San Francisco NFL Draft Weekend: Living in the Past with Steve Young

(Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

The 49er faithful couldn’t give two shits about numbers.  All we cared about were Super Bowl victories.

Joe Cool had won four championships as our starting quarterback.  And despite his statistical decorations, Steve Young hadn’t won any.  The hated Dallas Cowboys had laid claim to what was rightfully his in both 92’ and 93’.

Then the 1994 season came.

And it was good.

To say Steve had an awesome year would be quite an understatement.  Brace yourself as you look at these numbers:

70.3% completion percentage
3969 yards
35 passing touchdowns; 7 rushing touchdowns
10 interceptions
112.8 QB rating

And this, my friends, was before the rule changes where defensive backs could no longer touch receivers.

Going into the playoffs though, it was more of the same amongst the rabble of the Bay Area fans.

“The guy’s amazing—but can he win when it counts?”

“He’s still got a long way to go before we can mention him in the same breathe as you-know-you.  Let’s see what happens in the playoffs.”

This time though, Steve wasn’t messing around.  Flanked by Jerry Rice and Ricky Watters, Young easily marched the Nines into the Super Bowl to face off against Junior Seau and the San Diego Chargers.

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