clarinews@clarinet.com (MIKE RABUN, UPI Sports Writer) (01/19/90)
_A_d_v_a_n_c_e_ _w_e_e_k_e_n_d_,_ _J_a_n_._ _2_0_-_2_1 _U_P_I_ _S_p_o_r_t_s_F_e_a_t_u_r_e _(_1_,_4_0_0_) _ _S_u_p_e_r_ _B_o_w_l_ _B_e_g_s_ _t_h_e_ _Q_u_e_s_t_i_o_n_, Are the 49ers the Best Ever? NEW ORLEANS (UPI) -- The Super Bowl, along with its many accessories, comes rolling down the Mississippi this week to once again mesmerize a nation of football enthusiasts. The doors to this unique corner of America will be thrown open to thousands of people who will use this singular event to indulge in the national pasttime of having fun. It is a week unlike any other in the United States' sporting repertoire, one that blends the barons of industry, who will be present merely for financial reasons, and the zealous fans whose emotions will truly be affected by the numbers on the scoreboard. For those who yearn to be present but must watch from afar, there is little to do but wait until game time -- when they can join an estimated 110 million Americans who will take time out to watch at least a portion of what has become the country's most compelling sports attraction. But no matter whether one will be in the Louisiana Superdome next Sunday or peering at a television set, the 24th edition of this event carries with it a serious matter to contemplate. Are these San Francisco 49ers the best team ever to play the sport? Perhaps the question should not be posed until the concluding gun of Super Bowl XXIV, which beginning at approximately 5:15 p.m. EST next Sunday will bring together the 49ers and the Denver Broncos to decide the championship of the National Football League. It is a question, however, that will be argued often during the days prior to kickoff. The answer, of course, is in the eye of the beholder. Those who follow the fortunes of the Miami Dolphins, for instance, would consider it unthinkable that any team other than the 1972 version of that franchise could be considered the best. After all, the Dolphins of that season won all 17 games they played. It is a won-loss record unduplicated in the 70-year history of the NFL. And what about the Pittsburgh Steelers? Pick a year. There was 1974, 1975, 1978 and 1979. All of those teams won a Super Bowl. The Chicago Bears of 1985 certainly should get their share of consideration. They rolled through the regular season with a 15-1 mark and then crushed three teams in the post-season by the combined score of 91-10. Now we have the 49ers, who are arguably the most balanced, most talented and most dangerous group of players professional football has ever known. And why is that? To start with, virtually any high quality team playing the game these days is going to be better than the high quality teams that played 15-20 years ago simply because the athletes are bigger and faster and line up in more complex formations. It is just as easy to visualize San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana picking the 1972 Miami Dolphins apart as he did the Los Angeles Rams last week in the NFC championship game. And even though the Dolphins did go unbeaten en route to their victory in Super Bowl VII, it may be remembered that in the playoffs that year they beat Cleveland by only six points and Pittsburgh by just four before beating Washington by seven in the league's title game. So what about the Steelers? Pittsburgh put together a tremendous mix of talent during its dynasty, but the Steelers won the big games chiefly because of Terry Bradshaw's reliance on his wide receivers and the defensive secondary's ability to maul opposing pass catchers. Of all of Bradshaw's skills, and there were many, the most important one was his realization that if he threw the ball downfield a long way, the chances were that Lynn Swann or John Stallworth would outduel the defender. Pittsburgh's offense was not so dominating as it was explosive. And under current NFL rules, the Steelers defense would have had some of its fangs removed. The Bears, of course, are a different matter. In their Super Bowl year four seasons ago, they took on the look of invincibility that is associated only with the great teams. Chicago was untested by the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl that year, but there remains a haunting series of mental portraits from the Bears NFC championship meeting with the Los Angeles Rams. Time after time, the Rams had receivers running free in the Chicago secondary. The Bears would have been beatable that day if the Rams had been able to field a quarterback who could taken advantage of the opportunities that presented themselves. Los Angeles was quarterbacked that day by Dieter Brock and he was not up to the task. Joe Montana and his current teammates would have been. So what makes the 49ers so good? Perhaps San Francisco has done a magnificent job of transfering the game of chess to the football field. Coaches devote days, weeks and years trying to master the complexities which can occur when 22 individuals are running around in various directions. If the 11 opposing players are lined up one way, the 11 men on offense can theoretically do certain things that should work almost every time. But even when the proper scheme is developed with its myriad of possibilities, it doesn't do much good unless your 11 players understand its many nuances and have the talent to carry out the almost limitless number of potential assignments. San Francisco has that scheme and has those players. One of those who best appreciates the extraordinary nature of San Francisco's offense is the man who must help defend against it -- Denver Coach Dan Reeves. ``They probably do more things offensively than anybody I've ever seen,'' Reeves said. ``And I don't just mean plays. You look at their blocking schemes. They have a lot of different ones. Their passing attack varies from game to game. Their running attack varies from game to game. ``Obviously Montana is the key. He has had an unbelievable season. I would think that right now he is hotter than any quarterback has ever been. ``But he has a great supporting cast, too. The trouble with them is that you can't zero in and say we've got to stop the passing game. If you double cover (receivers) Jerry Rice and John Taylor, then (Roger) Craig and (Tom) Rathman will come out running all over the place. ``And then you look at their defense. They never get the publicity they deserve because of all the guys they have on offense. But they do a great job of changing up on defense. They will give you one look and you think you know what they are going to do and then they do something else. ``And they come up with more pass rushers than I've ever seen. I don't know where they come from. But year in and year out they do as good a job of rushing the passer as anybody. ``They have no weaknesses. They've got two good return men and two good kickers. You can see why they have won three world championships.'' Montana's Super Bowl counterpart speaks in reverent tones about the man who completed more than 70 percent of his passes this season. ``The system fits Joe Montana absolutely perfect,'' said Denver quarterback John Elway. ``And that is great. But the thing I've noticed about Joe most of all is how accurate he is. It's amazing that every time he throws the football, it is right on the guy's numbers. You never see their guys drop a ball, either. But Joe makes it easy because it's right there all the time.'' Since Nov. 21 of 1988, the 49ers have won 20 games and lost three. In that stretch, they have played five playoff games and been threatened in only one -- last year's dramatic victory in the Super Bowl. Neither the Minnesota Vikings nor Los Angeles Rams could so much as throw the 49ers off stride in their march to Super Bowl XXIV. In an era when so little separates the average from the good teams, the 49ers have risen far above. And if the 49ers roll to their fourth Super Bowl victory in four tries and their second in a row, the doubters will be hard to find. San Francisco would then emerge from the group of NFL teams that have been truly great and would carry its own title -- ``The Greatest.'' _A_d_v_a_n_c_e_ _w_e_e_k_e_n_d_,_ _J_a_n_._ _2_0_-_2_1