September 1, 2016: Colin Kaepernick Takes a Knee

September 1, 2016, 10 years ago: The San Francisco 49ers beat the San Diego Chargers, 31-21 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, in their last preseason game. Like any preseason game, the result doesn't matter. This time, it mattered less than ever.

Instead of standing while the National Anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner," was played before the game, 49er quarterback Colin Kaepernick got down on one knee for the duration of the song.

He did this in protest of the many recent cases of police brutality. This earned him a bit of praise, and also a lot of nasty blowback from racists, who said he was "disgracing the Anthem" and "disgracing the American flag."

These people were not idiots, though many of the people they pander to are: They were liars. His gesture didn't have a damned thing to do with the flag. It had to do with white cops murdering unarmed black suspects who have been convicted of nothing, and knowing they will get away with it, because the men in power let them get away with it.

But they managed to redefine his protest, so that people didn't get the message that police brutality was a problem.

As a result, nothing changed. That was my only problem with the gesture: It didn't work. But he kept on doing it long after it became obvious that racist cops were still going to beat, and sometimes even murder, unarmed black people.

The people who attacked Kaepernick for his protest were not only disrespecting the 1st Amendment, one of the biggest things for which the flag stands. If they didn't respect his right, then the flag they claimed to love so much means nothing. By attacking Kaepernick for his protest, they were endorsing the cold-blooded murder of unarmed black people by white cops.

See? That's an extreme way to put it, but such a thing works both ways. If Kap is "un-American," then those people were racist. Or, they could have simply admitted that Kap has a point, and try to take that point away from him, by taking steps to solve the problem. That way, everybody would have won. Except the actual racists.

The 49ers went on to have a horrible season, going 2-14. Statistically, Kaepernick wasn't much below what he had previously done, including taking the 49ers to Super Bowl XLVII in the 2012 season. In 2016, he completed 59.2 percent of his passes, for 2,241 yards, 16 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions. He also rushed for 468 yards. The position of quarterback was not the 49ers' problem.

Their defense was the problem: Following a 28-0 win over the Los Angeles Rams in their regular-season opener, they allowed the 6-10 Carolina Panthers to score 46, the 7-9 Buffalo Bills to score 45, the 7-9 New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta Falcons to each score 41, the Seattle Seahawks to score 37, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to score 34, the Arizona Cardinals to score 33, the Miami Dolphins to score 31, and the New England Patriots to score 30.

Their only other win came near the end of the season, also over the 4-12 Rams, on Christmas Eve. Of their 14 losses, only 5 were within 7 points, so even if they'd won all of those, they still would have been 7-9 and missed the Playoffs. Head coach Chip Kelly and general manager Trent Baalke were both fired.

On New Year's Day, January 1, 2017, with Donald Trump, who called Kapernick "that son of a bitch" in a public speech, having ridden a wave of bigotry -- and Russian meddling -- to become President-elect, the 49ers lost their season finale to the Seahawks, 25-23. Kaepernick completed 17 out of 22 passes, for 215 yards, throwing a touchdown pass, and no interceptions. He was 29 years old, hardly old for a quarterback.

He has never thrown another professional pass, in any league on Earth. You see, in the NFL, you can do anything you want, as long as you don't embarrass your team or the League. Once you do that, they are done with you. And Kaepernick had embarrassed the National Football League. Other leagues, such as the Canadian Football League, didn't want him to do the same to theirs, so they didn't sign him, either.

He wasn't officially banned. He was -- pardon the choice of word, which originally had nothing to do with race -- blackballed. As Mike Lupica insinuated in his column in the New York Daily News, every single team organization in the NFL, some of whom desperately needed improvement at the position of quarterback, was sending a message: "We would rather go 0-16 for what would have been the rest of Colin Kapernick's career than have him play for our team."

A corollary to that message could have been, "We would rather have bigots pay for tickets, parking, food, souvenirs, etc. than take the money of Kaepernick's supporters." But even that didn't really enter into it. Every bigot is an asshole, but not every asshole is a bigot. For the team owners, this wasn't about money. If there is one thing that a rich person values more than money, it is control.

And the NFL team owners could not control Colin Kaepernick. So they acted as though he didn't even exist. They could not control him, so they denied him.

On February 2, 2020, with Jimmy Garoppolo as quarterback, the 49ers played in Super Bowl LIV, losing to the Kansas City Chiefs, 31-20. On January 20, 2023, the 49ers were in the NFC Championship Game, playing the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. In the 2022 season opener, Trey Lance was their starting quarterback, but he got hurt on September 18. From then until December 4, it was Garoppolo, but he was injured. From then onward, it was Brock Purdy, but he was injured early in that Championship Game. They had signed a previous quarterback, Josh Johnson, as an emergency backup after the December 4 game, and he stepped in for the NFC Championship, but left the game with a concussion in the 3rd quarter. Purdy was pressed back in for emergency duty, and threw 4 passes, completing them all, but for a total of 23 yards. The Niners lost, 31-7.

Colin Kaepernick was 35 years old. He should still have been the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, a team that has won 5 Super Bowls. If he had been, they might have won a 6th Super Bowl, and even a 7th.

On November 3, 2026, barring a medical calamity, he will turn 39. To put that in perspective: Aaron Rodgers, now with the Pittsburgh Steelers, is 42; Joe Flacco, now with the Cincinnati Bengals, is 41; and the aforementioned Josh Johnson, also now with the Bengals, is 40. Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams and Kirk Cousins of the Las Vegas Raiders are both expected to start for their teams this season, at 38.

If Kaepernick wanted to make a comeback now, and were permitted to do so, he would be very rusty, but he wouldn't be the oldest quarterback in the NFL.

January 29, 1995: Steve Young Proves His Point

January 29, 1995, 30 years ago: Super Bowl XXIX is played at Joe Robbie Stadium (now named Hard Rock Stadium) in suburban Miami Gardens, Florida, capping the NFL's 75th Season celebrations. The San Francisco 49ers, appropriately, score 49 points to beat the San Diego Chargers, with 26.

While it is the 5th Super Bowl win for the 49ers, it remains the only Super Bowl appearance for the Chargers, who did win an AFL Championship in 1963. Despite their coming within 14 seasons, no one played on all 5 49er title teams.

Steve Young not only breaks out of the shadow of Joe Montana, but surpasses him in a way, setting a Super Bowl record with 6 touchdown passes. Deion Sanders becomes the 1st man to play in both a World Series and a Super Bowl. He is still the only one. Although he didn't win in either of his World Series appearances with the Atlanta Braves, he went on to win another Super Bowl with the Dallas Cowboys the next season.

It was the 2nd win as 49er head coach George Seifert, following the 1st 3, won by Bill Walsh, to whom he was defensive coordinator.

The 49ers have since been in 3 Super Bowls, losing them all. The Chargers, who moved to Los Angeles for the 2017 season, have lost their only AFC Championship Game appearance since this game.

It Was About the Hat, Not the Message

The NFL has fined Nick Bosa of the San Francisco 49ers $11,225 for wearing a MAGA hat on the sideline.

The fine wasn't for the message on the hat. I suspect that most of the owners of the 32 NFL teams would be fine with it.

But the NFL has this fetish about conformity. The league will fine you for wearing your socks wrong. When Johnny Unitas of the Baltimore Colts, possibly the greatest quarterback of all time, died in 2002, Peyton Manning, then playing for the Indianapolis version of the Colts, wanted to pay tribute by wearing Unitas' signature item, black high-top cleats, in his next game. The NFL said no, and you'll be fined if you do.

When Pat Tillman, formerly of the Arizona Cardinals, died in combat in Afghanistan in 2004, every player wore a #40 sticker on his helmet for their next game. But when Jake Plummer, his quarterback in college (Arizona State) and the NFL, wanted to continue to wear the sticker for the rest of the season, the NFL refused to allow it.

So much for supporting our troops.

Bosa has a history of garbage: Racist and homophobic tweets, praising Trump's call for violence against protesters; multiple tweets that purport that illegal immigrants and refugees cause crime; and multiple Instagram posts with hashtags that included "the N-word," pro-rape language, and a homophobic slur. He is a bad person.

In the leadup to the 2019 NFL Draft, the outgoing Ohio State defensive end took to Twitter and called former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick a "clown" for his protests against police brutality and racial inequality. (They were never teammates.) He said he had to delete that tweet, because "There is a chance I might end up in San Francisco" -- a team based in the American city most identified with liberalism, even more so than New York and Boston. After being drafted by the 49ers in 2019, Bosa apologized for the posts in a press conference.

