do we want it?
17:28He has to play great on every play.
17:31He was won down by a linebacker.
17:34Patrick Willis.
17:38Despite earning first-team
17:39All-Pro honors
17:40five times and counting,
17:42Patrick Willis' spot on our list
17:44has spurred some controversy.
17:47Way too early to put Patrick Willis
17:49on that type of a list.
17:50It just might be a little too early
17:52to do that.
17:53I think he's in there.
17:54I think he belongs on the list.
17:55If they had won the Super Bowl,
17:57maybe.
17:58He's the defensive leader,
17:59so he's gotta be in there.
18:00Patrick Willis belongs in the top ten
18:02because I think he will
18:04finish his career as a Hall of Famer.
18:06We should almost do this
18:07a few years down the road.
18:08He might even move up higher.
18:09I think if you're putting Willis
18:10at number six,
18:11you're kind of rolling the dice
18:12and hoping to look good
18:14when this airs as a rerun
18:15in five years.
18:17Up next.
18:19And now,
18:20the number five
18:2049-year-old tie.
18:23Quarterback Steve Young.
18:24To be five on this list,
18:26that's pretty impressive.
18:27That's a worthy, worthy spot.
18:29I think Steve Young
18:30is about where he should be.
18:31To a low.
18:32I take exception.
18:32He should be fourth.
18:33And with your list.
18:37I fell in love
18:38with the game of football
18:39because of Steve Young.
18:41And his playing the position
18:42of quarterback
18:43like a linebacker.
18:44He dives into the end zone.
18:46Cuts to the right.
18:48Steve Young was exciting
18:50in a running around
18:51without his helmet
18:52kind of way.
18:53He never quit
18:54on any play.
18:55You can see some
18:55of the runs
18:56that he made.
18:56He died.
18:58Touchdown, 49ers.
18:59He was the running
19:00quarterback
19:01who progressed
19:02into a great
19:03throwing quarterback.
19:04It was sick
19:05of things that he could do.
19:07Uh-huh.
19:09Young endured
19:10a painful stint
19:12in Tampa Bay
19:12before coming
19:13to San Fran.
19:14But in this
19:15battered buck,
19:16Bill Walsh
19:17saw the perfect
19:1849er.
19:19Bill Walsh
19:20saw something in him
19:21that he liked.
19:22And that was right
19:23after Joe Montana's
19:23back surgery.
19:26He was told
19:27by Bill Walsh
19:28you'll be the
19:28quarterback here
19:29very shortly.
19:30Joe Montana
19:30doesn't have much
19:31time left.
19:32Well, Joe had
19:32two more Super Bowls
19:33in him that no one
19:34was accounting for that.
19:38We talked about
19:39wanting to play.
19:40I mean, if you want
19:40to talk to someone
19:41who wants to play,
19:41come talk to me.
19:42Steve Young
19:43should have known
19:44his place.
19:45You don't ever
19:45disrespect the greatest
19:47human being to ever
19:48be birthed by a woman.
19:50At some point,
19:51the 49ers and Joe
19:51Montana had to go
19:52through a divorce.
19:53who winds up
19:54being the second wife.
19:56Maybe even a large
19:57piece of 49er fans
19:58died the day that
19:59Joe Montana went
20:00to Kansas City.
20:01You know, it's like
20:01telling the Pope to
20:02go home for heaven's
20:03sakes.
20:04Montana's still the
20:05best.
20:06He always will be.
20:07And even after Joe
20:08left and went to
20:09Kansas City, some guys
20:10were really upset
20:10about that.
20:11And they were all
20:12feeling like, this
20:13guy's going to have
20:14to prove it to us
20:14because we don't see it.
20:16Gets back up and
20:17it's landed out of
20:18the 16-yard line.
20:20Then he lost the ball
20:21after the second time.
20:24That's just how it was.
20:25Steve wasn't Joe.
20:27Steve was a good
20:27quarterback, but he
20:28wasn't Joe.
20:29So whatever went
20:30wrong, it was because
20:32he wasn't Joe at first.
20:34He grew on us.
20:36Young takes the number
20:38five spot on our list
20:39as he grew into a
20:41Hall of Fame quarterback,
20:42winning a record-tying
20:43six passing titles and
20:45earning two MVP awards.
