1990 San Francisco 49ers Season
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The 1990
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
season was the franchise's 41st season in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(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 The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
on ''
Monday Night Football ''Monday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''MNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that air on Monday nights. It originally ran on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from 1970 NFL season, 1970 t ...
'' 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 NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semifinal National Football League playoffs, playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional Ame ...
. Between 1988 and 1990, the 49ers set a league record with 18 consecutive road victories.
Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played for 20 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He won three Super Bowl titles with the San Francisco 49ers before two shorter ...
had a career year by becoming the fourth receiver in the history of American football to have at least 100 receptions in one season. The 49ers won their fifth consecutive
NFC West The National Football Conference – Western Division or NFC West is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It currently has four members: the Arizona Card ...
Division Title. Dating back to 1989, the 49ers completed a fifteen-game unbeaten streak in the regular season (5 victories in the last 5 games of 1989 and 10 victories in the first ten games of 1990). The 49ers lost in the final seconds of the
NFC Championship Game The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semifinal National Football League playoffs, playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional Ame ...
on a field goal by the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants, denying them a chance at a "three-peat" in the Super Bowl. Following this season, the 49ers left team stalwarts Roger Craig (RB) and
Ronnie Lott Ronald Mandel Lott (born May 8, 1959) is an American former professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons from 1981 to 1994. Lott played college football for the University of Southern California (USC), and ...
(FS) unprotected and let them go to the
Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). The Raiders played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural ...
via Plan B free agency. Quarterback
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Co ...
remained on the roster for the next two seasons, but never started another game for the 49ers. This would ultimately be the de facto final season for Montana as the 49ers starting quarterback, Montana would sit out all of 1991 and most of the 1992 season due to an elbow injury. Montana had the NFL's highest salary in 1990 at $4 million, and the 49ers had the league's highest team payroll ($26.8 million).


Offseason


NFL draft


Staff


Roster


Regular season


Schedule


Game summaries


Week 6: at Atlanta Falcons

* October 14, 1990 –
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Co ...
set a 49ers record by throwing for 476 yards in one game and throwing six touchdown passes. * October 14, 1990 – Jerry Rice set a 49ers record with 5 touchdown receptions and 30 points in one game.


Week 9: at Green Bay Packers

* November 4, 1990 – In a game versus the Green Bay Packers, Joe Montana threw for 411 yards and 3 touchdown passes.


Week 13: vs. New York Giants

It was the second highest rated Monday Night game ever at the time. The game had a 42% share and a 26.9 rating.


Week 14: at Cincinnati Bengals

* December 9, 1990 – The 49ers beat the Cincinnati Bengals in overtime. Mike Cofer kicked a 23-yard field goal to give the 49ers a 20–17 victory.


Standings


Postseason


Schedule


NFC Divisional Playoffs: vs. (5) Washington Redskins

The final was 28-10. 49ers coludn’t go to Super Bowl XXV losing to the New York Giants


NFC Championship: vs. (2) New York Giants

Just like the regular season game between the two teams won by the 49ers 7–3, the championship game was mostly a defensive battle. San Francisco running back Roger Craig's fumble with 2:36 left in the game led to Giants kicker Matt Bahr's 42-yard game-winning field goal as time expired. Bahr was New York's only scorer with 5 (of 6) field goals. Despite not scoring a TD in eight quarters against the 49ers, the Giants moved on to
Super Bowl XXV Super Bowl XXV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
with their victory. The 49ers ended their season but in 1991 they missed playoffs finishing 10-6


Awards and records

* Led NFC with 353 points scored * Charles Haley, Led NFC, Sacks (16) *
Charles Haley Charles Lewis Haley (born January 6, 1964) is an American former professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers (1986–1991, 1998–1999) and Dallas Cowboys (1992–1996). Haley began his caree ...
, NFC Pro Bowl *
Ronnie Lott Ronald Mandel Lott (born May 8, 1959) is an American former professional football player in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons from 1981 to 1994. Lott played college football for the University of Southern California (USC), and ...
, NFC Pro Bowl *
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Co ...
, AP NFL MVP * Joe Montana,
Associated Press Athlete of the Year The first Athlete of the Year award in the United States was initiated by the Associated Press (AP) in 1931. At a time when women's sports, women in sports were not given the same recognition as men, the AP offered a male and a female athlete of th ...
*
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Co ...
, NFC Pro Bowl Selection, ''Injured, did not play'' *
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Co ...
, Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year * Guy McIntyre, NFC Pro Bowl * Jerry Rice, NFL Leader, Receptions (100) * Jerry Rice, NFL Leader, Receiving Yards (1,502) * Jerry Rice, NFL Leader, Receiving Touchdowns (13) *
Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played for 20 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He won three Super Bowl titles with the San Francisco 49ers before two shorter ...
, NFC Pro Bowl


Milestones

* Jerry Rice, First 100 reception season NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, , p. 440


References


External links


1990 49ers on Pro Football Reference

49ers Schedule on jt-sw.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1990 San Francisco 49ers Season San Francisco 49ers seasons NFC West championship seasons
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