The NFL had a problem with the hat itself, regardless of message. It had no problem with the specific message of the hat. They should have. It was indicative of a larger problem.

And all this has been relatively early in Bosa's career, so we would be on shaky ground if we blamed CTE.

The Chiefs' "Eras Tour"

For all the fuss over Taylor Swift, it's worth mentioning: Oh yes, there was a game last night. For the 1st 2 quarters, and most of the 3rd, it was kind of dull. Then it got really good.

It turned out to be the longest Super Bowl ever, only the 2nd to go to overtime, and the 7th-longest in NFL history. Under current overtime rules, the San Francisco 49ers kicked a field goal, but it would not be enough, as the Kansas City Chiefs would get a chance to at least tie the game, and scored a touchdown, a 3-yard pass from Patrick Mahomes, who won his 3rd Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award, to Mecole Hardman. Final: Kansas City 25, San Francisco 22.

The Chiefs have now won 3 titles in 4 appearances in 5 years. It's not quite a "dynasty," but, as Taylor might say, it's quite an "era." So, like Taylor, the Chiefs have their own "Eras Tour."

Andy Reid joins Chuck Noll, Bill Walsh and Joe Gibbs as coaches who have won 3 Super Bowls. Mahomes joins Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana, Troy Aikman and Peyton Manning as quarterbacks who've done it. And the Chiefs became the 1st back-to-back Super Bowl winners since the 1998-99 Denver Broncos.

(Note: Proven cheaters not included, so don't tell me about the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady New England Patriots.)

The winning touchdown was caught by Mecole Hardman -- who, like Aaron Rodgers, began the season with the New York Jets. For some people around here, Ouch.

Travis Kelce got a big hug from Taylor at the end, but, other than that, he was the one Chief who ended up not looking better. His antics on the victory stand didn't help. And getting caught yelling at Reid on the sideline was bad. He's already a meme.

Yeah. He's going to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, as are Reid and Mahomes, but this is not a good look.

One more thing, for all the Trump fans: We might not be in the mess we've been in for the last 50 years if Frank Sinatra hadn't switched parties, and endorsed first Richard Nixon, then Ronald Reagan.

At least Frank hated Trump, as do his kids, who've spoken well of Taylor.

It's also worth noting that Elvis Presley didn't endorse Adlai Stevenson over Dwight D. Eisenhower. But he did get the polio vaccine, on live TV, right before the 1956 election! (Of course, both Ike and Adlai supported the vaccine.)

Taylor the WAG

Conservative media is now claiming that the National Football League is rigging the Super Bowl, so that the Kansas City Chiefs, and therefore Travis Kelce, and therefore Taylor Swift, will win; so that Taylor can then ride that to help President Joe Biden get re-elected.

It's not the craziest conspiracy they've ever come up with. But it's one of the dumber ones. Why the hell would the NFL rig the Super Bowl for the Chiefs? There's 3 big reasons why they wouldn't do that:

1. They wouldn't rig it at all. They want people to bet on the game. Therefore, they would want the game to appear to be on the level.

2. What's the point? The Chiefs are the defending Champions. They don't need the rigging.

3. Of the NFL's 32 teams, 28 are owned by contributors to Donald Trump's Presidential campaign. Clearly, they don't want Biden to win.

Of course, the right-wingers are ready, either way. If the San Francisco 49ers win, they'll say it was rigged to help liberal San Francisco against conservative Missouri and Kansas. So, either way, they look like idiots.

*

Anyway... Today, on The View on ABC, Sara Haines made the point that American football has places for women: As cheerleaders, and in the stands. Their place is not by the side of their boyfriend or husband, the player.

And they see Taylor Swift cozying up to Travis Kelce, star tight end of the Kansas City Chiefs, and his family. And they don't like it.

They also don't like that she's registering voters to vote the way she would want them to: For Democrats, for women's rights, and other liberal causes.

Yes, Haines used the phrase "American football." That's important. Because, whether she meant to or not, it draws a contrast to soccer, the sport the rest of the world calls "football."

In England, they have "WAG Culture." WAG: Wives And Girlfriends. If an English soccer star, or a foreign soccer star in England's Premier League, still the highest-grossing sports league in the world -- ahead of the mighty NFL, mind you -- has a girlfriend or a wife (hopefully, not both) who is also famous, it provides the same kind of effect as when Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe got married (and, just as quickly, divorced): Each builds on the other's fame, until, on top of what they were already famous for, they become "famous for being famous."

America isn't used to that. Reggie Jackson was very good at keeping his private life private: He married once, was divorced while still in Oakland, and if he ever dated a famous woman while in the markets of New York (with the Yankees) or Los Angeles (with the team then named the California Angels), the media never found out.

Also in Reggie's time, nobody seemed to care who Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, Carl Yastrzemski, George Brett, Ozzie Smith, Rickey Henderson, Don Mattingly or Ryne Sandberg was married to. Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez both dated famous women, but that was in New York, which isn't like the rest of the country.

In other sports, Joe Montana's wife was Jennifer Wallace, and Wayne Gretzky's wife was Jennifer Jones, and neither was ever anything more than a minor actress. Michael Jordan and Dan Marino had embarrassing divorces, but they were quickly forgotten. We hear lots of talk about LeBron James' son Bronny, but how many of us recognize the name of Savannah Brinson, LeBron's wife and Bronny's mother?

Tom Brady was married to Gisele Bündchen, but that was treated as an afterthought. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs quarterback and Kelce's teammate, having led them into a 4th Super Bowl and looking for a 3rd win, is the most famous player in the NFL, but how many of us would recognize his wife on sight? Or recognize her maiden name, Brittany Matthews? And she was a pro athlete, too, a soccer player. She's one of the co-owners of the K.C. area's team in the National Women's Soccer League, the Kansas City Current. And yet, she can walk through Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan without one single autograph request. Her husband can't do that.

There's something else to consider about the Taylor & Travis phenomenon. Taylor Swift is the 1st female performer to be, unquestionably, the biggest music star in America. Every predecessor in that regard was male: Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, The Beatles (British rather than American, but embraced by America), Michael Jackson.

Not Madonna. When she first hit it big in 1984, Jackson, Bruce Springsteen and Prince were bigger. When she was at her most hyped and controversial, in 1989 and '90, Jackson was still bigger. So were imports U2. Janet Jackson was never the biggest. Nor was Jennifer Lopez. The Beehive won't like reading this, but Beyoncé has been with Jay-Z since 2002, and he's been either the biggest or 2nd-biggest hip-hop figure longer than that, so Bey has never even been the biggest performer in her own relationship.

Yes, there is an element of race involved. If Beyoncé had merely collaborated with Jay-Z, and never gotten into a relationship with him, she would still be very big. But being black would have prevented her from being the biggest star among white fans. Taylor doesn't have that issue. She does have issues, but not that one.

But Taylor got to where she is by writing and singing songs about a troublesome love-life. And while she did sing, "I'm the problem, it's me" in "Anti-Hero," a lot of her songs are about breakups with inadequate boyfriends.

Guys see this, and think, "If only she'd come to me, I could show her a real man." Then she starts dating a Super Bowl-winning football star, and they feel betrayed. And so they hate her.

And, like Mariah Carey a few years earlier, she can sing a song titled "Shake It Off." (Neil Sedaka also had a Number 1 hit titled "Bad Blood" decades before Taylor did.) And that just ticks them off more.

Let them be ticked off.

By the way, you should have seen the look on my face when I remembered that there were meat-packing companies named Taylor and Swift.

The Taylor Provisions Company, of course, invented pork roll, and still sell more of it than anybody else. They sell it under the name "Pork Roll." Not "Taylor Ham."

Finals Appearances, 1871-2024

Updated to include the set of Super Bowl LVIII, between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.

Includes the following:

* Baseball: The World Series, 1903-2023; pre-1903 championship finals, including the Temple Cup (1894-97); and single-division leagues that did not have postseason series.

* Football: All professional league championship games, including the pre-Super Bowl NFL Championship Game, 1932-1965; and Canada's Grey Cup.

* Basketball: The NBA Finals, 1947-2023, and the WNBA Finals, 1997-2023.

* Hockey: The Stanley Cup Finals, 1894-2023, including before the founding of the NHL.

* Soccer: The NASL Finals, 1967-1984; the MLS Cup, 1996-2023; and the finals of the various women's leagues.