20:47Passes to throw, pass
20:48to the end zone.
20:49In Super Bowl XXIX, Young
20:50produced the greatest
20:51passing performance in
20:53Super Bowl history.
20:54Steve Young is now
20:55number one all-time with
20:58six touchdown passes.
21:00Someone take the
21:01multi-ass post, please!
21:05It's gone forever!
21:07For years and years,
21:08people would say,
21:10he just threw six
21:11touchdowns in the
21:12Super Bowl.
21:13Oh, Steve, we've
21:14always loved you.
21:14You're the best.
21:15I never thought he
21:16wouldn't win a Super
21:16Bowl.
21:17I knew he'd get it.
21:23Steve Young should
21:24not be a number five.
21:25I'm going to have to
21:25think about that one
21:26for a second.
21:27I'll put him number
21:28five, yeah.
21:29I think you got him
21:29right.
21:30Maybe number four.
21:31I think that's about
21:31right for Steve.
21:32In my world, he's
21:33number one.
21:36The number four
21:3749ers of all time.
21:39The million-dollar
21:40backfield.
21:41Well, I, I, I...
21:42It's ridiculous.
21:44None of those guys
21:45were close to Steve Young.
21:47I do kind of
21:48remember them a little
21:48bit.
21:49The quarterback is
21:50Y-A-Tittle.
21:50Y-A-Tittle, right?
21:51Show me a time they
21:52appeared in the playoffs.
21:54As a group.
21:55Quarterback, at least
21:5649ers.
21:57The halfbacks were
21:59Hugh McElhenney.
22:00Considered by many
22:01the most talented
22:01running back ever
22:02to play the game.
22:03And Joe Curry.
22:04Joe the Jet
22:05Curry, one of the
22:06all-time 49er
22:08favorites.
22:08And the fullback
22:09was John Henry
22:10Johnson.
22:10In John Henry
22:11Johnson, the 49ers
22:12came up with a
22:12slashing, powerful
22:13runner.
22:14In the mid-50s,
22:15the 49ers were
22:16the only game in
22:16town, and there
22:17was nothing more
22:18important than
22:18those four men.
22:20He's out of
22:20stadium with
22:20packs week after
22:22week as 49er
22:23excitement took over
22:24in San Francisco.
22:25What makes them
22:26unique is that
22:27all four of them
22:28wound up in the
22:29Pro Football Hall
22:30of Fame.
22:31Four on one side
22:32of the ball at the
22:32skill positions?
22:33I don't think we'll
22:34ever see it again.
22:37It was a unique era.
22:39They have these four
22:40in the backfield, and
22:42it is still legendary
22:43in San Francisco.
22:45In the 1950s, our
22:47foursome of 49ers at
22:48number four became
22:49some of the best in
22:50NFL history.
22:52Before his career
22:53mark was broken by
22:54Jim Brown, Joe the
22:55Jet Perry was the
22:57league's all-time
22:58leading rusher.
22:59Yes, he was.
23:01He ran a 9-700.
23:03Joe Perry's the first
23:04guy in NFL history
23:05to...
23:05I thought it was
23:06like a 9-6 or
23:079-5.
23:08Rushed for a thousand
23:09yards in successive
23:10seasons.
23:11Think about a thousand
23:12yards back when they're
23:13playing 12 games.
23:14That's phenomenal.
23:15Joe was twice all-pro
23:17and played three times
23:18in the Pro Bowl.
23:19Look at that, look at that.
23:19Joe the Jet Perry,
23:20one of the greatest
23:21players in the history
23:22of the team.
23:25Hugh McElhenney,
23:26swivel hips.
23:26One of the greatest
23:27broken field runners
23:29the game has ever
23:30known.
23:30That's a name that I
23:31hear my dad, he kind
23:32of gets a wistful
23:33look and is on,
23:33Hugh McElhenney, this
23:35way, cutting back
23:36that way, and cutting
23:37back this way.
23:38A six-time Pro Bowl
23:40halfback, Hugh
23:41McElhenney retired as
23:43one of only three
23:44players with over 11,000
23:45all-purpose yards.
23:48Then you had John
23:49Henry Johnson.
23:50With a name like that,
23:51he's a fullback.
23:52He's got to be John
23:53Henry Johnson.
23:54Boom, boom.
