Top 50 San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers history goes all the way back to 1946, where they were a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and were the first professional team in the Bay Area. They joined the NFL when the two leagues merged, but it was not until the 1980s where they had any significant success.
Legends like Joe Montana, Steve Young, and Jerry Rice arrived, and they won three Super Bowls in the 80s (XVI, XIX & XXIII) and two in the 90s (XXIV & XXIX). With an overall Super Bowl record of 5-3, the 49ers are one of the most successful teams in league history and one of the most popular.
Note: Football lists are based on an amalgamation of tenure, traditional statistics, advanced statistics, playoff statistics, and post-season accolades.
This list is active up until the end of the 2023 Season.
By today’s standards, the way Y.A. Tittle arrived to the San Francisco 49ers was unique. The LSU Quarterback was the Sixth Overall Pick in 1948 when the Detroit Lions took him, but he opted to sign with the Baltimore Colts of the AAFC instead. Tittle did well, and the Colts were one of the teams that merged with the NFL when the…
NaVorro Bowman was a star at Penn State, translating into a Third Round Draft Selection by the San Francisco 49ers.
After seven years with the Cincinnati Bengals, Justin Smith signed with the San Francisco 49ers, where he played another seven years. It is very clear that the second half with the Niners was the far more successful portion.
A First Round Pick from Stanford in 1969, Gene Washington was part of the turnaround for the San Francisco 49ers from league doormats to respectability. In his first four seasons in the National Football League, Washington would go to the Pro Bowl, with three of those years seeing him earn First Team All-Pro accolades.
Harris Barton was a highly sought-after player in the 1987 Draft after the Offensive Lineman had a very good college career with North Carolina. San Francisco chose him with the 22ndOverall Pick, and Barton would be the starting Right Tackle, earning All-Rookie accolades.
From Samoa, Jesse Sapolu played his college ball at Hawaii and was a late round (11th) pick by the San Francisco 49ers in 1983.
In his first two seasons in the National Football League, the Fifth Round Pick from Iowa started eight Games at Left Corner Back and five at Strong Safety. Hanks did well enough, but he was moved to Free Safety in 1993, and this was the position where he would flourish.
The legend of Dwight Clark was cemented with one Reception, simply named "The Catch." But fans of the San Francisco 49ers know that Clark was more than that one moment.
Fred Warmer rose his 2018 draft stock with an excellent Senior Bowl and combine, which landed him a Third Round Selection. The 49ers were impressed with his work and he became a starter at Middle Linebacker. Warner quickly proved his worth recording 124 Combined Tackles as a rookie and 118 as a sophomore, winning the NFC November Defensive Player of…
As of this writing, it is safe to say that George Kittle is part of the next generation of Tight Ends, and had it not been for Travis Kelce, would be far more celebrated than he is now. That seemed strange to type, as Kittle has been great since San Francisco drafted him in the Fifth Round of the 2017…
Michael Carter had an incredible 1984. Drafted by the San Francisco 49ers after his college career at SMU concluded, Carter competed and won the Silver Medal in the shotput at the 1984 Olympics, and he was a backup Nose Tackle on a Niners team that won Super Bowl XIX. This made Carter the first man to win an Olympic Medal and a…
Keith Fahnhorst stood at 6’ 6” and tipped the scales at 275 pounds, so he brought a lot of size to the San Francisco 49ers who drafted him in the Second Round of the 1974 Draft.
Guy McIntyre was a Third Round Pick in 1984 from the University of Georgia, but he was not used as a starter in his first four seasons, but rather a Special Teams and role player.
Charlie Krueger was a two-time All-American at Texas A&M, which translated to a First Round Draft Selection (Eighth Overall) by the San Francisco 49ers, which would be the only team he ever played professionally for.
Dana Stubblefield made an impact after being taken 28thOverall, in 1993, the former Kansas Jayhawk won the Defensive Rookie of the Year with a 10.5 Sack season.
The first player to accumulate five Super Bowl Rings was Charles Haley, who collected the first two of those finger jewelry as a San Francisco 49er.
Forrest Blue was a First Round Pick from Auburn in 1968, and after a rookie year as a backup and Special Teams player, he would prove worthy of being taken so high.
From Utah State, Len Rohde played his entire career with the San Francisco 49ers, where he played from 1960 to 1974.
Bruce Bosley was a Second Round Pick from West Virginia, and in his rookie year (1956), he was playing on the defensive side of the ball at Left Defensive End. That would be short-lived as he only played six Games in 1957, but he rebounded in 1958, now playing at Left Guard.