In the case of an intra-city finals, the city will be counted twice. Ties will be broken by most wins, then by most recent.

Still to be done: NASL, MLS, WUA/WPS/NWSL

New York, 136: World's Championship Series, 1888, both teams in 1889, 1890; Temple Cup, 1894; National League Champions, 1899, 1900; World Series, 1904, 1905, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1916, 1917, 1920, 1921 (both), 1922 (both), 1923 (both), 1924, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1933, 1936 (both), 1937 (both), 1938, 1939, 1941 (both), 1942, 1943, 1947 (both), 1949 (both), 1950, 1951 (both), 1952 (both), 1953 (both), 1954, 1955 (both), 1956 (both), 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1969, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000 (both), 2001, 2003, 2009, 2015; NFL Champions, 1927; NFL Championship Game, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1944, 1946, 1956, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1963; Super Bowl, 1987, 1991, 2001, 2008, 2012; AAFC Championship Game, 1946 and 1947; NBA Finals, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1994, 1999, 2002, 2003; ABA Finals, 1972, 1974, 1976; WNBA Finals: 1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 1928, 1929, 1932, 1933, 1937, 1940, 1950, 1972, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2012, 2014

New England, 90: National Association Champions, 1872, 1873, 1874, 1875; National League Champions, 1877, 1878, 1879, 1892, 1893, 1898; World's Championship Series, both teams in 1884 and 1891; Temple Cup, 1897; World Series, 1903, 1904, 1912, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1918, 1946, 1948, 1967, 1975, 1986, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2018; NFL Champions, 1928; NFL Championship Game, 1936; AFL Championship Game, 1963; Super Bowl, 1986, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2019; NBA Finals: 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 2008, 2010, 2022; WNBA Finals: 2004, 2005, 2019, 2022; Stanley Cup Finals, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1939, 1941, 1943, 1946, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1988, 1990; WHA Finals, 1973, 1978

Montreal, 74: Grey Cup, 1931, 1944, 1949, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 1893, 1894, 1895, 1896, 1897, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1903, 1904, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1914, 1916, 1917, 1919, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1928, 1930, 1931, 1935, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1986, 1989, 1993, 2021

Toronto, 67: World Series, 1992, 1993; Grey Cup, 1909 (both), 1910, 1911 (both), 1912, 1913, 1914 (both), 1915, 1920 (both), 1921, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1930, 1933, 1937, 1938, 1940, 1942, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1950, 1952, 1971, 1982, 1983, 1987, 1991, 1996, 1997, 2004, 2012, 2017, 2022; NBA Finals, 2019; Stanley Cup Finals, 1902, 1904, 1908, 1914, 1918, 1922, 1932, 1933, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1942, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967

Los Angeles, 59: World Series, 1959, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1988, 2002, 2017, 2018, 2020; NFL Championship Game, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1955; AFL Championship Game, 1960; Super Bowl, 1980, 1984, 2019, 2022; NBA Finals, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2020; ABA Finals, 1970; WNBA Finals: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2016, 2017; Stanley Cup Finals, 1993, 2003, 2007, 2012, 2014

Chicago, 58: National League Champions, 1876, 1880, 1881, 1882; World's Championship Series, 1885, 1886; American League Champions, 1901; World Series, both teams in 1906; 1907, 1908, 1910, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1959, 2005, 2016; NFL Champions, 1921, 1925; NFL Championship Game, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1937, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1956, 1963; Super Bowl, 1986, 2007; NBA Finals, 1947, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998; WNBA Finals, 2014, 2021; Stanley Cup Finals, 1931, 1934, 1938, 1944, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1971, 1973, 1992, 2010, 2013, 2015; WHA Finals, 1974

Detroit, 50: World's Championship Series, 1887; World Series, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1934, 1935, 1940, 1945, 1968, 1984, 2006, 2012; NFL Championship Game, 1935, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1957; USFL Championship Game, 1983; NBA Finals, 1988, 1989, 1990, 2004, 2005; WNBA Finals, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008; Stanley Cup Finals, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1941, 1943, 1945, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008, 2009

Philadelphia, 47: National Association Champions, 1871; American Association Champions, 1883; American League Champions, 1902; World Series, 1905, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1950, 1980, 1983, 1993, 2008, 2009, 2022; NFL Champions, 1926; NFL Championship Game, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1960; Super Bowl, 1981, 2005, 2018, 2023; USFL Championship Game, 1983 and 1984; NBA Finals: 1947, 1948, 1956, 1967, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983, 2001; Stanley Cup Finals, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1985, 1987, 1997, 2010

Winnipeg, 42: Grey Cup, 1925, 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1950, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 2001, 2007, 2011, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 1896, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1904, 1908; WHA Finals, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979

San Francisco Bay Area, 36: World Series, 1962, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1988, 1989 (both), 1990, 2002, 2010, 2012, 2014; AAFC Championship Game, 1949; Super Bowl, 1968, 1977, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1989, 1990, 1995, 2003, 2013, 2020, 2024; USFL Championship Game, 1985; NBA Finals, 1964, 1967, 1975, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022; 1969 ABA Finals; Stanley Cup Finals, 2017

Hamilton, 34: Grey Cup, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1915, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1943, 1944, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1972, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1998, 1999, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2021; Stanley Cup Finals, 1910, 1911

St. Louis, 34: World's Championship Series, 1885, 1886, 1887, 1888; World Series, 1926, 1928, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1942, 1943, 1944 (both), 1946, 1964, 1967, 1968, 1982, 1985, 1987, 2004, 2006, 2011, 2013; Super Bowl, 2000, 2002; NBA Finals, 1957, 1958, 1960, 1961; Stanley Cup Finals, 1968, 1969, 1970, 2019

Edmonton, 34: Grey Cup, 1921, 1922, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1960, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1990, 1993, 1996, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2015; Stanley Cup Finals, 1908, 1910, 1923, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, 2006; WHA Finals, 1979

Ottawa, 33: Grey Cup, 1925, 1926, 1936, 1939, 1940, 1948, 1951, 1960, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1973, 1976, 1981, 2015, 2016, 2018; Stanley Cup Finals, 1894, 1897, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1915, 1920, 1921, 1923, 1927, 2007

Cleveland, 31: Temple Cup, 1895, 1896; World Series, 1920, 1948, 1954, 1995, 1997, 2016; NFL Champions, 1920, 1922, 1923, 1924; AAFC Championship Game, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949; NFL Championship Game, 1945, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1964, 1965; NBA Finals, 2007, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018

Pittsburgh, 24: National League Champions, 1901, 1902; World Series, 1903, 1909, 1925, 1927, 1960, 1971, 1979; Super Bowl, 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1996, 2006, 2009, 2011; ABA Finals, 1968; Stanley Cup Finals, 1991, 1992, 2008, 2009, 2016, 2017

Baltimore, 22: Temple Cup, 1894, 1895, 1896, 1897; World Series, 1966, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1979, 1983; NFL Championship Game, 1958, 1959, 1964; Super Bowl, 1969, 1971, 2001, 2013; USFL Championship Game, 1985; Grey Cup, 1994, 1995; NBA Finals, 1948, 1971

Wisconsin, 21: World Series, 1957, 1958, 1982; NFL Champions, 1929, 1930, 1931; NFL Championship Game, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1965; Super Bowl, 1967, 1968, 1997, 1998, 2011; NBA Finals, 1971, 1974, 2021

Washington, 21: World Series, 1924, 1925, 1933; NFL Championship Game, 1937, 1940, 1942, 1943, 1945; Super Bowl, 1973, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1992; NBA Finals, 1949, 1975, 1978, 1979; WNBA Finals, 2018, 2019; Stanley Cup Finals, 1998, 2018

Minnesota, 21: World Series, 1965, 1987, 1991; Super Bowl, 1970, 1974, 1975, 1977; NBA Finals, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1959; WNBA Finals: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017; Stanley Cup Finals, 1981, 1991

Calgary, 21: Grey Cup, 1948, 1949, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018; Stanley Cup Finals, 1924, 1986, 1989, 2004

Regina, 19: Grey Cup, 1923, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1934, 1951, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1972, 1976, 1989, 1997, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013

Vancouver, 18: Grey Cup, 1963, 1964, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1994, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2011; Stanley Cup Finals, 1915, 1918, 1921, 1922, 1982, 1994, 2011

