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HISTORYHISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTSsacks and was named NFL Defensive Player of theYear by Associated Press and earned the Len EshmontAward as the team’s most inspirational player.Of the seven 49ers named to the Pro Bowl, five werefrom the defense. Stubblefield was joined by Doleman,FS Merton Hanks, LB Lee Woodall and LB KenNorton Jr. Gogan and Young were San Francisco’soffensive selections.1998Led by one of the most productive offenses in teamand league history, San Francisco posted its 16thconsecutive winning season and remained one of theNFL’s elite teams. Behind the strong arm of QB SteveYoung, the powerful legs of RB Garrison Hearst andthe triple-threat receiving corps of WR Jerry Rice,WR Terrell Owens and WR J.J. Stokes, the 49ersrolled to a 12-4 regular season mark and an appearancein the NFC Divisional Playoff Game. Youngopened the season in sizzling fashion. The 14-yearveteran established an NFL record by throwing forover 300 yards in six consecutive games, breakingthe previous record of five held by former 49ers QBJoe Montana. Young finished the season completing322-of-517 (62.3) passes for 4,170 yards and36 touchdowns. His final passing rating of 101.1marked the seventh consecutive season he has surpassedthe 100-point barrier and earned him hisseventh consecutive trip to the Pro Bowl. The 49ersoffensive line, led by Pro Bowl G Kevin Gogan, pavedthe way for Hearst’s record-setting season. Hearst,and his team-record and career-high 1,570 yardsrushing, were a major reason the 49ers led the NFLin rushing. His 198-yard performance against theNew York Giants on Monday Night Football also seta then team-record and was a personal-best. Hisfour plays of 70 yards or more led the league andhelped earn him his first career Pro Bowl selection.The 49ers receiving corps was in the capablehands of Rice, Owens and Stokes. Rice, returningfrom a serious knee injury in 1997, earned his12th career Pro Bowl nomination and finished witha team-high 82 receptions for 1,157 yards and ninetouchdowns. The athletic Owens asserted himselfamong the league’s best receivers and brightestyoung stars by catching 67 passes for 1,097 yardsand 14 touchdowns. Stokes caught a career-best63 passes for 770 yards and eight touchdowns. The49ers defense was paced by the inspiring play ofDT Bryant Young. Young was having an exceptionalseason with 54 tackles and 9.5 sacks before sufferinga season-ending leg injury against the NewYork Giants on Monday Night Football. Young was stillnamed Eshmont Award winner although missing thefinal four regular season games. LB Winfred Tubbs,in his first season with the 49ers, earned his firstcareer Pro Bowl nomination after finishing with 112tackles. CB Darnell Walker, FS Merton Hanks, S ZackBronson and S Tim McDonald led the team with fourinterceptions each.1999San Francisco had a streak of 16 consecutive winningseasons snapped, after finishing the 1999season with a 4-12 record. A season-ending injuryto QB Steve Young in Week 3 sent the 49ers into atailspin from which they did not recover. ReplacingYoung proved to be quite a task for QBs Jeff Garciaand Steve Stenstrom. Garcia received the first try atthe job and responded admirably, posting a 24-22victory, with a QB rating of 106.0, over the TennesseeTitans in his first NFL start. Garcia would start thenext four games, but was replaced by Stenstrom inWeek 10 at New Orleans. With Stenstrom strugglingin starts against the Saints, Rams and Packers, the49ers coaching staff returned Garcia to the startinglineup for a December 5 game at Cincinnati. Andwhat a return it was. Garcia threw for a career-high437 yards against the Bengals, including throwingtwo touchdown passes to WR Jerry Rice. The gameproved to be an impetus for Garcia, who over thefinal five games of the season completed 121-of-182 passes for 1,441 yards, eight touchdowns andthree interceptions for a quarterback rating of 98.3.During that stint, Garcia completed 66.5 percent ofhis passes and was sacked just three times for 25yards. San Francisco also was faced with the taskof replacing 1998 Pro Bowl RB Garrison Hearst andhis team-record 1,570 yards rushing. A key offseasonacquisition of RB Charlie Garner proved morethan an adequate replacement. Garner rushed for acareer-high 1,229 yards, caught a career-high 56passes for 535 yards and finished third in the NFLwith 1,764 total yards. The San Francisco runningattack also was given a boost by second-year FBFred Beasley’s 276 yards rushing and 282 yards receiving,both marks were career-high’s. Overall the49ers led the NFL with 2,095 yards on the ground,becoming the first team to lead the league for consecutiveseasons since Buffalo did it in 1991-92. The49ers also led the league with a per-rush average of5.0 yards. The San Francisco receiving corps wasonce again paced by Rice. He finished the year with67 receptions for 830 yards and