# 1971 San Francisco 49ers season

The 1971 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 22nd season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 26th overall. The 49ers appeared in the NFC Championship Game for the second consecutive year. The team moved into a new home, eleven-year-old Candlestick Park, which they shared with the baseball Giants.
After winning two of their first three games on the road, the 49ers lost their first game at Candlestick Park to the Los Angeles Rams 20–13. The 49ers rebounded and successfully defended their NFC West title by posting a 9–5 record. For a second year in a row, the 49ers’ season ended in disappointment with a 14–3 loss in the NFC Championship Game to the Dallas Cowboys, this time on the road.

## Offseason

1971 San Francisco 49ers draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 23 | Tim Anderson | DB | Ohio State | Signed with Toronto Argonauts (CFL) |
| 2 | 37 | Ernie Janet | G | Washington | |
| 2 | 49 | Joe Orduna | RB | Nebraska | |
| 3 | 55 | Sam Dickerson | WR | USC | |
| 3 | 75 | Willie Parker | C | North Texas State | |
| 4 | 101 | Tony Harris | DB | Toledo | |
| 5 | 114 | Dean Shaternick | T | Kansas State | |
| 5 | 122 | George Wells | LB | New Mexico State | Signed with Toronto Argonauts (CFL) |
| 5 | 127 | Marty Huff | LB | Michigan | Made roster in 1972 |
| 6 | 153 | Al Bresler | WR | Auburn | |
| 7 | 179 | John Watson | G | Oklahoma | |
| 8 | 205 | Jim McCann | P | Arizona State | |
| 9 | 231 | Therman Couch | LB | Iowa State | |
| 10 | 236 | Ron Cardo | RB | Wisconsin–Oshkosh | |
| 10 | 257 | Ernie Jennings | WR | Air Force | |
| 11 | 283 | Joe Reed | QB | Mississippi State | Made roster in 1972 |
| 12 | 309 | Jim Bunch | DT | Wisconsin–Platteville | |
| 13 | 335 | John Bullock | RB | Purdue | |
| 14 | 361 | Bill Dunstan | DT | Utah State | |
| 15 | 387 | John Lennon | T | Colgate | |
| 16 | 414 | Dave Pursell | DT | Kentucky | |
| 17 | 438 | Leroy Charlton | DB | Florida A&M | |
| Made roster ||||||
    Source:

## Preseason

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 8 | Cleveland Browns | W 38–24 | 1–0 | Candlestick Park | 40,000 |
| 2 | August 13 | at Miami Dolphins | T 17–17 | 1–0–1 | Miami Orange Bowl | 57,008 |
| 3 | August 22 | San Diego Chargers | W 28–17 | 2–0–1 | Candlestick Park | 40,000 |
| 4 | August 28 | vs. Denver Broncos | W 33–17 | 3–0–1 | Joe Albi Stadium | 33,184 |
| 5 | September 4 | at Oakland Raiders | L 28–34 | 3–1–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 53,696 |
| 6 | September 9 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 20–23 | 3–2–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 55,607 |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 19 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 17–20 | 0–1 | Atlanta Stadium | 56,990 |
| 2 | September 26 | at New Orleans Saints | W 38–20 | 1–1 | Tulane Stadium | 81,595 |
| 3 | October 3 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 31–3 | 2–1 | Veterans Stadium | 65,358 |
| 4 | October 10 | Los Angeles Rams | L 13–20 | 2–2 | Candlestick Park | 44,000 |
| 5 | October 17 | Chicago Bears | W 13–0 | 3–2 | Candlestick Park | 44,000 |
| 6 | October 24 | at St. Louis Cardinals | W 26–14 | 4–2 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 50,419 |
| 7 | October 31 | New England Patriots | W 27–10 | 5–2 | Candlestick Park | 45,092 |
| 8 | November 7 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 13–9 | 6–2 | Metropolitan Stadium | 49,784 |
| 9 | November 14 | New Orleans Saints | L 20–26 | 6–3 | Candlestick Park | 45,138 |
| 10 | November 21 | at Los Angeles Rams | L 6–17 | 6–4 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 80,050 |
| 11 | November 28 | at New York Jets | W 24–21 | 7–4 | Shea Stadium | 63,936 |
| 12 | December 6 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 17–26 | 7–5 | Candlestick Park | 45,306 |
| 13 | December 12 | Atlanta Falcons | W 24–3 | 8–5 | Candlestick Park | 44,582 |
| 14 | December 19 | Detroit Lions | W 31–27 | 9–5 | Candlestick Park | 45,580 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Standings

NFC West :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| San Francisco 49ers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 2–4 | 7–4 | 300 | 216 | W2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 8 | 5 | 1 | .615 | 4–1–1 | 7–3–1 | 313 | 260 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 3–2–1 | 4–6–1 | 274 | 277 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 4 | 8 | 2 | .333 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 266 | 347 | L3 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

## Postseason
### Schedule

| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| Divisional | December 26 | Washington Redskins | W 24–20 | 1–0 | Candlestick Park | 45,327 |
| NFC Championship | January 2, 1972 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 3–14 | 1–1 | Texas Stadium | 63,409 |

### Game summaries
#### NFC Championship: vs. Dallas Cowboys

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| 49ers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
* Date: January 2, 1972
* Game time: 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. CST
* Game attendance: 63,409
* Referee: Tommy Bell
* TV announcers (CBS): Jack Buck and Pat Summerall
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | SF | DAL |
| 2 | | | | | Cowboys | Calvin Hill 1-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good | 0 | 7 |
| 3 | | | | | 49ers | 28-yard field goal by Bruce Gossett | 3 | 7 |
| 4 | | | | | Cowboys | Duane Thomas 2-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good | 3 | 14 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 3 | 14 |