Houston, 17: World Series, 2005, 2017, 2019, 2022; AFL Championship Game, 1960 and 1961; NBA Finals, 1981, 1986, 1994, 1995; WNBA Finals, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000; WHA Finals, 1974, 1975, 1976

Miami, 16: World Series, 1997, 2003; Super Bowl, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1983, 1985; NBA Finals, 2006, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2020, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 1996, 2023

Dallas, 14: World Series, 2010, 2011, 2023; AFL Championship Game, 1962; Super Bowl, 1971, 1972, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1993, 1994, 1996; NBA Finals, 2006, 2011; Stanley Cup Finals, 1999, 2000, 2020

Colorado, 14: World Series, 2007, Super Bowl, 1978, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2014, 2016; ABA Finals, 1976; NBA Finals, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 1996, 2001, 2022

Indiana, 13: Super Bowl, 2007, 2010; NBA Finals, 1955, 1956, 2000; ABA Finals, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1975; WNBA Finals, 2009, 2012, 2015

Western New York, 13: AAFC Championship Game, 1948; AFL Championship Game, 1964 and 1965; Super Bowl, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994; NBA Finals, 1950, 1951, 1955, 1956; Stanley Cup Finals, 1975, 1999

Cincinnati, 12: World Series, 1919, 1939, 1940, 1961, 1970, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1990; Super Bowl, 1982, 1989, 2022

Arizona, 12: World Series, 2001, 2003; Super Bowl, 2009; USFL Championship Game, 1984; NBA Finals, 1976, 1993, 2021; WNBA Finals: 1998, 2007, 2009, 2014, 2021

Kansas City, 10: World Series, 1980, 1985, 2014, 2015; Super Bowl, 1967, 1970, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024

Tampa Bay, 9: World Series, 2008, 2020; Super Bowl, 2003, 2021; Stanley Cup Finals, 2004, 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022

Seattle, 13: Super Bowl, 2006, 2014, 2015; NBA Finals, 1978, 1979, 1996; WNBA Finals: 2004, 2010, 2018, 2020; Stanley Cup Finals, 1917, 1919, 1920

Atlanta, 11: World Series, 1991, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2021; Super Bowl, 1999, 2017; WNBA Finals, 2010, 2011, 2013

San Antonio, 7: NBA Finals, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2012, 2013; WNBA Finals, 2008

San Diego, 7: World Series, 1984, 1998; AFL Championship Game, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1965; Super Bowl, 1995

Kingston, 6: Grey Cup, 1922, 1923, 1924; Stanley Cup Finals, 1895, 1899, 1906

Las Vegas, 5: WNBA Finals, 2020, 2022, 2023; Stanley Cup Finals, 2018, 2023

Carolina, 5: Super Bowl, 2004, 2016; WNBA Finals, 2001; Stanley Cup Finals, 2002, 2006

Utah, 4: ABA Finals, 1971 and 1974; NBA Finals, 1997, 1998

Portland, 4: NBA Finals, 1977, 1990, 1992; Stanley Cup Finals, 1916

Quebec City, 4: Stanley Cup Finals, 1912, 1913; WHA Finals, 1975 and 1977

Louisville, 4: World's Championship Series, 1890; ABA Finals, 1971, 1973, 1975

Orlando, 3: World Bowl, 1974; NBA Finals, 1995, 2009

Sarnia, 3: Grey Cup, 1933, 1934, 1936

Victoria 3: Stanley Cup Finals, 1914, 1925, 1926

Halifax, 3: Stanley Cup Finals, 1900, 1906, 1913

Kenora, 3: Stanley Cup Finals, 1903, 1905, 1907

Tennessee, 2: Super Bowl, 2000; Stanley Cup Finals, 2017

New Orleans, 2: Super Bowl, 2010; ABA Finals, 1968

Sacramento, 2: WNBA Finals, 2005, 2006

Brandon, 2: Stanley Cup Finals, 1904, 1907

Oklahoma City, 1: NBA Finals, 2012

Birmingham, 1: 1974 World Bowl

Portsmouth, 1: NFL Championship Game, 1932

Moncton, 1: Stanley Cup Finals, 1912

Thunder Bay, 1: Stanley Cup Finals, 1911

Dawson City, 1: Stanley Cup Finals, 1905

Austin, none

Jacksonville, none

January 10, 1982: Dwight Clark Makes The Catch

January 10, 1982, 40 years ago: It is a hinge moment in the National Football League, the end of one era, and the beginning of another.

From 1966 to 1981, 16 seasons, under head coach Tom Landry, the Dallas Cowboys had made the Playoffs 15 times (missing only in 1974), won their Division 12 times, won 18 postseason games, reached 11 NFL or NFC Championship Games, reached 5 Super Bowls, and won 2 of them. They had produced Hall-of-Famers, great comebacks on offense, and a united known as "the Doomsday Defense."

They had won Super Bowl VI in 1972, and Super Bowl XII in 1978, and also lost Super Bowls V, X and XIII. Following their Super Bowl XII win, they began advertising themselves as "America's Team." There was some reason for that: They had gained a nationwide following. Part of this was due to CBS, which had the NFC's TV contract at the time, putting them on TV nearly every week, to the point where people who hated the Cowboys said that "CBS" stood for "Cowboys Broadcasting System."

Ask fans of the New York Giants, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins who their arch-rivals were, and they wouldn't say any of the other nearby teams. It was the team that, geographically speaking, didn't belong in the NFC East, but was. They would all have said, "The Dallas Cowboys," possibly with a qualifier starting with the letter F or the letter G.

And the retirement of Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach, following the 1979 season, didn't slow them down much. In 1980 and 1981, with Danny White having replaced him, and still having Hall-of-Famers like running back Tony Dorsett and linebacker Randy White, they again reached the NFC Championship Game in those seasons. For 1980, they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles. For 1981, they would play the San Francisco 49ers.

The 49ers began play in 1946, in the All-America Football Conference. In 1950, they entered the NFL. For most of their early history, they were usually good, but never anything special. They won the AAFC Western Division title in 1949, but lost the league's Championship Game to the Cleveland Browns. They tied for the Western Division title in 1957, but lost a Playoff to the Detroit Lions. They won the NFC Western Division in 1970, '71 and '72, but lost to the Cowboys all 3 times, the 1st 2 in the NFC Championship Game.

And then they collapsed. In 1978, they finished just 2-14. In 1979, team owner Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. hired Stanford coach Bill Walsh as head coach and general manager. Walsh had been an assistant coach for the Cincinnati Bengals, and thus a student of team owner Paul Brown, who, as head coach of the Browns in the 1940s and '50s, revolutionized football offense.

(Eddie DeBartolo developed shopping malls, including the Brunswick Square Mall in my hometown of East Brunswick, New Jersey, along with his father, Edward Sr., who owned the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. The family is from Youngstown, Ohio, slightly closer to Pittsburgh than to Cleveland.)

Walsh began rebuilding the team. In 1979, they finished 2-14 again. Then Walsh drafted Notre Dame quarterback Joe Montana. (Both Edward DeBartolos were also Notre Dame graduates.) The improvement was noticeable, as they went 6-10 in 1980.

But nobody imagined the jump that would occur in 1981. After a 1-2 start -- losing to the Lions in Detroit, beating the Chicago Bears at home, and losing to the Falcons in Atlanta -- the Niners nearly ran the table, to finish 13-3. Their only loss was 15-12 at home to the Browns. They avenged their loss to the Falcons, clobbered the Cowboys 45-14 at Candlestick Park, and beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Rams, twice.

They won the NFC West for the 1st time in 9 years. In the Division Playoff, they beat the New York Giants, 38-24 at Candlestick. Now, they were set to play the Cowboys for a trip to Super Bowl XVI. If the Cowboys were to win, it would be their 6th World Championship Game. For the 49ers, it would be their 1st.

*

This is what the world was like on January 10, 1982:

There was an NFL team in Baltimore, but it was the Colts, not the Ravens. There was one in Houston, but it was the Oilers, not the Texans. The Cardinals were still in St. Louis. The Rams were the only team in Los Angeles. The Raiders were about to leave Oakland for L.A., and the idea that the Chargers would ever leave San Diego was ridiculous.

The 49ers had never won a Super Bowl. This was also true for the Rams, the Cardinals, the Chicago Bears, the New York Giants, the Denver Broncos, the New England Patriots, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Seattle Seahawks, the New Orleans Saints and the Philadelphia Eagles. (The Bears, the Giants, the Cardinals and the Eagles, at least, had won NFL Championships in the pre-Super Bowl years.)