23:55Johnson scored a
23:57career-high nine
23:58touchdowns in 1954,
24:00which was also
24:01quarterback Y.A.
24:02Tittle's best season
24:03in San Francisco.
24:04Throwing for over
24:052,200 yards,
24:07Tittle became the
24:08first football player
24:09to make the cover
24:10of Sports Illustrated.
24:12Nice.
24:13They threw a lot, too.
24:14They put up points
24:15and they were exciting.
24:20With each of our
24:21number four players
24:22ranking among the best
24:23ever, making the group
24:25one number on our list
24:26has drawn a cheer
24:28of critics.
24:29It's kind of a slight
24:30to those guys.
24:31You guys should make
24:31a decision.
24:32Come on.
24:32I think you have to
24:33take all four into
24:34account to make it
24:36at number four,
24:37because otherwise,
24:37any one of them
24:38alone, no.
24:39We got to be satisfied.
24:40We want to get three.
24:42If I'm going to eat them,
24:44one of the most
24:44badass things ever.
24:47That would also
24:48describe the hitting
24:49style of linebacker
24:50Hardy Brown.
24:51Boom!
24:52He was a guy that
24:53was legendary,
24:54probably the most
24:55feared hitter of the
24:57NFL in the 50s.
24:59He would just sort of
25:00coil up and just
25:01unload with his
25:02shoulder.
25:03He'd have trouble
25:04playing in the NFL
25:05today.
25:05I can tell you that.
25:06Those guys were
25:07tough.
25:08He was the most
25:08feared hitter
25:10until this guy.
25:11But the toughest
25:1249er of all
25:13comes in
25:14at number three.
25:16The number three
25:1849er of all time.
25:20Defensive back
25:21Ronnie Lach.
25:22Oh my God.
25:24Where do we start?
25:26Fearless.
25:29Inimitating.
25:31Hard hitting.
25:32And then he is
25:33clobbered!
25:34Winner.
25:35Oh,
25:36back to back.
25:39The Joe Montana
25:40of the defense.
25:41That's Ronnie Lach.
25:45The number three
25:4649er of all time.
25:48Lach was selected
25:49eighth overall
25:50in the 1981 draft.
25:52He came in
25:53from day one
25:54from SC
25:55and set a standard
25:56that he never
25:58relinquished.
26:00Ronnie Lach
26:00intercepts.
26:01He's in for six
26:02points for San
26:03Francisco.
26:04He was part of
26:04that backfield.
26:05Dwight Hicks
26:06and his hot licks.
26:07Three rookies
26:07in that secondary
26:08in 81.
26:09Ronnie wound up
26:09just being great
26:10forever.
26:14Oh,
26:14you try to go
26:15into the game
26:16feeling that you're
26:17better than a receiver.
26:18You want to try
26:19to intimidate him.
26:19In the era
26:20when we played
26:20when you could
26:21really smack people,
26:22Ronnie Lach
26:23Lach was one of the
26:23tough guys at that
26:24time.
26:25He hit people so hard
26:26that their families
26:27felt it.
26:29Even people that
26:30got hit hard for a
26:31living thought he
26:32hit hard.
26:34Now, hits on
26:35defenseless receivers
26:36are outlawed,
26:37but when Ronnie Lach
26:38played, many were
26:39hesitant to travel
26:40over the middle.
26:44Oh, my gosh!
26:45Guys are thinking
26:46twice about running
26:47over to his side
26:48of the field.
26:48You would see him
26:49have no regard
26:51for his body
26:51and just throw
26:52himself into
26:53collisions.
26:54He's lucky Roger
26:55Goodell wasn't a
26:56commissioner trying to
26:57take the nastiness
26:58out of the game
26:59of football because
27:00Ronnie Lach
27:01would have owed
27:01the league money
27:02when his season
27:03was over.
27:04Lach
27:04saved his best
27:05for the Bengals'
27:06Icky Woods in
27:07Super Bowl XXIII.
27:08Oh, he nailed!
27:10That was a turning
27:10point in that game.
27:11I mean, Icky Woods
27:12did not want to
27:13touch the football
27:14after having
27:15Ronnie Lach
27:16in the NFL.
27:17That hit on Icky
27:17Woods set the tone.
27:19Ronnie Lach
27:19coming up at
27:21three.
27:21What a belt on it.