five touchdowns.Certainly not the kind of numbers that Rice is accustomedto, but over the final five games of the season,Rice caught 24 passes for 420 yards (17.5) and threetouchdowns. In that span he posted two 100-yardgames, including a six-reception, 143-yard effort atAtlanta (1-3) in the season finale. WR Terrell Owensadded 60 receptions for 754 yards and four touchdownswhile J.J. Stokes totaled 34 grabs for 429yards and two touchdowns, including a five-reception,130-yard performance at Atlanta (1-3) in theseason finale. The 49ers defense struggled for muchof the season, but was highlighted by several individualperformances. DT Bryant Young was namedthe Associated Press Comeback Player of the Yearand earned a Pro Bowl selection. After overcoming adevastating leg fracture that ended his 1998 seasonand left his future clouded in doubt, Young answeredall questions by earning a Pro Bowl nomination withhis 11.0 sacks on the season. S Lance Schulters, inhis first season as a starter, responded by finishingsecond in the NFC with six interceptions, including agame-winning 64-yard return against New Orleans(9-19) in the second week of the season. Schulterswas named as the starting free safety for the NFCsquad in the 2000 Pro Bowl.2000San Francisco opened its sixth decade in the NFLunder new leadership. The transfer of ownershipfrom Edward J. DeBartolo, Jr. to his sister DeniseDeBartolo York was approved by the NFL May 23,2000. DeBartolo, Jr. ended his tenure after guidingthe 49ers to five Super Bowl Championships and16 postseason appearances. A young San FranciscoSAN FRANCISCO 49ERS \\382// MEDIA GUIDEteam, which at one point started five rookies on defense,showed marked improvement throughout theseason, winning four of the last six games, to finish6-10. The offense again was one of the best inthe league, which led to three starters being namedto their first Pro Bowl - QB Jeff Garcia, RB CharlieGarner and WR Terrell Owens. Garcia, who was in hisfirst season as the full-time starter, set the pace forthe offense all season long. He set career-highs inevery category, completing 355-of-561 passes for ateam-record 4,278 yards, with 31 touchdowns andonly 10 interceptions. He finished the year rankedfifth in the NFL with a 97.6 quarterback rating. Garciastarted all 16 games and had six 300-yard passinggames, including a 402-yard effort against Chicagoin December, which was his third straight 300-yardpassing performance and his sixth of the season.His productivity not only led to his first Pro Bowlappearance, but Football Digest also named himthe NFL’S Most Improved Player. WR Terrell Owenswas one of the many benefactors of Garcia’s success.Owens posted his second career 1,000-yardseason, catching a career-high 97 passes for 1,451yards, which ranked him fourth in the NFL. Owens,who only played in 14 games during the season, alsohad five 100-yard games and scored a team-high13 touchdowns. Owens had his best performance ofhis career against Chicago in December, breaking a50-year old NFL record with 20 receptions for 283yards and one touchdown. Owens broke Tom Fears’NFL record of 18 receptions in a game, which he setback in 1950 with the Rams. The 49ers backfieldwas again in the capable hands of Garner and FBFred Beasley. Garner earned his first Pro Bowl appearanceand became the fourth 49ers running backto rush for 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons.Garner, behind the stellar play of the 49ers offensiveline, ran for 1,142 yards on 258 carries andseven touchdowns. Also a receiving threat, Garnerset career-highs with 68 receptions for 647 yardsand three touchdowns. In addition, he establisheda team record with 201 yards rushing vs. Dallas.Beasley also had a solid year, rushing for 147 yardson 50 carries and three touchdowns, while catching31 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns. The49ers defense was young, but got better over thelast half of the season. The defense was again pacedby the efforts of DT Bryant Young, who posted 51tackles and led the team in sacks with 9.5. LB KenNorton Jr. was one of only three players to start all16 games, extending his consecutive games streakto 160. The 49ers defense started five rookies in thefinal game at Denver and had seven different rookiesstart throughout the 2000 campaign. Rookies CBAhmed Plummer, DE John Engelberger and CB JasonWebster all started at least 10 games. Six rookies—Plummer, Webster, Engelberger, LB Julian Peterson,DT Cedric Killings and S Ronnie Heard—participatedin more than 20-percent of the total 1,096 plays.2001The San Francisco 49ers made their return to theplayoffs after a two-year absence, as the youngand improving team posted a 12-4 record. The yearmarked the return of RB Garrison Hearst, who cameback from a devastating ankle injury that kept himout of football for two seasons. Hearst rushed for1,206 yards, was named Associated Press ComebackPlayer of the Year and also earned his second