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Number Crunching: #16
by Chris Brophy
14/7/2009
Over the course of these articles some numbers involved careful consideration before a decision is made. Other numbers instantly bring the name of the chosen one into your head. Number 16 is one of those numbers because the player we’re about to wax lyrical about is considered one of the best ever. Read on to find out more about the Diner’s all-time number 16:
FD’s All Time #16: Joe Montana, Quarterback (San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs)
 The San Francisco 49ers can point to many players as key in their dominance of the 1980’s but no one was as important as Joe Montana, a player plucked by head coach Bill Walsh to come in and run his new west coast offense which would lead the way for how teams went about passing the football in the NFL in the future.
Joe Montana was born in New Eagle, Pennsylvania. The state is now known as a hot bed for quarterback talent but Montana may have been the greatest of them all. At high school his athletic ability was evident and as well as been a very good football player he also excelled at basketball and it was considered an option for him as the sport to concentrate on in college but football was his first love and he was offered a football scholarship with Notre Dame University that he accepted.
After playing little as a freshman new Fighting Irish coach Dan Devine was impressed enough in spring practices to see Montana’s potential and started to use him as a change up in the fourth quarter of games as a sophomore. Montana showed the ability to lead comeback wins and the future looked bright but injury robbed him of the season in 1976 (he would gain an extra year of eligibility) and he was back as third string the following season. Montana finally got his chance after injuries and inconsistent play by others allowed him to enter the fourth quarter of a game against Purdue and with 11 minutes remaining Montana helped turn a 24-14 deficit into a 31-24 victory. Montana kept the starting role for the rest of the season and Notre Dame won out. They faced #1 ranked Texas in the Cotton Bowl and eased to a 38-10 victory, earning the Irish the national title. As a senior, Montana led his team back to the Cotton Bowl and a final piece of magic before departing for the pros. Referred to as the Chicken Soup Game because Montana left the game ill and had fluids and some chicken soup to pep him up, Notre Dame won the game on a last second touchdown 35-34.
Montana went forth to the 1979 draft but many scouts were concerned about his average arm strength and chose to take his college achievements with a pinch of salt. He slipped to the 82nd pick (3rd round) of the draft where the 49ers grabbed him.
He saw barely any action as a rookie behind Steve DeBerg but midway through his second season in 1980 he got the chance and took it. Like at Notre Dame, he showed the ability to bring a team back from the jaws of defeat and his first pro come-from-behind victory was against the New Orleans Saints when the Niners trailed 35-7 at half time and 35-21 going into the 4th quarter. Montana helped tie the game up and then in overtime produced a drive that led to the winning field goal. It was the first of 31 comebacks Montana would produce in his career, 26 of them as a 49er.
In 1981 Montana entered the year as the unquestioned starter and he responded with over 3500 yards and 19TD’s to help the 49ers clinch the NFC West with an impressive 13-3 record. This was a complete turnaround from when Montana first joined the team and they went 2-14. In the NFC Championship Montana had the first of many famous moments when he drove his offense down the field as they trailed 21-27 to the Cowboys. Facing 3rd down from the Cowboys 6 yard line Montana dropped back then started to roll right holding the ball and looking before throwing a looping ball into the top right hand corner of the end zone where only receiver Dwight Clark could get it. Clark made the grab and the 49ers took the game 28-27. That play is forever known now as The Catch and is still today, considered Montana’s signature play by many.
 So the 49ers were in their first Super Bowl and faced the Cincinnati Bengals. Montana produced a controlled performance, going 14-22 for 157 yards and a TD pass as well as adding a TD run. He helped the 49ers build up a commanding 20-0 lead that helped hold off a late Bengals fight back. Montana was named MVP of the game and he was now in the upper echelon of NFL players having also made his first Pro Bowl.
Montana displayed the ability to go through his options quickly and make the correct decision. He was also mobile enough to move around in the pocket and scramble if necessary but only if all his other options were exhausted. He appeared to have this uncanny knack of seeming to be a frame ahead of everyone and always been able to produce in clutch situations. He wasn’t nicknamed Joe Cool for nothing.