The 49ers had never even been to a Super Bowl. This was also true for the Bears, the Patriots, the Chargers, the Buccaneers, the Seahawks, the Saints, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Buffalo Bills, the Atlanta Falcons and the Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans franchise. And the Carolina Panthers, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Houston Texans, and, sort of, the Ravens didn't even exist.

All of those facts are no longer true.

Only 4 teams played their 2021 seasons in the same stadiums in which they played their 1981 seasons: The Bills, the Saints, the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Madison Square Garden is the only 1981-82 season arena remaining in both the NBA and the NHL. And only 6 Major League Baseball teams are still using the same stadiums they used in 1982: The Boston Red Sox, the Chicago Cubs, the Oakland Athletics, the Kansas City Royals, and both Los Angeles-area teams.

Chicago Bears founder and NFL co-founder George Halas was still running his team. Also still alive were fellow NFL pioneers Red Grange, Bronko Nagurski, Fritz Pollard and Clarke Hinkle. So was Jim Crowley, the last surviving member of "The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame."

Most of the defining players of my childhood were still active, although Mean Joe Greene was about to retire, and Roger Staubach, Larry Csonka and O.J. Simpson had all done so after the 1979 season.

Lawrence Taylor, Marcus Allen, Herschel Walker, John Elway, Dan Marino, Bo Jackson, Jerry Rice, Steve Young and Bruce Smith were in college. Troy Aikman and Deion Sanders were in high school. Emmitt Smith and Brett Favre were 12 years old, Kurt Warner was 10, Terrell Davis was 9, Ray Lewis was 6, Peyton Manning was 5, Tom Brady was 4, Drew Breese was about to turn 3, Eli Manning was 1, Troy Polamalu was 9 months old, and Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers and Colin Kaepernick weren’t born yet.

The current coach of the New York Giants (as of this writing, he may be fired by the time you read this), Joe Judge, had just been born. Jets coach Robert Saleh was about to turn 3. Tom Thibodeau of the Knicks was an assistant coach at Salem State University outside Boston. Lindy Ruff of the Devils was playing for the Buffalo Sabres. Buck Showalter of the Mets was playing for the Yankees' farm team, the Nashville Sounds. Gerard Gallant of the Rangers was playing for the Sherbrooke Castors of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Barry Trots of the Islanders was playing for the Regina Pats to the Western Hockey League.

Aaron Boone of the Yankees was 8 years old. Steve Nash of the Nets was 7. Ronny Deila of NYCFC was 6. Gerhard Struber of the Red Bulls was about to turn 5. And Liberty coach Walt Hopkins wasn't born yet.

The defending World Champions were the Oakland Raiders in football, the Philadelphia Phillies in baseball, the Boston Celtics in basketball and the New York Islanders in hockey. The Heavyweight Champion of the World was Larry Holmes.

The Olympic Games have since been held in America 3 times; twice each in Canada, Korea and Japan; and once each in Bosnia, France, Spain, Norway, Australia, Greece, Italy, China, Britain, Russia and Brazil. The World Cup has since been held in America, Mexico, Italy, France, Japan, Korea, Germany, South Africa, Brazil and Russia.

There were 26 Amendments to the Constitution of the United States. (There are now 27.) The idea that people of the same gender could get married and have all the benefits of marriage was considered ridiculous. But then, so was the idea that corporations were "people" and entitled to all the rights thereof. No person then on the Supreme Court is still on it now, and Sandra Day O'Connor is the only Justice on it then who is still alive.

The President of the United States was Ronald Reagan. George H.W. Bush was his Vice President. Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, Richard Nixon, their wives, and the widows of Lyndon Johnson, John F. Kennedy and Harry Truman were still alive.

Bill Clinton was running to regain the office of Governor of Arkansas. George W. Bush was running an energy business into the ground in Texas. Barack Obama was at Columbia University in New York. Donald Trump was beginning to make a name for himself in real estate -- and not a good one. Joe Biden was in his 2nd term as a U.S. Senator from Delaware. And Kamala Harris was at Howard University in Washington.

The Governor of California was Jerry Brown, and the Mayor of San Francisco was Dianne Feinstein. The Governor of the State of New York was Hugh Carey, the Mayor of the City of New York was Ed Koch, and the Governor of New Jersey was Brendan Byrne, but Tom Kean was a few days away from being inaugurated as his replacement.

The current holders of those offices? Gavin Newsom was in high school. London Breed was 7 years old. Kathy Hochul was attending law school at the Catholic University of American is Washington. Eric Adams was attending the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system. And Phil Murphy was at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia.

There were still survivors of the Spanish-American War, the Boer War, the Russo-Japanese War, the Potemkin Mutiny, and the crew of the RMS Titanic. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Pope was John Paul II. The current Pope, Francis, then Father Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was rector of the Philosophical and Theological Faculty of San Miguel in his native Argentina. The Prime Minister of Canada was Pierre Trudeau, father of the current holder of the office, Justin Trudeau; and of Britain, Margaret Thatcher. The head of state for both nations was Queen Elizabeth II -- that hasn't changed. There have since been 6 Presidents of the United States, 6 Prime Ministers of Britain, and 3 Popes.

Birmingham-based Aston Villa were the defending Champions of England's Football League, and went on to win that year's European Cup. They would succeed Liverpool FC as holders of that trophy, and Liverpool would succeed them as League Champions. Tottenham Hotspur of North London were the holders of the FA Cup, and would repeat as such.

Major novels of 1982 included The Color Purple by Alice Walker, Battlefield Earth by Scientology salesman L. Ron Hubbard, North and South by John Jakes, Mistral's Daughter by Judith Krantz, The Parsifal Mosiac by Robert Ludlum, Space by James Michener, Master of the Game by Sidney Sheldon, The BFG by Roald Dahl, War Horse by Michael Morpurgo, Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella (on which the film Field of Dreams would be based), Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin (that's how the future Game of Thrones author spelled it), and Pet Sematary and The Running Man by Stephen King.

Bruce Feirstein wrote Real Men Don't Eat Quiche, John Naisbitt Megatrends, and Tom Peters In Search of Excellence. And 17-year-old J.K. Rowling took the entrance exam for Oxford University, but failed.

Not many major films were released in the Winter of 1982. Holdovers from the 1981 Christmas season included Absence of Malice, Sharky's Machine, Chariots of Fire, Taps, and Neighbors, which turned out to be John Belushi's last film.

Gene Roddenberry was working on Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, George Lucas on Star Wars:  Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, and Steven Spielberg on E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. Roger Moore was playing James Bond, Peter Davison was playing The Doctor, and Christopher Reeve was playing Superman. But the last live-action Batman was still Adam West, and the last live-action Spider-Man was still Nicholas Hammond.

Fame and Late Night with David Letterman had just debuted on television. Soon to close their runs were Late Night with Tom Snyder, In Search of... , The Lawrence Welk Show, WKRP in Cincinnati, The Incredible Hulk with Lou Ferrigno, Mork & Mindy, and the greatest cop show of all time, the ABC sitcom Barney Miller.

Robert and Kris Kardashian were still married to each other. Kourtney and Kim had been born, but not yet Khloe and Rob. The following week would be the last week of the old Match Game with Gene Rayburn. The panelists were Skip Stephenson, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Melinda O. Fee, McLean Stevenson and Betty White.

The Number 1 song in America was "Physical" by Olivia Newton-John. Ozzy Osbourne played in Des Moines, Iowa, and had what he thought was a rubber bat thrown at him onstage. He bit its head off. As it turned out, it was a real bat, still alive. A month later, he was arrested in San Antonio, for pissing on The Alamo. Pat Benatar married her guitarist Neil Giraldo. They're still together.

Inflation was such that what $1.00 bought then, $2.80 would buy now. A U.S. postage stamp cost 20 cents, and a New York Subway ride 75 cents. The average price of a gallon of gas was $1.31, a cup of coffee $1.10, a McDonald's meal (Big Mac, fries, shake) was $2.40, a movie ticket $2.94, a new car $9,903, and a new house $81,200. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the preceding Friday at 866.53.

The tallest building in the world was the Sears Tower in Chicago. There were mobile phones, but they were still big enough to be called "bricks." The leading home video game system was the Atari VCS. (It was renamed the Atari 2600 later in the year, when the Atari 5200 SuperSystem came out.) There were Apple II computers, and the Commodore 64 was introduced the week before. But the Internet as we know it did not exist. There were heart transplants, liver transplants and lung transplants, and artificial kidneys, but no artificial hearts.