27:24He is the guy
27:25that made that
27:26defense tough enough
27:27to complement
27:29that great offense.
27:30He made you
27:31want to play harder.
27:32You never, ever
27:33thought you were
27:34doing enough.
27:34That you didn't
27:35have more to
27:36give.
27:37Lach secured
27:38the number three
27:38spot on our list
27:39by giving the
27:4049ers the finger.
27:43Ronnie Lach
27:44hurt his left
27:44hand on that
27:45play.
27:46I'm sure he has
27:46one of those
27:47fractures where
27:48the bone comes
27:49through the skin
27:50because there is
27:51blood involved
27:51in that thing.
27:52This idea
27:53of
27:56Top it off!
27:57You're going
27:57back in!
27:58Not quite the
27:59way that happened.
28:00Getting that
28:00thing crushed
28:01late in the
28:02season, still
28:03playing in the
28:04playoffs with a
28:04crushed finger,
28:05and then it's
28:06not going to be
28:07ready for the
28:08start of the
28:08season.
28:09He could have
28:09surgery and not
28:11play, or he
28:11could have it
28:12cut off and
28:13play.
28:13I chose to get
28:15the finger
28:15amputated.
28:16Cut off his
28:16finger?
28:17Didn't need it?
28:18Yeah, that sounds
28:19about right.
28:19That's Ronnie.
28:20Ah.
28:23The number
28:24three niner of
28:25all time, Lach
28:26earned a bust in
28:27Canton.
28:27But was he the
28:28best defender in
28:2949ers history?
28:31When you're known
28:31best for your
28:32biggest hits and
28:33your little pinky,
28:34yeah, you deserve
28:35to be called the
28:36best defender in
28:3749ers history.
28:38There's no
28:39question.
28:39I don't even
28:40think there's a
28:40close second.
28:41Great spot for
28:42Ronnie Lach.
28:43Top three, but
28:44no higher.
28:45No, Ronnie's not
28:46high enough.
28:46Oh, you see me
28:47number one.
28:50Up next,
28:51speaking of
28:52reputations,
28:53the team's second
28:57all-time receiver,
28:58Terrell Owens, was
28:59known as much for
29:00his bravado as
29:02his ability to
29:02make a play.
29:03Who can make a
29:04play?
29:05I can!
29:06But after playing
29:07nearly half his
29:08career with four
29:09other teams,
29:14this colorful
29:15character wore
29:16too many colors
29:17to make our
29:17list.
29:18They hate
29:19the last!
29:19Frank Gore on
29:20the list.
29:22They see a lot
29:23of hate me,
29:24bro!
29:25Known as a
29:26solid second
29:26receiver,
29:27John Taylor was
29:28the first NFL
29:29player with two
29:30touchdowns over
29:3190 yards in
29:32the same game.
29:34He's to
29:35midfield!
29:36He's got a
29:36blocker in front
29:37of us!
29:37Second to
29:38none.
29:39What do you
29:40mean he was
29:40second to
29:41none?
29:42If a guy's
29:43second to
29:43none, how
29:43can he be
29:44number two?
29:47What?
29:49The number
29:49two 49er of
29:50all time,
29:51receiver Jerry
29:52Rodgers.
29:54So he's number
29:54two on the
29:5649ers, huh?
29:56Hey Jerry,
29:57you're number
29:57two.
29:58In what?
29:59He's number
30:00one in
30:00everything!
30:01Because he
30:01scored more
30:02points than
30:02anybody else.
30:03That's why
30:03you play the
30:04game.
30:04What he did
30:05on Sundays
30:05was so
30:07resplendent and
30:08unbelievable.
30:09Oh my!
30:10A one-handed
30:11catch!
30:11I remember
30:12seeing the
30:12back of that
30:13number running
30:14down the field
30:14quite a bit.
30:16It's a perfect
30:16marriage of
30:17athletic genius
30:18and work
30:18effort.
30:19There's no way
30:20he would let
30:21someone outwork
30:21him.
30:22Because Jerry
30:22Rice is not
30:22number two
30:23in anything.
30:24He's number
30:24one in
30:24everything.
30:25Jerry Rice is
30:25the all-time
30:26receiver,
30:27greatest receiver,
30:27the best
30:28receiver of
30:28all time.
