His tenacity on the field, combined with excellent leadership and work ethic earned him the respect of teammates, coaches and fans alike. Not bad, considering tackles do not typically receive such awards. One of the more interesting characters on this list of all-time greats is Bill Romanowski. With Lott and the 49ers rolling, San Francisco would work its way to its first Super Bowl, resulting in one of the greatest years in franchise history.

The game itself has changed. He's a gutty, gambling, cocky type. With his best days behind him, though, the 49ers would part ways with him in 2003 and he retired a year later. Despite being on bad teams for the first few years of his career, Gore would press on and continue to deliver a top-option out of the backfield. One of the good things that came out of the 2004 49ers draft class was punter Andy Lee. San Francisco 49ers news from FanSided Daily, 49ers’ 2019 ‘Who Is?’ series: Wide receiver Deebo Samuel, Revisiting the 49ers’ 2016 NFL Draft class three seasons later, 1d - 5 players SF 49ers should purge off other teams' practice squads, 1d - SF 49ers won Super Bowl XVI thanks to the late Fred Dean, 1d - SF 49ers 2020 season hangs in balance with upcoming schedule, 2d - SF 49ers: 5 trade targets for John Lynch before 2020 deadline, 2d - 3 reasons SF 49ers lost Week 5 matchup with Dolphins, 49ers' 2019 'Who Is?' Here is another selection that is hard to argue. In 1991, Ronnie Lott was on his way out and rookie safety Merton Hanks was on his way in.

Hanks did a great job in emerging out of the shadow of Lott. Hardman is the franchise leader in sacks, totaling 120 during his career with the 49ers that spanned from 1970 through 1979. Follow him @PeterMcShots on Twitter. While Harbaugh will forever be known as the first 49ers head coach to lose a Super Bowl, one cannot discredit the work he put in to building one of the more dominant NFL teams in recent years. In his mind, that's a lofty deal. CANTON, OH - AUGUST 06: Edward DeBartolo, Jr. (3rd R), former San Francisco 49ers Owner, is seen with his bronze bust alongside former San Francisco 49ers, Charles Haley (L), Steve Young (2nd L), Ronnie Lott (3rd L), Jerry Rice (2nd R) and Joe Montana (R) during the NFL Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on August 6, 2016 in Canton, Ohio. Offensive Coordinator: Jim Harbaugh (2011 - present), Defensive Coordinator: George Seifert (1989 - 1996). Adding to Johnson's accolades is the fact that he had a long career in San Francisco, playing with the 49ers from 1961 until 1976, when he was 38 years old. Yet Rice's legacy expands beyond the game itself. A 1990 article written by Paul Zimmerman for Sports Illustrated sums this up perfectly. After all, how often does a player make the Pro Bowl in each of his first six years in the NFL? During his first year with the 49ers, Norton totaled 75 tackles and 11 assists, helping a dynamic and dominant 49er defense win their fifth Super Bowl at year's end. Rathman also hauled in 294 passes for 2,490 yards during the same span. This is another no-brainer. Wide Receivers: Jerry Rice (1985 - 2000) & Terrell Owens (1996 - 2003). I remember playing video games in the early '90s on Nintendo and Super Nintendo (yes I am dating myself here) and how I loved playing those football games where you could choose your favorite team.

Fans and experts know his statistics. The following is the San Francisco 49ers all-time …

During his four-plus seasons with San Francisco, cornerback Dana McLemore posted an impressive 1,531 return yards and four touchdowns on 142 punt returns. As one of the more likeable members of the 49ers, and playing a position that rarely gets a lot of credit, Sapolu earned the respect of his teammates and their fans over the course of a 13-year career spent entirely with the 49ers. Additionally, he converted 129 of 149 field-goal attempts for an 86.6 completion percentage. The Bay Area native and graduate of Santa Clara University went on to have a stellar career for the 49ers, amassing 417 receptions for 5,195 yards and 33 touchdowns. They were always dream teams to say the least. In all, Hardman played 139 games with the 49ers before moving on to the Oakland Raiders for the last two seasons of his career. Selected by San Francisco in the first round of the 1970 draft, the 49ers got a pass-rushing gem who was known for putting pressure on the opposition's quarterback. Fortunately, Sapolu also has the accolades to back up the selection. Okay, you might say most of his years were spent before the modern era, before eligibility on this list counts. Perhaps those efforts are the direct reason behind the success he enjoyed as head coach. Granted, Seifert inherited a team already laden with talent, yet he did not fail to keep that talent working in the right direction. Like Walsh, another former Stanford head coach has also made a significant impact on the 49ers franchise: Jim Harbaugh. Over the course of his ten-year career with the 49ers, Wright had only 18 interceptions. Powered by Minute Media © 2020 All Rights Reserved. Dwaine Board - Defensive End (1979 - 1988), Cleveland Elam - Defensive Tackle (1975 - 1978), Jeff Stover - Defensive Tackle (1982 - 1988), Outside Linebackers: Charles Haley (1986 - 1991, 1998 - 1999) & Bill Romanowski (1988 - 1993), Inside Linebackers: Ken Norton Jr. (1994 - 2000) & Patrick Willis (2007 - present). What makes Montana's case intriguing, though, is the fact that he was not an overly-touted prospect coming out of college during the 1979 NFL Draft.

Exceptional impacts and performance are always noteworthy and San Francisco is fortunate enough to have a deep pool of players who could contend for an all-time team. The first person on this selection should be the first player selected on any all-time NFL team.

During that span, Young amassed 512 tackles, 106 assists and 89.5 sacks.

Yet Haley's first tenure with the 49ers created problems with head coach George Seifert, as well as quarterback Steve Young. Dating back to the team’s inception in 1946, the 49ers brand has been associated with some great names and plenty of Hall of Fame athletes.

Aldon Smith - Outside Linebacker (2011 - present), Dave Wilcox - Outside Linebacker (1964 - 1974), Jack Reynolds - Inside Linebacker (1981 - 1984), Keena Turner - Inside Linebacker (1980 - 1990), Cornerbacks: Jimmy Johnson (1961 - 1976) and Eric Wright (1981 - 1990).