At the beginning of 1982, Air Florida Flight 90 crashed upon takeoff from Washington National Airport, the closest airport to the White House, just 5 months after President Reagan had fired the air traffic controllers. This crash killed 78 people. Did the public hold this against Reagan? No. In fact, in 1998, a Republican-controlled Congress voted to rename the airport in question after him.

AT&T settled the lawsuit filed against it by the federal government, and "Ma Bell" agreed to divest itself of its "Baby Bells." The first computer virus was discovered. And in Great Britain, temperatures were their lowest in the 20th Century, and unemployment reached its highest level since World War II. The Conservative Party government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher could not be blamed for the former, but it could be blamed for the latter.

Victor Buono, and Hans Conried, and Paul Lynde died. Kate Middleton, and Dontrelle Willis, and Dwyane Wade were born.

That's what the world was like on January 10, 1982, when the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys played at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, for the NFC Championship and a trip to Super Bowl XVI.

*

But first, at 1:00 PM Eastern Time, the Cincinnati Bengals hosted the San Diego Chargers at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, for the AFC Championship.

Eight days earlier, the Chargers had beaten the Miami Dolphins at the Orange Bowl, in an overtime thriller that was dangerously hot and humid. The weather conditions for this game couldn't have been more different. It was 9 degrees below zero Fahrenheit, and the wind chill factor dropped it to 59 below. It was the coldest game in NFL history, even colder than the 1967 NFL Championship Game in Green Bay, known as the Ice Bowl.

This one became known as the Freezer Bowl. And Cincinnati isn't even known for being especially cold, unlike its cross-State rival Cleveland. Nevertheless, 46,302 people showed up for this game.

For going from the dry heat of San Diego to the humidity of Miami to the frigidity of Cincinnati, the Chargers should have gotten hazard pay. They committed 4 turnovers, the Bengals jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the 1st quarter, and the game was never really in doubt. The Bengals won, 27-7, and were AFC Champions for the 1st time.

The NFC Championship Game kicked off at 2:00 Pacific Time, 5:00 Eastern Time. Candlestick Park was infamous for its winds, and baseball games there, especially at night, could be cold -- although not as cold as Cincinnati was on this day, or Green Bay has been for many Packers games. In fact, it was 52 degrees and sunny, with hardly any wind. I've often said that San Francisco is the only city with baseball weather in football season and football weather in baseball season.

The Cowboys' 1st drive came to nothing. Montana made the most of this, and took the Niners downfield, resulting in an 8-yard touchdown pass to Freddie Solomon. The Cowboys came back with a field goal by Rafael Septién. The 49ers fumbled on their next possession, leading to Danny White throwing a 26-yard touchdown pass to Tony Hill. After 1 quarter, it was 10-7 Dallas.

In the 2nd quarter, Everson Walls of the Cowboys intercepted Montana in the end zone. Timing is everything, I suppose: This is not the play from the game for which we remember Walls. But the 49ers forced the Cowboys to punt, and Montana threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Dwight Clark. Now, it was 14-10 San Francisco. And this is not the play from the game for which we remember Montana and Clark, either.

For years, fans complained that the Cowboys got favorable calls from the officials. Ronnie Lott, a rookie who went on to become perhaps the greatest defensive back of all time, intercepted a pass, but this was wiped out by a pass interference call. So, instead of 49er ball, it was a 35-yard Cowboy gain. And Tony Dorsett scored on a 5-yard run to make it 17-14 Dallas.

Late in the half, the 49ers recovered a fumbled punt in Dallas territory, but on a later play, Clark was called for an illegal block, and Montana then fumbled the ball away. Early in the 3rd quarter, Montana had another turnover, as he was intercepted by Randy White. But Danny White was then intercepted by Bobby Leopold, and this time, the Montana got the job done, driving the Niners until Johnny Davis ran 2 yards for a touchdown. It was 21-17 San Francisco.

Septién kicked a field goal early in the 4th quarter to make it 21-20. And Walls recovered a fumble, and Danny White threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Doug Cosbie, and it was 27-21 Dallas. Walls intercepted Montana again, but the Cowboys couldn't convert, and had to punt. The 49ers got the ball back at their own 11, with 4:54 left in regulation.

What followed was one of the epic drives in NFL history. It included 30 yards of rushing by Elliott, and Solomon rushing for 15 and catching 2 passes for 18. With 58 seconds left, the Niners were at 3rd-and-goal on the Cowboy 6.

Walsh pulled a play out of the old Paul Brown playbook. He called it "Change Left Slot - Sprint Right Option." He had his offense practice it many times. But it had never been done with Clark as the 1st choice.

Montana took the snap. He rolled to his right. But Solomon was covered. He saw Clark in the end zone, and threw. Clark was covered by Walls, but jumped.

If he hadn't caught it... The Cowboys would have won the game, and might have won Super Bowl XVI. Instead of losing the next season's NFC Championship Game, this new generation of Cowboys would have had the confidence to win that, and Super Bowl XVII, too. They were 12-4 in 1983, but lost to the Rams in the 1st Round. Maybe they would have won that, too, although it's hard to imagine them turning around the 38-9 loss the Redskins had to the Raiders. So they could have extended the Cowboy legacy with 3 more Super Bowls and 2 more wins.

And the 49ers? Walsh would have remained head coach, and Carmen Policy was soon brought in as general manager. They would have won eventually, but they wouldn't have won as much as they did. They might have been a one-and-done, instead of a dynasty of 4-for-4, and 2 other NFC Championship Games, in 10 seasons.

Instead, Clark did make what became known as The Catch. "I don't know what got me up there," Clark said. "It must have been God, or something." He got it: Touchdown, 49ers. Ray Wersching kicked the extra point, and it was 28-27 49ers.

But there were still 51 seconds to play, and the Cowboys only needed a field goal. And the Niners needed a key tackle by rookie cornerback Eric Wright on Drew Pearson to prevent a touchdown. On the next play, Lawrence Pillers sacked Danny White, forcing a fumble, which was recovered by Jim Stucky. Game over.

The photo above, by Walter Iooss Jr., became the cover of Sports Illustrated. It made Clark a legend, even if he wasn't as good as receiver as Solomon, or his later teammates Jerry Rice, Russ Francis or John Taylor. He died in 2018, from the effects of Lou Gehrig's disease.

The 49ers went on to win Super Bowl XVI, beating the Bengals, 26-21 at the Silverdome in the Detroit suburb of Pontiac, Michigan. After a losing season in 1982, they reached the NFC Championship Game in 1983, losing to the Redskins. In 1984, they went 15-1 in the regular season, and won Super Bowl XIX, beating the Miami Dolphins.

Having drafted Rice, they reached the Playoffs in 1985, 1986 and 1987. They won Super Bowl XXIII, winning a rematch with the Bengals; and Super Bowl XXIV, beating the Denver Broncos. Montana became the greatest quarterback of all time, and Rice the greatest receiver. DeBartolo, Walsh, Montana, Rice, Lott, Fred Dean and Charles Haley have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Policy, Roger Craig, Randy Cross and Guy McIntyre should probably also be elected.

In the 1990 NFC Championship Game, the 49er dynasty game to an end, as they lost to the New York Giants, who went on to win Super Bowl XXV. Everson Walls, burned by The Catch, was a key figure on that Giants defense, so he gained a measure of redemption.

While this was going on, the Cowboys were falling apart, sold, and rebuilt. In 1992, '93 and '94, the Cowboys played the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The Cowboys won for '92 and '93, winning Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII.

The 49ers won in 1994, with Steve Young having taken over at quarterback for Montana, and led them to win Super Bowl XXIX. They did so with former Chicago Bears Super Bowl MVP Richard Dent, and longtime New Orleans Saints linebacker Rickey Jackson, who won his 1st title. Both of them probably secured their Hall of Fame elections with this win. The 49ers also had Deion Sanders that season, but he signed with the Cowboys the next season, and they won Super Bowl XXX, without having to go through the 49ers in the Playoffs. Both teams remained Playoff-capable for the rest of the 1990s.

How Long It's Been: The San Francisco 49ers Won a Super Bowl

I did one of these for the Kansas City Chiefs, for whom it's now been 50 years, half a century. Now, it's time to do it for their opponents in Super Bowl LIV, the San Francisco 49ers, for whom it's been half as long, 25 years, a quarter of a century.

