Game 194. San Francisco at New Orleans
Reply
Tag Archives: San Francisco 49ers
1997 Game 249 – NFC Championship – San Francisco at Green Bay
Longwell boots the Packers to the Super Bowl!
What a game! In a game of twists and turns and ups and downs, the Green Bay Packers’ rookie kicker Ryan Longwell booted a 40-yard walk-off field goal to send the Green Bay Packers to Super Bowl XXXII with a win over the San Francisco 49ers, 26-23, in front of a hysterical Lambeau Field crowd.
Despite the drama of the Ice Bowl, this game could very well go down as the greatest game in Lambeau Field history. Brett Favre vs. Steve Young…two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks and they didn’t disappoint.
The euphoric Packer fans nearly had their hearts broken as time wound down in the 4th quarter. With the game tied at 23, the 49ers were on a drive that seemed as if they were going to win this classic duo on the Frozen Tundra. He drove the ball down the field with completions to Terry Kirby, Terrell Owens and a big-time catch by Iheanyi Uwaezuoke that put the 49ers on the Packers 25-yard line with 2:15 to go. That’s where it all fell apart for the 49ers.
49er head coach Steve Mariucci thought he had 49ers in field goal range. He ran William Floyd, who was stuffed at the line of scrimmage by the Packer front. Then Garrison Hearst tried outside but was stuffed for a 2-yard loss. At 3rd and 12, many would have thought that Mariucci would just run the ball and set up a field goal for kicker Gary Anderson to win the game. Instead, Mariucci gambled. He wanted to give the 49er kicker a better opportunity than a 44-yarder, so he called a pass play. What happened? The greatest defensive end in NFL history is what happened! Reggie White sacked Steve Young at the Packer 36-yard line. Instead of a 44-yarder, Anderson now had to attempt a 53-yarder.
With the wind blowing across the Frozen Tundra, Anderson didn’t get a chance to boot the 49ers to the Super Bowl. On the snap, the holder fumbled the football! There was a chaotic scramble for the football and DT Santana Dotson came up with the football for his third fumble recovery of the game! The Packers took over at their 43-yard line to a ruckus Lambeau Field crowd!
Favre didn’t waste this opportunity. He had a minute to go with no time outs. On his first play, he hit Bill Schroeder, who went out of bounds for a six-yard gain. On the next play, Favre rifled a shot to Antonio Freeman for 15 yards to the 49er 36-yard line. The Packers hurried up and Favre spiked the football to stop the clock. On second down, Favre dropped back and connected with his roommate and best friend TE Mark Chmura to the 49er 23-yard line and a 13-yard gain. Favre waited for the clock to wind down and then he spiked the football with just 4 seconds remaining.
With all of Packer Nation holding its collective breath, Longwell sent the ball through the uprights and the Packers are on their way to Super Bowl XXXII to defend their Super Bowl Championship.
In the battle of QBs, Favre finished the game 21 of 37 for 295 yards with 2 TDs and 2 INTs. Young finished 22 of 32 for 254 yards and a TD.
The Packers will now await the AFC Championship game to find out their opponent for Super Bowl 32. Denver travels to Kansas City to have a showdown in Arrowhead Stadium.
1997 Game 246 – NFC Divisional – Detroit at San Francisco
Niners Defense denied Sanders at the goal line to advance!
With the Divisional semi-final game between the Detroit Lions and the San Francisco 49ers hanging in the balance, Lion coach Bobby Ross put the ball in the hands of the league MVP, Barry Sanders, who broke the single-season rushing record this year and the single-game playoff rushing record last week. The Lions had a first-and-goal at the 49ers eight-yard line with just seconds to play in the 4th quarter and the 49ers leading 16-9.
With the Candlestick Park fans screaming for the Niners to tighten up, Sanders rushed for five yards on first down to get to the Niners 3-yard line. On second down, Sanders went off tackle and picked up two more putting the ball just feet from tying the score and sending the game into OT. On third down, Sanders tried outside again and once again the Niners’ defense rose to the occasion and stuffed the league’s MVP.
On fourth down, Ross gave the ball to Sanders again, but this time he did so between the tackles. There appeared to be a crease in the Niners defense and Sanders accelerated to the hole. Just as he seemed he was going to score, the hole was slammed shut by Niner All-Pro defensive tackles Dana Stubblefield and Bryant Young! Sanders tried to bounce outside but ran smack into Tim McDonald and Ken Norton, Jr. They took him down and the 49ers will advance to the NFC Championship game!
