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1949December 10, the NFL and AAFC announced thatthe two leagues will merge. The NFL agrees to adoptBaltimore, Cleveland and San Francisco as newfranchises.1950The 49ers struggled in their NFL debut, winning onlythree games. A rival coach described them as “notbig enough or tough enough.”1951In an amazing reversal of form sparked by a greatrookie group, the 49ers were in the race until theseason’s final day and finished only a half gameoff the top. Led by LB Hardy Brown and his famedshoulder tackle, the club had one of the toughestdefensive units in the League. QB Y.A. Tittle and EBilly Wilson began their great 49er careers.1952After a blazing start, the 49ers slumped in mid-season.HB Hugh “The King” McElhenny came off theUniversity of Washington campus to become the NFLPLAYER OF THE YEAR and the most feared runner infootball.1953The 49ers had their best NFL showing posting a 9-3record, normally good enough for a championship.Detroit, however, was 10-2. Two of San Francisco’slosses came with QB Y.A. Tittle sidelined because ofa severe facial injury. The three defeats were by atotal of nine points. FB Joe “The Jet” Perry becameone of the few players in pro history to gain morethan 1,000 yards in a single season. E Gordy Soltauwas the league’s top scorer for the second straightyear.1954The 49ers jumped out to a blazing start, posting a4-0-1 record through the season’s first five games.However the early momentum was slowed by injuriesto three key members of the legendary “MillionDollar Backfield.” QB Y.A. Tittle, HB Hugh McElhennyand FB Joe Perry all missed action with different injuries,but Perry returned to become the first playerto record 1,000 yards rushing in consecutive seasons.1955With HB Hugh McElhenny hobbled by a foot injury,the 49ers had their second-worst season in historyunder Norman P. Strader, who succeeded Buck Shawas head coach.1956In head coach Frankie Albert’s first year at the helm,the 49ers were in last place at mid-season witha 1-6 record. They went 4-0-1 in their last fivegames for a brilliant stretch drive.HISTORYHISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS1957This undoubtedly was one of the most emotional anddramatic seasons in 49ers history. Every game wasa cliffhanger and the Alley Oop pass from QB Y.A.Tittle to rookie HB R.C. Owens became a householdbyword. Emotions reached a peak when the belovedTony Morabito collapsed and died of a heart attackat the Chicago Bears game on Oct. 27. Trailing 17-7, the 49ers fought back for a great victory, 21-17.The magnificent E Billy Wilson caught a pass fromTittle for the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter.Tied with Detroit at 8-4 when the season ended,the 49ers lost the playoff game, 31-27, after holdinga 27-7 lead in the third quarter.1958An up-and-down season finished on a high notewith victories over Green Bay and Baltimore. The6-6 record, however, was blackened by the 33-3and 56-7 lacings at the hands of the Los AngelesRams. Head coach Frankie Albert resigned at the endof the year.1959With Howard W. “Red” Hickey in charge, the 49erswere in contention all the way and QB John Brodiecame into his own at quarterback when he led theteam to a 21-20 upset of Cleveland. HB J.D. Smith, aconverted defensive back, became the second 49erto accumulate more than 1,000 yards rushing.1960Howard W. “Red” Hickey saved a seemingly hopelessseason when he installed his shotgun attack and theclub captured four of its last five games, including a30-22 upset of Baltimore.1961The success of Howard W. Hickey’s shotgun amazedthe football world, especially in a 49-0 victory overDetroit. QB Billy Kilmer, a passing-running rookiefrom UCLA, was made to order for the new offense.When the shotgun stopped, QB John Brodie took overagain in the T formation and had the finest seasonin 49ers QB annals. Indicating the evenness of NFLcompetition, the 49ers were playing for a secondplacetie, plus a trip to the Runner-up Bowl at Miami,or a fifth-place position on the last day of the season.The Colts again won by three points, but 1961will remain as one of the most exciting and interestingyears in 49ers history.1962For the first time since 1956, the 49ers finished afrustrating season with more defeats than victories.In so doing, the honored adage of “it’s easier to winat home than on the road,” proved false—the 49erswon only one of seven at Kezar Stadium, but capturedfive of seven road contests.1963 - A multitude of injuries to key personnelstarted the 49ers off to a disappointing 2-12 season.One of the victories, however, was a 20-14 upset ofultimate world champion Chicago, the only leaguedefeat suffered by the Bears all season.SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS \\377HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS// MEDIA GUIDE1964Club Chief Executive Victor P. Morabito died of a heartattack in May. Injuries to key personnel preventedthe 49ers from gaining enough offensive momentumto forge a winning season despite having one of thetoughest defensive units in the league. Outstandingrookie performances by E Dave Parks, QB GeorgeMira and LB Dave Wilcox also took some of the stingfrom the 4-10 record.1965Outstanding offensive performances enabled the49ers to jump from the bottom to fourth place in theWestern Division as the team led the NFL in bothscoring and total offense. QB John Brodie was themost productive passer in the NFL, E Dave Parks ledthe league in receiving and rookie FB Ken Willard andveteran HB John David Crow, acquired in an offseasontrade, led a strong ground game. The 7-6-1 recordincluded a season-opening 52-24 victory overthe Chicago Bears, marking the most points scoredby the 49ers in NFL play.1966After a somewhat slow start, the 49ers got in gearjust before the midway point and became one ofonly two teams to beat the eventual world championGreen Bay Packers. After that, they finished with arespectable 6-6-2 record and were in the battle forsecond place in the Western Division until the finalleague game. G John Thomas and E Dave Parks wereAll-Pro, and they joined G Howard Mudd, C BruceBosley, FB Ken Willard and LB Dave Wilcox in the ProBowl.1967An auspicious start (5-1) disintegrated into disappointmentfor the 49ers as injuries took a heavy tolland a six-game losing streak took them out of therunning. QB George Mira came off the bench to leadthe squad to two season-ending victories and salvagea 7-7 record. There were bright spots, however,as QB John Brodie and the 49ers were the onlyteam to beat the power-laden Rams in a leaguegame. G Bruce Bosley played in the Pro Bowl for thesecond straight season.1968Under new coach Dick Nolan, the 49ers posted a7-6-1 record. The season turned on key wins overthe New York Giants, 26-10, and Green Bay, 27-20. Brilliant performances by QB John Brodie, WRClifton McNeil and RB Ken Willard led a prolific offense,while DT Charlie Krueger, LB Dave Wilcox andDB Kermit Alexander sparked a revitalized defense.McNeil and G Howard Mudd were chosen All-NFLand were joined by Wilcox, Willard and Alexander inthe Pro Bowl.1969Beset by injuries that nearly decimated the defensiveunit, the 49ers struggled through the early part of theseason. They went winless in their first five gamesbefore beating Baltimore, the first time they had