30:37Jerry Rice made
30:38it to number
30:38two on our
30:39list in part
30:40because of his
30:41role in
30:41three 49er
30:42championships.
30:44The boy is
30:45going to
30:46party tonight.
30:48Including an
30:49MVP performance
30:50in Super
30:50Bowl XXIII.
30:51quick pass for
30:53Rice.
30:54Touchdown 49ers!
30:56There was also
30:57all 1,281 of his
30:59catches as a
31:0049er.
31:02You think about
31:02Hail Jerry in
31:04Cincinnati at
31:0587.
31:0549ers will have
31:06a chance to
31:07throw.
31:08There's Montana
31:09throwing for the
31:10end zone.
31:11Rice,
31:11he's got it!
31:13The one where he
31:13set the all-time
31:14record for touchdowns.
31:15The Raiders knew
31:16exactly what was
31:17coming.
31:17Jerry Rice is the
31:19touchdown scorer
31:20of the century.
31:24As the hardest
31:25working man in
31:26football, Rice
31:27earned all pro
31:29honors 11
31:30straight times.
31:31His work ethic
31:32was such that if
31:34you just watched
31:35him, you would
31:36think that that's
31:36a guy fighting for
31:37a roster spot.
31:38I didn't love this
31:39game, I wouldn't
31:40be doing this.
31:41Nobody could stay
31:42with him running
31:42that hill over
31:43there in Atherton,
31:44go over there and
31:45I'm going to run
31:45a hill with Jerry,
31:46but he'd leave you
31:46in the dust.
31:48I ran one time,
31:50that's it, that's
31:51all I could take.
31:52It made logical
31:53sense that he would
31:54be the best because
31:55he cared the most,
31:56tried the hardest,
31:57and was the most
31:58maniacal about it.
32:01Why'd you dance?
32:03Why'd you dance?
32:04As great as Rice was,
32:06it's hard for me to
32:07look past the
32:08Dancing with the
32:08Stars.
32:09It's hard for me to
32:11put him higher than
32:12number two.
32:13What?
32:14After a career that
32:15rewrote the record
32:16book, some of the
32:17say number two
32:18isn't good enough
32:19for Jerry Rice.
32:20I go with Jerry
32:21Rice, who's not
32:23only the greatest
32:2349er of all time,
32:24but in my opinion,
32:25the greatest football
32:26player of all time.
32:27Jerry is number
32:28one football player
32:29of all time, right?
32:30He's a champion,
32:32a Hall of Famer,
32:33and the number
32:35one player on the
32:36top 100.
32:38If you want to go
32:38for the greatest
32:39football player in
32:40NFL history, and
32:40he's the greatest
32:4149er player, then
32:42Jerry Rice is it.
32:44Coming up, we
32:45reveal, uh, who
32:47are we kidding?
32:48You know who's a
32:49****.
32:50Just kind of like
32:51Miss USA, where you
32:52announce the runner
32:53up, and you're now
32:53the number one
32:5449er of all time.
32:56Joe Cool.
32:57Joe Montana.
32:59Joe Montana clearly,
33:01without a doubt, was
33:02the greatest 49er of
33:04all time.
33:05Oh yeah, that's no
33:05brainer.
33:06That's not even
33:07debatable.
33:07Joe Montana is the
33:09greatest human being
33:10ever born.
33:11Greatest quarterback
33:12of all time.
33:13Oh, touchdown!
33:14More important than
33:15all presidents.
33:16Nobody's ever done
33:17it as well as Joe
33:18Montana.
33:19Just complete control
33:20of the offense.
33:21He could bring peace
33:22to the Middle East.
33:23Talking about the
33:24best quarterback that
33:25has ever lived.
33:26Joe Montana.
33:27I'll say he is the
33:28best who's ever
33:29played the game.
33:30In fact, I think
33:30Joe Montana could run
33:31all nations.
33:33I love Joe Montana.
33:38I grew up a 49er fan.
33:40I remember what it
33:40was like before Joe
33:41Montana.
33:43For the 49ers, these
33:45were the worst of
33:46times.
33:47Everything that
33:48happened for this
33:49franchise, it started
33:50with number 16.
33:52Jerry Rice may be the
33:54greatest player of all
33:55time, but Joe
33:56Montana takes the top
33:57spot on our list as
33:58the greatest 49er.