Montana’s numbers continued to improve each season and after falling just short of another amazing comeback in the 1984 NFC Championship game to the Redskins he helped the 49ers dominant the league the following season as they became the first franchise to win 15 games in a season and they headed back to the Super Bowl. A new kid was in town by the name of Dan Marino who was breaking all kinds of passing records. Montana showed him who was boss though with another MVP performance, going 24 of 35 for 331 yards (a Super Bowl record at the time) and 3TD passes whilst adding another 59 yards rushing. The 49ers won the day easily 38-16 and Montana was a two time champion before he had turned 30.
Another excellent year followed in threw for over 26TD’s for the third straight season but they failed to defend their title when they lost in the wild card to the Giants. 1986 would see Montana find the first true test of his body when he suffered a severe back injury that required surgery. He was warned he may need to consider retirement and there were no guarantee’s the operation would be a complete success but he showed no ill-effects as he rebounded in 1987 to throw a career high 31TD passes in only 13 games whilst also helping Jerry Rice set the receiving TD’s record with 22 touchdown grabs. The Niners went an NFL best 13-2 but were blown away by the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional play-offs, a result that is considered one of the biggest shocks of the time.
Despite still performing at a high level there was competition in the shape of Steve Young who had been acquired from the Buccaneers prior to the ’87 season. In the 1988 season Young got three starts and his level of play was enough to start the rumour mill that Montana might be traded but struggling at 6-5 Montana regained the starting spot and pulled off a five game run of victories to finish the year 10-6 and NFC West Champions again. In the play-offs the 49ers took revenge on the Vikings for their defeat in the previous seasons play-offs as Montana hit Jerry Rice three times for TD’s. The following week the 49ers went to Soldier field to take on the Bears and again the Montana to Rice combination saw the team pull off an easy victory, 28-3.
 So, another Super Bowl was reached and again, it was the Bengals the 49ers faced again. It proved to be a tight game and with only 3:10 remaining the 49ers found they were pinned back at their own 8 yard line. Montana stepped into the huddle and could sense the tension. All of a sudden he points into the crowd and states look, there’s John Candy (a famous comic actor of the time for those that don’t know) and in the pressure cooker situation that all eleven men faced, they found their quarterback was still calm enough to do some star spotting. The tension was eased. Montana then proceeded to hit 8 of 9 passes including a key strike to Jerry Rice on 2nd and 20 that put them into Bengals territory. The final completion was to John Taylor with just 34 ticks left on the clock as he hit him on a post pattern across the middle going into the endzone and the most famous comeback of Montana’s career was complete. He had broken his own passing yardage record with 357 yards and 2TD passes yet Jerry Rice was named MVP of the game.
1989 would prove to be closer to the 1984 season as the 49ers breezed through the regular season with a 14-2 record. Montana completed over 70% of his passes and could often take the later parts of games off to allow Steve Young some playing time. In the post season they blew everyone away. The Vikings were made to pay again for 1987 as they were put to the sword 41-13 and then the Rams – who had been one of the teams to beat the 49ers in the regular season were showed how that was the exception rather than the rule with a 30-3 smacking.
In the Super Bowl for the 4th time, Montana faced off against another of the best quarterbacks of the era John Elway but Montana and his receivers tore apart the Denver secondary, especially on deep post patterns as they won convincing with a then Super Bowl record 55-10 victory. Montana’s five touchdown passes earned him his fourth World Championship and third MVP award.
Looking for the never achieved before three-peat, the Niners and Montana again produced the best record in the league in 1990 with a 14-2 mark but little did anyone suspect the end of Montana’s 49er career was around the corner. In the NFC Championship Game with the New York Giants, Montana received a monster blindside hit from Giants defensive end Leonard Marshall and was knocked out of the game as the 49ers lost and seen their three-peat dreams ended.
Montana then encountered elbow and back problems in the off-season and was unable to play in 1991. Complications meant he also missed most of 1992 and by the time he was ready to play again Steve Young had done enough to convince the franchise he was the future meaning the doubts about Montana’s injury history and age were going to lead to a parting of the ways . Montana made one final appearance as a 49er in the final regular season game of the season against the Lions and he threw two TD passes in a winning effort.
