1995 San Francisco 49ers season

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1995 San Francisco 49ers season
San Francisco 49ers Saloon Wordmark.svg
Owner Edward J. DeBartolo Jr.
General manager Carmen Policy
Head coach George Seifert
Offensive coordinator Marc Trestman
Defensive coordinator Pete Carroll
Home field 3Com Park
Results
Record11–5
Division place1st NFC West
Playoff finishLost Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Packers) 17–27
Pro Bowlers C Bart Oates
TE Brent Jones
WR Jerry Rice
QB Steve Young
DT Dana Stubblefield
OLB Lee Woodall
MLB Ken Norton Jr.
CB Eric Davis
SS Tim McDonald
FS Merton Hanks

The 1995 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 46th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 50th overall.

Contents

Fresh from their victory in the Super Bowl the previous season, the 49ers lost cornerback Deion Sanders to Dallas and running back Ricky Watters to Philadelphia. Despite a mediocre 5–4 start, the 49ers went 11–5 and for the fourth straight time, they repeated as NFC West champions. The 49ers finished the season as the league's top scoring offense, averaging 28.6 points per game. They also finished number one in total defense, surrendering just 275 yards per game, along with being the top rushing defense and finishing second in points allowed. [1] However, a stunning 27–17 loss to Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs stripped the 49ers of their title defense and ended their season. This would be the first of three consecutive seasons that the Packers beat the 49ers in the playoffs. From 1990 to 2000, the 1995 49ers were the only NFC team to lose a divisional-round playoff game following a first-round bye.

Jerry Rice caught a career-high 122 receptions along with 1,848 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns.

It was also the final season the 49ers wore their Super Bowl era uniforms.

Offseason

NFL draft

1995 San Francisco 49ers draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
1 10 J. J. Stokes   Wide receiver UCLA
4127 Tim Hanshaw   Guard BYU began play in 1996.
6201 Antonio Armstrong   Linebacker Texas A&M
7238 Herb Coleman   Defensive end Trinity International
      Made roster  

Personnel

Staff

1995 San Francisco 49ers staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Physical Development Coordinator – Jerry Attaway
  • Strength Development Coordinator – Michael Barnes

Roster

1995 San Francisco 49ers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad

53 active, 4 inactive, 5 practice squad


Rookies in italics

[2]

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
1September 3at New Orleans Saints W 24–221–0 Louisiana Superdome 66,627
2September 10 Atlanta Falcons W 41–102–0 3Com Park 63,627
3September 17 New England Patriots W 28–33–03Com Park66,179
4September 25at Detroit Lions L 24–273–1 Pontiac Silverdome 76,236
5October 1 New York Giants W 20–64–13Com Park65,536
6 Bye
7October 15at Indianapolis Colts L 17–184–2 RCA Dome 60,273
8October 22at St. Louis Rams W 44–105–2 Busch Memorial Stadium 59,915
9October 29 New Orleans Saints L 7–115–33Com Park65,272
10November 5 Carolina Panthers L 7–135–43Com Park61,722
11November 12at Dallas Cowboys W 38–206–4 Texas Stadium 65,180
12November 20at Miami Dolphins W 44–207–4 Joe Robbie Stadium 73,080
13November 26 St. Louis Rams W 41–138–43Com Park66,049
14December 3 Buffalo Bills W 27–179–43Com Park65,568
15December 10at Carolina Panthers W 31–1010–4 Clemson Memorial Stadium 76,136
16December 18 Minnesota Vikings W 37–3011–43Com Park64,975
17December 24at Atlanta Falcons L 27–2811–5 Georgia Dome 51,785
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: at New Orleans Saints

The Niners began their Super Bowl defense on the road and raced to a 24–9 lead despite an injury to Steve Young (accidentally kicked in the back of his neck) that necessitated play by Elvis Grbac for part of the first half. Two second-half Saints scores only closed the final to 24–22 Niners.

Week 4: at Detroit Lions

The Niners suffered their first defeat of the season in a 27–24 loss at the 0–3 Lions. The game lead tied or changed four times in the second half and a last-second Niners field goal attempt failed.

Week 11: vs. Dallas Cowboys

Week Eleven: San Francisco 49ers at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period1234Total
49ers17140738
Cowboys076720

at Texas Stadium, Dallas, Texas

  • Date: November 12, 1995
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 48 °F or 8.9 °C, relative humidity 39 percent, wind 15 miles per hour (24 km/h; 13 kn)
  • Referee: Bob McElwee
  • TV announcers (Fox): Pat Summerall (play-by-play) and John Madden (color commentator)
Game information

In one of the biggest upsets of the year, the injury-depleted 49ers thrashed the Cowboys 38–20. Coming into this game, the Cowboys were the NFL's best team, with an 8–1 record. The 49ers, on the other hand, were sitting at 5–4 coming off disappointing losses to New Orleans and the expansion Panthers by a combined score of 24–14. Steve Young was out with injury and Elvis Grbac was the 49ers' starting quarterback, but he had consistently struggled, completing 55 passes for 570 yards but with four INTs. As a result, the Cowboys were 14-point favorites coming in.

On just the second play of the game, Grbac split two defenders and hit Jerry Rice for an 81-yard touchdown, putting the 49ers up 7–0. On the ensuing possession, Michael Irvin fumbled the ball and it was picked up by Merton Hanks for a 38-yard touchdown, putting the 49ers up by two touchdowns just 1 minute and 24 seconds into the game. On the Cowboys' ensuing drive, they again turned it over (Troy Aikman interception) that resulted in a 49ers field goal. The 49ers led 17–0 just 4 minutes and 58 seconds into the game. By halftime, the 49ers had an astonishing 31–7 lead and held on for the win, upsetting the red-hot Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys turned the ball over four times in the game, while the 49ers had no turnovers.