34:00Having transformed the
34:01NFL's doormat into the
34:03team of the decade in
34:04the 80s, we're
34:04winning four Super
34:05Bowls.
34:06Touchdown 49ers!
34:08The 49ers have won
34:10the Super Bowl!
34:11And the Bay Area may
34:12begin its celebration.
34:13The 49ers become the
34:16first team to win
34:17back-to-back Super
34:18Bowls since the
34:19Pittsburgh Steelers.
34:23Joe was kind of one
34:25of those rare, iconic
34:26figures you come across
34:27in sports where they
34:29cross over to pop
34:30culture.
34:30I know Joe Montana's
34:32supposed to be really
34:33great.
34:33He's like Jesus.
34:34He came from God.
34:36He was put on this
34:37earth for all women
34:38and children to love
34:39him.
34:44His physical tool was
34:46his accuracy.
34:47He could put the ball
34:48exactly where he
34:49wanted it.
34:50It was a perfect
34:50throw by Joe
34:51Montana.
34:52When the ball's
34:52snapped, he has the
34:53ability to know where
34:54everybody is and what
34:56they're going to do.
34:56You'll often see Joe
34:57look at this guy, look
34:58at this guy, look at
34:59this guy, then maybe go
35:00back to this guy.
35:01Montana just knows
35:02where everybody's going
35:03to be before they get
35:04there.
35:07Any time the 49ers
35:09trailed in any part of
35:10the fourth quarter, the
35:12assumption was, well, the
35:13Niners will win.
35:14Montana's back there.
35:15Montana rolling out the
35:16right, throwing under
35:17pressure, throws his
35:18pass, caught by Clark.
35:20When the pressure is on,
35:21Joe just slows everything
35:24down.
35:25There was never a set of
35:26circumstances that were
35:27going to be too dire for
35:29Joe Montana to overcome.
35:30He was Joe cool.
35:31Well, obviously, the
35:32best comeback was Super
35:34Bowl XXIII.
35:34The overall importance
35:36of the game.
35:36It was for the Super
35:37Bowl.
35:38And what does he do?
35:39He points into the
35:40stands and says, yeah,
35:41there's John Candy.
35:42You'd look at the
35:43defense and you'd see it
35:45in their eyes because
35:46they knew as well as
35:48you knew what an
35:49advantage it was to
35:50have Joe.
35:51When you talk about
35:52Super Bowl, driving the
35:53team down, that's the
35:54ultimate right there.
35:55Montana throws, plays
35:58down, and it's it.
36:00The point of the
36:00winner is hit scored
36:02by 30-4 seconds
36:03remain.
36:08Choosing the game's
36:09greatest quarterback
36:10over the greatest
36:11player of all time
36:12wasn't easy.
36:14Jerry.
36:14Ridiculous.
36:15It's like, how is the
36:17greatest player of all
36:18time not the greatest
36:19player for a team?
36:21It's like saying
36:23Michael Jordan isn't
36:25the greatest bull.
36:27Rice or Joe Montana?
36:29Well, that's a great
36:30question, but I mean,
36:30yeah, yeah, yeah.
36:32Wow.
36:33Hmm.
36:35That's like asking me
36:36which of my kids do I
36:36love more.
36:37All right.
36:38Montana's heads and
36:40Rice's tails.
36:43Jerry Rice is the
36:44greatest 49er player.
36:45Have the guy who scored
36:46more points than anybody
36:47in NFL history.
36:48Gotta take quarterbacks.
36:50Quarterbacks run the
36:51show.
36:51Quarterbacks do the most.
36:52I would argue that
36:53without Jerry Rice,
36:55Joe Montana and Steve
36:56Young do not have the
36:57careers they had.
36:58When we're all in high
36:58school, who's the
36:59coolest kid in school?
37:00Is it the wide receiver
37:01or is it the quarterback?
37:03It's the quarterback.
37:04You want to argue Joe
37:05Montana as the number
37:06one 49er, I will fight
37:08you.
37:08You have a team and a
37:09city that had never won
37:10and could never win.
37:12And then Joe Montana
37:13came and the whole
37:14thing changed.
37:15The 49er list, you're
37:17putting 16 in the top
37:18spot and you're leaving
37:19them there.
37:20I don't know.
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