 With Young the firm starter, Montana was looking for a chance to start elsewhere again and the 49ers granted him his wish and he was traded to the Chiefs. Legendary Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson offered to allow Montana to wear his retired #16 jersey but Montana elected to wear #19 instead, as he had done in little league as a child.
Whilst he wasn’t quite himself in that he struggled with little niggles that seen him miss seven games over his two years as a Chief, he still had the ability to pull off a comeback and make a team successful. He posted a 17-8 record as the Chiefs starting QB and five times produced comeback victories. In his first season he led the team to the AFC Championship game but he got injured in the game and the Chiefs lost to the Bills. The following season he helped the Chiefs back to post season again but this time they went out in the first round to the Dolphins.
At 38 years old Montana had decided enough was enough and announced his retirement. He held the highest passer rating of all-time when he hung up his cleats of 92.3 (since passed), had thrown for over 40000 yards and 273 TD’s. He also added another 20 TD’s rushing. He had won 100 games faster than any other QB before him (since passed by Tom Brady) and in post season play no one has thrown for more yards (5772) and TD’s (45). In four Super Bowls, Montana twice set records for passing yardage and threw 11TD’s without ever throwing an interception. He was an eight-time Pro Bowler, two-time league MVP and is the only man to have won three Super Bowl MVP awards.
Regardless of where you stand in the best ever quarterback debate – you can never hold that discussion without considering the career and achievements of our all-time #16, Joe Montana.
Honourable Mentions:
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Len Dawson, Quarterback (Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs)
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Frank Gifford, Halfback/Flanker (New York Giants)
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George Blanda, Quarterback/Kicker (Bears, Colts, Oilers, Raiders)
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Jim Plunkett, Quarterback (New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland/LA Raiders)
 As previous mentioned, the Chiefs had already had a great #16 of their own and no one has worn that number since quarterback Len Dawson retired. Dawson had a tricky time making it in the league at first, failing to stick with the Steelers and Browns but he found a home with the Dallas Texans who then became the Kansas City Chiefs. In his time with the Chiefs he was a three time AFL Champion and played in two Super Bowls, losing in the first ever game to the Packers but winning and been named MVP in Super Bowl IV when the Chiefs beat the Vikings.
Frank Gifford is more well known to a lot of football fans as one of the commentators for many a year on Monday Night Football but in his day he was one of the finest football players around. Playing for the Giants between 1952 and 1964 Gifford was a dual threat that was as comfortable running the ball out of the backfield as he was lining up out wide and catching passes. A member of the Giants 1956 Championship team, he made 8 Pro Bowls and was named All-Pro 6 times.
George Blanda is famous for being the oldest active player ever in the NFL. He was still going strong in his 48th year but his 26 NFL seasons (also a record) are filled with more than just longevity. As a Quarterback, he struggled at times in his early years and his kicking was what kept him in the league. He actually retired in 1958 because Bears coach George Halas only used him as a kicker but he returned in 1960 to join the new AFL and the Houston Oilers. He had great success with the Oilers, winning two AFL Championships and been one of the league’s leading passers. After the 1966 season the Oilers released the aging veteran but the Raiders gave him a chance as a kicker and back-up QB and he’d have revenge over the Oilers, helping beat them in the 1967 AFL Championship. He played on, mainly as a kicker, until 1975 when the Raiders released him and he finally called it a day.
Another Raiders quarterback who was released and considered to not have anything left to offer was former Heisman Trophy winner and overall #1 pick in the 1971 draft Jim Plunkett. When taken with the overall number one pick by the Patriots Plunkett did flash ability but on a poor team he took a battering and his confidence began to fade. Eventually he was dealt to the 49ers but could not get his act together so was released. The Raiders gave him a final chance and he served as a back-up for a couple of years before starter Dan Pastorini broke his leg in the 1980 season and Plunkett was asked to take over. He responded by leading the Raiders to nine wins in the final eleven games and qualifying for the post season as a wild card. He then helped the Raiders become the first ever wild card team to win a Super Bowl (VX) and he was named the game’s MVP in the victory over the Eagles. He would win another Super Bowl three years later against the Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII.
Learn More about past NFL greats in our History Archive
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