Standings

NFC West
WLTPCTPFPASTK
(2) San Francisco 49ers 1150.688457258L1
(6) Atlanta Falcons 970.563362349W1
St. Louis Rams 790.438309418L3
Carolina Panthers 790.438289325L1
New Orleans Saints 790.438319348W1

Postseason

Schedule

RoundDateOpponent (seed)ResultRecordStadium
Wild Card First-round bye
DivisionalJanuary 6, 1996 Green Bay Packers (3)L 17–270–1 3Com Park

Game summaries

NFC Divisional Playoffs: vs. (3) Green Bay Packers

NFC Divisional Playoff: Green Bay Packers vs. San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
Period1234Total
Packers1473327
49ers037717

at Candlestick Park

  • Date: January 6, 1996
  • Game time: 1 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 52 °F or 11.1 °C, relative humidity 85%, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h; 4.3 kn)
  • TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton (play-by-play) and Matt Millen (color commentator)
    First quarter

    Second quarter

    Third quarter

    • SF - Steve Young 1-yard rush (Jeff Wilkins kick). Packers 21–10
    • GB - Chris Jacke 27-yard field goal. Packers 24–10

    Fourth quarter

    • GB - Chris Jacke 26-yard field goal. Packers 27–10
    • SF - Derek Loville 2-yard rush (Jeff Wilkins kick). Packers 27–17

The 49ers, who were almost 10-point favorites in the game, were upset by the visiting Green Bay Packers. Green Bay set the tone early with a Craig Newsome 31-yard fumble return for a touchdown, and never looked back. Even though Steve Young had more pass attempts, completions and passing yards than his counterpart 1995 League MVP Brett Favre, he failed to throw for a touchdown and finished with 2 interceptions. The 49ers had 4 turnovers in the game. This was the final game for 49ers wide receiver John Taylor.

Awards and records

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">1990 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1990 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 41st season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 45th overall. the team entered the 1990 season heavily favored to win their third consecutive Super Bowl. The season was highlighted by their victory over the New York Giants on Monday Night Football in Week 13. Throughout the season, the 49ers and the Giants were the two best teams in the NFL and they met again in the NFC Championship Game.

The 1994 Detroit Lions season was the 65th season in the National Football League (NFL). The Lions finished with a 9–7 record and made their second consecutive playoff appearance as one of the NFC's Wildcard teams—the first time the franchise had made the playoffs in consecutive non-strike seasons since 1954.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2001 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 2001 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 56th season and 52nd in the National Football League (NFL). The 49ers rebounded from two losing seasons in 1999 and 2000, achieving their first winning season under quarterback Jeff Garcia and returning to the playoffs for the first time since 1998 behind a strong 12–4 record. However, the 49ers failed to progress further, falling 25–15 to the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card round. This was the fourth time out of five games that they had lost to the Packers in the playoffs since the 1995 season. However, they have won all five meetings since then. This for first time since 1984 Jerry Rice was not on the opening day roster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 2000 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 51st season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 55th overall. Jerry Rice entered the 2000 season as the oldest player in the league at the wide receiver position. At the end of the year, however, with the emergence of Terrell Owens, Rice decided to leave the team after sixteen seasons to join the Raiders. Running back Charlie Garner would join Rice in Oakland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1998 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1998 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 49th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 53rd overall. The 49ers were heavily favored to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XXXIII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1997 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1997 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 52nd overall. The team appeared in the NFC Championship Game for the fifth time in the 1990s. This season marked the 49ers' last appearance in the NFC title game until the 2011 season as well as the last time that they clinched the number 1 seed with home-field advantage throughout the playoffs until the 2019 season. The team's playoff run was ended by the Green Bay Packers for the third straight season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1996 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1996 San Francisco 49ers season was the club's 51st since its inception. In commemoration, the 49ers wore a special 50th anniversary patch. They also wore a new uniform reminiscent of the 1994 throwback uniforms with white pants and shadowed numbers, but with a darker shade of red and an updated logo. The franchise tied for first place in the NFC West with a 12–4 record, but lost the division title to the Carolina Panthers on the division-record tiebreaker. The 49ers ranked 3rd in the league in points scored and 4th in fewest points allowed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1993 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1993 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 44th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 48th overall. The 49ers appeared in the NFC Championship Game for the second consecutive season and for the fifth time in six seasons. For the first time since 1978, Joe Montana was not on their active roster; specifically, the 49ers had traded him away to the Kansas City Chiefs in April.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1992 San Francisco 49ers season</span> 47th season in franchise history; final season with Joe Montana

The 1992 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 43rd season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 47th overall. The 49ers appeared in the NFC Championship Game for the second time in three seasons. This was the last season the 49ers had Joe Montana on the roster. The last game he played as a 49er was the December 28 Monday Night Football game against the Detroit Lions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1987 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1987 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 38th season in the National Football League and their 42nd overall. The 49ers won the division for the second consecutive season, ended the season as the top seed in the NFC and were heavily favored to represent the conference in the Super Bowl. The season ended with an upset loss to the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional round of the playoffs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1986 San Francisco 49ers season</span> NFL team season

The 1986 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 37th season in the National Football League and their 41st overall. The team returned to the top of the NFC West after a one-year absence, and lost in the divisional playoffs to the Giants, by a score of 49-3, possibly the biggest playoff loss suffered by the 49ers in the history of their franchise. This was the first of five consecutive NFC West titles for the 49ers.

References

  1. ↑ "1995 NFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  2. ↑ "1995 San Francisco 49ers starters and roster". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
  3. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN   0-7611-2480-2, p. 455
  4. 1 2 3 NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN   0-7611-2480-2, p. 142
  5. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN   0-7611-2480-2, p. 202
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