This will be the Niners' 7th appearance in a Super Bowl, and their 3rd at the current home of the Miami Dolphins. It was named Joe Robbie Stadium, for the Dolphins' founding owner, from its opening on August 16, 1987 until August 25, 1996. This period included the Niners' wins in Super Bowls XXIII , over the Cincinnati Bengals); and XXIX, over the team then known as the San Diego Chargers. It also included the founding of MLB's Florida Marlins, who began play there in 1993.

It was then known as Pro Player Park until September 9, 1996, then tweaked slightly to Pro Player Stadium until January 9, 2005. Pro Player was the sports division of clothing company Fruit of the Loom. This period included the Marlins' wins in the 1997 and 2003 World Series.

It was just Dolphins Stadium from January 10, 2005 to April 7, 2006, then the S was dropped and it was Dolphin Stadium until May 7, 2009. Then the Dolphins and the stadium were bought by a group led by Stephen Ross, which also included Florida-based singer Jimmy Buffett, and, to help market a beer Jimmy was selling, it was renamed Land Shark Stadium until January 5, 2010.

After 2 weeks as just "Dolphin Stadium" again, naming rights then went to an insurance company, and it was Sun Life Stadium until January 31, 2016, a period that included the Marlins' 2012 move to Marlins Park, on the site of the previous Dolphins stadium, the Orange Bowl, and their change of name to the Miami Marlins. The current Dolphins stadium was New Miami Stadium until August 16, 2016, and it's been Hard Rock Stadium, for the Hard Rock Cafe chain of restaurants, since then.

That's 10 different names in 33 years of operation. That's even worse than the new arena of the Philadelphia 76ers and Flyers.

As for the 49ers' other Super Bowls: They won XVI over the Bengals at the since-demolished Pontiac Silverdome in the Detroit suburbs, they won XIX over the Dolphins at the since-rebuilt Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto in their own suburbs, they won XXIV over the Denver Broncos at the Superdome in New Orleans, and they lost XLVII to the Baltimore Ravens at the Superdome.

The 49ers were so successful, for so long, that it's hard to believe there was a time when they were a joke franchise. They were 2-14 in back-to-back seasons in 1978 and '79. Then a new regime came in, and turned them around, making them perhaps the most talent-laden NFL team ever.

Quaterbacks Joe Montana and Steve Young, receivers Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens, defensive linemen Fred Dean, Charles Haley, Rickey Jackson and Chris Doleman, and defensive backs Ronnie Lott and Deion Sanders are all in the Hall of Fame. So are head coach Bill Walsh and team owner Eddie DeBartolo.

Players from this period of 49er history who are not in Canton, but probably should be, include receiver Dwight Clark, running back Roger Craig, center Randy Cross, guard Guy McIntyre, linebacker Ken Norton Jr., and George Seifert, who replaced Walsh as head coach in 1989.

From 1981 to 2002, in 22 seasons, they made the Playoffs 18 times, won the NFC Western Division 14 times, won at least 1 Playoff game 13 times, reached the NFC Championship Game 10 times, reached the Super Bowl 5 times, and won all 5, including 4 in the 9 seasons from 1981 to 1989.

In 2011, '12 and '13, they went 36-11-1, made it to the NFC Championship Game all 3 times, and reached Super Bowl XLVII, although they lost it. This was when Colin Kaepernick was an All-Pro quarterback, before he became a symbol of civil rights protest. Now, they are back.

True, there were some bad seasons mixed in there, including 2-14 in 2004 and 2016, and 4-12 in 2005 and 2018. But they are back.

They had previously been good in the 1950s, including 1957 when they tied the Detroit Lions for the NFL Western Division title, but lost a Playoff; and in the early 1970s, when they won the 1st 3 NFC West titles and got to back-to-back NFC Championship Games, losing both to the Dallas Cowboys, a Playoff rivalry that would be renewed in the 1990s: From 1992 to 1997, either the 49ers or the Cowboys would be in the NFC Championship Game every year; and they played each other in it the 1992, '93 and '94 seasons.

But while they have had some success since, the San Francisco 49ers haven't won a World Championship since Super Bowl XXIX, on January 29, 1995, 25 years ago today. How long has that been?

*

The 1994-95 season was the NFL's 75th, and there were a lot of celebrations, including the occasional wearing of "throwback uniforms." The 49ers chose to go with their 1950s version, as seen in the photo of Steve Young above, with "drop shadow numerals."

Since then, the 49ers have moved from Candlestick Park, at the southeastern corner of San Francisco (6 miles from downtown), to Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, closer to downtown San Jose (7 miles) than to downtown San Francisco (45 miles).

To put it another way: Whereas once they were about as close to downtown SF as the Meadowlands is to Times Square, they are now that close to downtown SJ, and further from the downtown of the city in their name than any other team currently in North America's Big Five leagues.

In addition to the 49ers, every NFL team has since moved to a new stadium at least once, with 5 exceptions: The Dolphins still play at Hard Rock Stadium, the Chiefs still play at Arrowhead Stadium, the Green Bay Packers still play at Lambeau Field, the New Orleans Saints still play at the Superdome, and the Buffalo Bills still play at what was then named Ralph Wilson Stadium (now New Era Field).

With the Raiders having since moved back to Oakland and now back out, to Las Vegas, the Oakland Athletics are the only San Francisco Bay Area team still playing in the same stadium where they had played in 1994(-95). And except for the Knicks and Rangers at Madison Square Garden, every one of the New York Tri-State Area teams has moved (counting NYCFC, which didn't exist yet, which is also true of the Red Bulls, but they've moved once as well).

So have the NFL's Los Angeles Rams, Cleveland Browns (restored) and Houston Oilers. The NBA's Toronto Raptors, Vancouver Grizzlies and Charlotte Bobcats began play, but the Grizzlies moved to Memphis, and the Bobcats replaced the Charlotte Hornets, who moved to New Orleans. The Seattle SuperSonics moved to become the Oklahoma City Thunder, and the New Jersey Nets have just become the Brooklyn Nets. In the NHL, the Quebec Nordiques became the Colorado Avalanche, the old Winnipeg Jets became the Phoenix Coyotes, and the Hartford Whalers became the Carolina Hurricanes. The Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets began play, but the Thrashers became the new Winnipeg Jets. MLS, the WNBA and the NWSL have all since been founded.

The defending World Champions were the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL, the Houston Rockets in the NBA, the Rangers in the NHL (ugh, but the Devils were about to change that), and, in MLB, well, officially, the Toronto Blue Jays, but technically nobody, since there was no 1994 World Series. George Foreman was in his improbable 2nd reign as Heavyweight Champion of the World.

The Broncos, the New England Patriots, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the New Orleans Saints and the Seattle Seahawks have each since won their 1st NFL Championship. The Philadelphia Eagles have won their 1st since it began to be called the Super Bowl.

The Atlanta Braves, the Florida Marlins, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team currently known as the Los Angeles Angels, the Houston Astros and the Washington Nationals have since won their 1st World Series. The Giants have won their 1st since moving to San Francisco. The Boston Red Sox have since broken a drought of 86 years, the Chicago White Sox 88 years, and the Chicago Cubs 108 years.

The San Antonio Spurs, the Miami Heat, the Dallas Mavericks, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors have won their 1st NBA Championship. The New Jersey Devils, the Colorado Avalanche, the Dallas Stars, the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Carolina Hurricanes, the Anaheim Ducks, the Los Angeles Kings, the Washington Capitals and the St. Louis Blues have won their 1st Stanley Cup.

Football legends Don Hutson, Sammy Baugh, Jay Berwanger, Sid Luckman, Otto Graham, Elroy Hirsch, Don Blanchard, Glenn Davis, Chuck Bednarik and Doak Walker were still alive.

Ray Lewis and Peyton Manning were in college. Tom Brady and Drew Brees were in high school. Eli Manning, Troy Polamalu and Ben Roethlisberger were in junior high. Aaron Rodgers was 11 years old. Matt Ryan was 9; Clay Matthews and Ndamukong Suh were 8; Colin Kaepernick was 7; Richard Sherman, Russell Wilson and Nick Foles were 6; Cam Newton and Rob Gronkowski were 5; Odell Beckham Jr. was 4; Dak Prescott and Jimmy Garoppolo were 3; Michael Thomas was almost 2; and Baker Mayfield, Joey Bosa, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Lamar Jackson, Sam Darnold, Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa weren't born yet.

