The 1971 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 22nd season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 26th overall. The 49ers appeared in the NFC Championship Game for the second consecutive year. The team moved into a new home, eleven-year-old Candlestick Park, which they shared with the baseball Giants.
1971 San Francisco 49ers season | |
---|---|
Owner | Josephine Morabito Jane Morabito |
General manager | Louis Spadia |
Head coach | Dick Nolan |
Home field | Candlestick Park |
Results | |
Record | 9–5 |
Division place | 1st NFC West |
Playoff finish | Won Divisional Playoffs (vs. Redskins) 24–20 Lost NFC Championship (at Cowboys) 3–14 |
Pro Bowlers | C Forrest Blue TE Ted Kwalick WR Gene Washington RB Vic Washington OLB Dave Wilcox CB Jimmy Johnson CB Bruce Taylor |
After winning two of their first three games on the road, the 49ers lost their first game at Candlestick Park to the Los Angeles Rams 20–13. The 49ers rebounded and successfully defended their NFC West title by posting a 9–5 record. For a second year in a row, the 49ers’ season ended in disappointment with a 14–3 loss in the NFC Championship Game to the Dallas Cowboys, this time on the road.
Offseason
edit1971 San Francisco 49ers draft | |||||
Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 23 | Tim Anderson | DB | Ohio State | Signed with Toronto Argonauts (CFL) |
2 | 37 | Ernie Janet | G | Washington | |
2 | 49 | Joe Orduna | RB | Nebraska | |
3 | 55 | Sam Dickerson | WR | USC | |
3 | 75 | Willie Parker | C | North Texas State | |
4 | 101 | Tony Harris | DB | Toledo | |
5 | 114 | Dean Shaternick | T | Kansas State | |
5 | 122 | George Wells | LB | New Mexico State | Signed with Toronto Argonauts (CFL) |
5 | 127 | Marty Huff | LB | Michigan | Made roster in 1972 |
6 | 153 | Al Bresler | WR | Auburn | |
7 | 179 | John Watson | G | Oklahoma | |
8 | 205 | Jim McCann | P | Arizona State | |
9 | 231 | Therman Couch | LB | Iowa State | |
10 | 236 | Ron Cardo | RB | Wisconsin–Oshkosh | |
10 | 257 | Ernie Jennings | WR | Air Force | |
11 | 283 | Joe Reed | QB | Mississippi State | Made roster in 1972 |
12 | 309 | Jim Bunch | DT | Wisconsin–Platteville | |
13 | 335 | John Bullock | RB | Purdue | |
14 | 361 | Bill Dunstan | DT | Utah State | |
15 | 387 | John Lennon | T | Colgate | |
16 | 414 | Dave Pursell | DT | Kentucky | |
17 | 438 | Leroy Charlton | DB | Florida A&M | |
Made roster |
- Source:[1]
Personnel
editStaff / Coaches
edit
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
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Roster
editQuarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
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Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
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Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
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Practice squad
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Preseason
editWeek | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | August 8 | Cleveland Browns | W 38–24 | 1–0 | Candlestick Park | 40,000 |
2 | August 13 | at Miami Dolphins | T 17–17 | 1–0–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 57,008 |
3 | August 22 | San Diego Chargers | W 28–17 | 2–0–1 | Candlestick Park | 40,000 |
4 | August 28 | vs. Denver Broncos | W 33–17 | 3–0–1 | Joe Albi Stadium | 33,184 |
5 | September 4 | at Oakland Raiders | L 28–34 | 3–1–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 53,696 |
6 | September 9 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 20–23 | 3–2–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 55,607 |
Regular season
editSchedule
editWeek | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 19 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 17–20 | 0–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 56,990 | |
2 | September 26 | at New Orleans Saints | W 38–20 | 1–1 | Tulane Stadium | 81,595 | |
3 | October 3 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 31–3 | 2–1 | Veterans Stadium | 65,358 | |
4 | October 10 | Los Angeles Rams | L 13–20 | 2–2 | Candlestick Park | 44,000 | |
5 | October 17 | Chicago Bears | W 13–0 | 3–2 | Candlestick Park | 44,000 | |
6 | October 24 | at St. Louis Cardinals | W 26–14 | 4–2 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 50,419 | |
7 | October 31 | New England Patriots | W 27–10 | 5–2 | Candlestick Park | 45,092 | |
8 | November 7 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 13–9 | 6–2 | Metropolitan Stadium | 49,784 | |
9 | November 14 | New Orleans Saints | L 20–26 | 6–3 | Candlestick Park | 45,138 | |
10 | November 21 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 6–17 | 6–4 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 80,050 | |
11 | November 28 | at New York Jets | W 24–21 | 7–4 | Shea Stadium | 63,936 | |
12 | December 6 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 17–26 | 7–5 | Candlestick Park | 45,306 | |
13 | December 12 | Atlanta Falcons | W 24–3 | 8–5 | Candlestick Park | 44,582 | |
14 | December 19 | Detroit Lions | W 31–27 | 9–5 | Candlestick Park | 45,580 | |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |
Standings
editNFC West | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
San Francisco 49ers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 2–4 | 7–4 | 300 | 216 | W2 |
Los Angeles Rams | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 4–1–1 | 7–3–1 | 313 | 260 | W1 |
Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 3–2–1 | 4–6–1 | 274 | 277 | W1 |
New Orleans Saints | 4 | 8 | 2 | .333 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 266 | 347 | L3 |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
Postseason
editSchedule
editRound | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Divisional | December 26 | Washington Redskins | W 24–20 | 1–0 | Candlestick Park | 45,327 |
NFC Championship | January 2, 1972 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 3–14 | 1–1 | Texas Stadium | 63,409 |
Game summaries
editNFC Championship: vs. Dallas Cowboys
editQuarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
49ers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Cowboys | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
- Date: January 2, 1972
- Game time: 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. CST
- Game attendance: 63,409
- Referee: Tommy Bell
- TV announcers (CBS): Jack Buck and Pat Summerall
Scoring summary | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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References
edit- ^ "1971 San Francisco 49ers Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 20, 2022.
- ^ "1971 San Francisco 49ers (NFL)". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
External links
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