(APBA – I actually rolled a 66 on that 4th down play! I thought Sanders scored; HOWEVER, a 66 on Sanders’ card is a K. When I rerolled in the K-Column , I rolled a 55. Again, I said touchdown! Not so fast! In the K-column in Sanders’ card is a 3. A 3 on the inside run boards at the goal line in C index and a G alignment is a 0!!!!! They way I see it in my minds’ eye is that Sanders tried to go up the middle but was shut down so he tried to bounce it outside and was stopped. What a way to end the game! Wow! Had my heart pumping! This is what makes APBA so great! Defensive stand by the Niners to win the game! I’ve probably rolled 100 playoff games in my personal replay history, but no game has ended like this! I will always remember this one.)
This was a matchup of the league’s best defense (49ers) versus the league’s best offense (Lions). The Niners held the potent Lion offense to 360 yards of total offense, most of it coming on the final two drives, and three field goals!
Sanders finished with 105 yards on the day on 22 carries. QB Scott Mitchell was shut down most of the game until the final two drives started to heat up and finished 16 of 34 for 223 yards. WR Johnny Morton had ten catches for 125 yards.
Besides the goal line stand, the biggest play of the game came not from Steve Young or Terrell Owens or JJ Stokes…but from… Chuck Levy! Early in the 4th quarter with the Niners leading 9-6, Levy caught a John Jett punt at the ten-yard line. He exploded up the middle and then found his way to the boundary. He had only Jett to beat and he juked him! Levy went 90 yards for the game’s only and deciding touchdown of the game on a punt return!
QB Steve Young finished 19 of 30 passing for 217 yards. He moved the ball, but the 49ers could not get in the end zone. They had to settle for three Gary Anderson field goals.
The Niners were without running back Garrison Hearst again because of injury. As a result, the Niners could only rush for 29 yards on 19 carries in the game.
Now the Niners must wait until Sunday to find out who and where they will play. If Green Bay wins tomorrow, the Niners will play the Pack at Lambeau in the championship game. However, if the Buccaneers win tomorrow, the 49ers will host the NFC Championship game at 3 Com Park at Candlestick!
Game 180. San Francisco at San Diego
1997 Game 239 (Week 17) San Francisco at Seattle
Seahawks beat Niners to take last playoff spot!
The Seattle Seahawks needed to defeat the San Francisco 49ers Sunday Night to earn a spot in the AFC playoffs and they did it with a 17-6 victory in the Kingdome.
The New York Jets opened the door earlier in the day when they lost to the Detroit Lions, so the Seahawks had a chance to win and get in. With the win, the Seahawks earned the #6 seed in the AFC playoffs and will travel to Cincinnati.
Coming into the game, the 49ers defense allowed only 82 yards on the ground on average. On Sunday, the Seahawks pounded the 49ers with 177 yards rushing, which is the most the 49ers gave up all season. Chris Warren rushed for 99 yards, while Lamar Smith rushed for 49 yards on six carries and had a back-breaking 26-yard touchdown run in the 3rd quarter to give the Seahawks a 14-3 lead.
For the 49ers, they still have the #2 seed in the NFC, despite the loss. They finished with the same record as the Washington Redskins, 11-5, but earned the tie breaker by having a better record against common opponents. They will have a bye in the Wildcard round of the playoffs.
The 49ers have been without running back Garrison Hearst the past three weeks and the 49ers were 1-2. Hearst led the 49ers in rushing with 1,067 yards and 10 TDs. According to reports, the 49ers could get Hearst back if they make it to the conference championship game.
Game 168. Minnesota at San Francisco
1997 Game 225 (Week 16) Denver at San Francisco
49ers clinch the West with win on Monday Night
Two NFL superheavyweights collided Monday Night at 3 Comm Park as the San Francisco 49ers hosted the Denver Broncos. The 49ers clinched the #2 seed in the NFC and the NFC West Championship with a 23-10 victory.
The 49ers’ defense, which has been the NFL’s best all season, showed up again. They shut down the high-powered Broncos offense holding them to 223 total yards and 10 points. Bronco RB Terrell Davis was the AFC’s leading rusher, but he was held to just 60 yards on 17 carries. Bronco QB John Elway threw for just 144 yards, was sacked three times, and was intercepted once.
As for the Niners’ offense, they didn’t have a great day, but did just enough to hold off the Broncos. Steve Young threw for 167 yards on 18 of 28 passing with a TD and an INT. Without starting running back Garrison Hearst, the Niners were paced on the ground by Terry Kirby, who rushed for 70 yards and a touchdown.
Next week, the 49ers (11-4) will end their season on Sunday Night Football as they travel to Seattle. As for the Broncos, they secured the fourth seed in the AFC playoffs and will host a first round Wildcard game. They will end their season at home against San Diego.