Current Chiefs coach Andy Reid was an assistant coach with the Green Bay Packers. Current 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan was in high school in the suburbs of Denver, where his father Mike was head coach of the Broncos.

Barry Trotz of the Islanders was the head coach of the Portland Pirates, a minor-league hockey team in Maine. Mike Miller of the Knicks was the head coach at Texas State University. David Quinn of the Rangers was an assistant coach at Northeastern University in Boston.

Aaron Boone of the Yankees was playing in the Cincinnati Reds' farm system. Alain Nasreddine of the Devils was playing for the minor-league Chicoutimi Saguenéens. Chris Armas of the Red Bulls was playing for the minor-league Long Island Rough Riders. Ronny Deila of NYCFC was playing for Odds Ballklubb in Skien, Norway. Kenny Atkinson of the Nets was playing in Spain's basketball league. Luis Rojas of the Mets and Adam Gase of the Jets were in high school. Joe Judge of the Giants was in junior high school. And Walt Hopkins of the Liberty was 9 years old.

The Olympic Games have since been held in America (twice), Japan, Australia, Greece, Italy, China, Canada, Britain, Russia, Brazil and Korea -- and had never previously been held in South America. The World Cup has been held in France, Japan, Korea, Germany, South Africa, Brazil and Russia -- and had never previously been held in Asia and Africa, or in a joint venture (2002 in Japan and Korea).

The idea that people of the same gender could marry each other, and have all the legal rights of married couples, was considered absurd. But so was the idea that corporations were "people," and entitled to all the rights thereof. Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer were the only Justices then on the U.S. Supreme Court who are still on it now.

Bill Clinton was in his 1st term as President. George W. Bush had just been inaugurated as Governor of Texas. George H.W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford and their wives, and Lady Bird Johnson were all still alive. (Reagan, Mrs. Johnson, and Mr. and Mrs. Ford have since died.) Barack Obama was teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago. Joe Biden was the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Donald Trump was with his 2nd wife, and the idea of him entering politics was ridiculous.

The Governor of California was Pete Wilson, a hard-line conservative Republican who loved the death penalty and hated immigrants. The idea that California would rebel against him and became one of the most reliably Democratic States was considered a pipe dream. But it happened. He had hoped to ride his re-election in 1994 to the Presidency in 1996, as former Governor Ronald Reagan had done, but he dropped out before 1995 was over. The Mayor of San Francisco was Frank Jordan. Wilson and Jordan are both still alive, in their 80s.

Current Governor Gavin Newsom was a real estate developer, specializing in restaurants and hotels. Current Mayor London Breed (that's her real name) was at the University of California at Davis, outside Sacramento -- putting her, at least in terms of physical distance, closer to the Governor of her State than to the Mayor of her City.

The Governor of New York was George Pataki. Current Governor Andrew Cuomo was Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. The Mayor of New York City was Rudy Giuliani. Current Mayor Bill de Blasio was an aide to Congressman Charlie Rangel. The Governor of New Jersey was Christine Todd Whitman. Current Governor Phil Murphy was running the European office of Goldman Sachs in Frankfurt, Germany.

The holders of the Nobel Peace Prize were Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat -- and now we know how that worked out. The Pope was John Paul II. The current Pope, Francis, then Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was Archbishop of Oca, Spain.

There were still surviving veterans of World War I, the Easter Rising, the Bolshevik Revolution and the Mexican Revolution. There were still living survivors of the Johnstown Flood of 1889, the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, the General Slocum disaster of 1904, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911, the sinkings of the Titanic and the Lusitania, and the workers on the Panama Canal.

The Prime Minister of Canada was Jean Chretien, and of Britain John Major. The monarch was Queen Elizabeth II -- that hasn't changed. Manchester United were the holders of both the Premier League and the FA Cup, but were about to cede the former to Blackburn Rovers of Lancashire and the latter to Everton of Liverpool. There have since been 4 Presidents of the United States, 5 Prime Ministers of Britain and 3 Popes.

Major novels of 1995 included The Horse Whisperer by Nicholas Evans, Independence Day by Richard Ford, The Rainmaker by John Grisham, High Fidelity by Nick Hornby and Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. Timothy Findley published a novel titled The Piano Man's Daughter. It was not about Alexa Ray Joel.

None of the Harry Potter, A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones, Bridget Jones, Twilight or
Hunger Games novels had yet been published. And no one had yet heard of Robert Langdon, Lisbeth Salander or Bella Swan.

Major films of early 1995 included Higher Learning, Murder in the First, Before Sunrise, Miami Rhapsody, Boys on the Side, Billy Madison, and the Western The Quick and the Dead. Pierce Brosnan's 1st outing as James Bond, Goldeneye, would premiere the following November. Dean Cain was playing Superman on TV, but Val Kilmer's turn as Batman on film would be a pathetic mess. And Sylvester McCoy was still the last man to play The Doctor.

Television shows that had aired, or were about to air, their final first-run episodes were Empty Nest, Blossom, Full House, Matlock and Northern Exposure. Newly-debuted were NewsRadio,
Sliders and the entire WB and UPN networks (eventually to merge), including Star Trek: Voyager. Soon to debut were Ned & Stacey (the 1st series to star Debra Messing), Caroline in the City, JAG, MADtv, The Drew Carey Show, and a show only slightly more cartoonish than that one, Pinky and the Brain. And yet, it was the Yankees who ended up taking over the world.

No one had yet heard of Ash Ketchum, Carrie Bradshaw, Tony Soprano, Jed Bartlet, Master Chief, Jack Bauer, Omar Little, Rick Grimes, Wynonna Earp, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Michael Bluth, Michael Scott, Don Draper, Walter White, Jax Teller, Richard Castle, Leslie Knope, Sarah Manning, Jane "Eleven" Hopper or Maggie Bell.

The Number 1 song in America was "Creep" by TLC. The surviving members of the Beatles were finishing The Beatles Anthology. Michael Jackson released HIStory. Tupac Shakur got married in prison.

Kourtney Kardashian and Pink were 16. Michelle Williams (both of them), Ben Savage, Kim Kardahsian, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, Hayden Christensen and Jessica Alba were 14. Natalie Portman, Beyonce Knowles, Britney Spears, Sienna Miller and Kirsten Dunst were 13. Prince William, Matt Smith and Anne Hathaway were 12. Prince Harry and Khloe Kardashian were 10.

Lady Gaga was 9, Rob Kardashian Jr. 8, Kevin Jonas and Rihanna 7, 7, Joe Jonas 5, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson 4. So was Sarah Hyland, and the rest of the Modern Family kids had not yet been born. Nor had Kendall and Kylie Jenner. Louis Tomlinson was 3. Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Miley Cyrus and Zayn Malik were 2. The other One Direction singers, Liam Payne, Nial Horan and Harry Styles, had yet to reach a 2nd birthday. Justin Bieber was about to have his 1st, so he wasn't a "Boyfriend," he was a "Baby."

Inflation has been such that what $1.00 bought then, $1.71 would buy now. A U.S. postage stamp was 32 cents. A New York Subway token was $1.25. The average price of a gallon of gas was $1.20, a cup of coffee $1.74, a McDonald's meal $5.29, a movie ticket $4.35, a new car $17,900, and a new house $158,900. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed the preceding Friday at 3,857.99.

The tallest building in the world was the Sears Tower in Chicago. The Internet was still new to most of us. Most of us had never heard of Microsoft or Netscape or America Online. There was no Facebook, no YouTube, no Twitter, no Instagram and no Pinterest. VHS videotapes were still the dominant way of recording and playing back movies and TV shows. Mobile phones were still roughly the size of the communicators on Star Trek. The birth control pill was long-established, but there was, as yet, no Viagra.

In the Winter of 1995, the World Trade Organization was established. Valeri Polyakov became the 1st person to complete and entire year in space, about Russia's Mir space station. An earthquake killed over 5,000 people in China. President Clinton extended a bailout to Mexico to keep its economy from collapsing.

Rose Kennedy, and Peter Cook, and former Middleweight Champion Carlos Monzón died. Megan Thee Stallion, and Leonard Fournette, and Arsenal players Calum Chambers and Héctor Bellerín
were born.

January 29, 1995. The San Francisco 49ers won the Super Bowl. It was their 5th win. There has not yet been a 6th.

They will have the chance for that 6th Super Bowl win this Sunday, playing the Kansas City Chiefs -- one team trying to break a drought of 25 years, the other a drought of 50 years.