# 1965 San Francisco 49ers season

The 1965 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 16th season in the National Football League, their 20th overall, and their third under head coach Jack Christiansen. They improved on their 4–10 record from 1964 and finished 7–6–1. However, they failed to qualify for the playoffs for the eighth consecutive season. Christiansen experienced his highest winning percentage in 1965, with a win loss percentage of .538.

## Regular Season Analysis

The 1965 San Francisco 49ers were 1st of 14 in the league in Points For, averaging 30.1 points per game. Despite offensive success, they were unable to overcome defensive struggles, ranking 13th of 14 in Points Against, averaging 28.7 points per game.
With John Brodie playing quarterback, the 49ers' 1965 season had high expectations from around the league.
The 49ers had a strong QB–WR duo in John Brodie and Dave Parks, with a lethal playmaking ability that many compared to Joe Montana and Jerry Rice. The 49ers' first draft pick, Ken Willard, proved to be the 49ers' leading rusher with 778 yards in his rookie campaign. He averaged a dominant 4.1 yards per carry, which placed him 4th in the NFL at that time.
The 49ers started the season with a 52–24 win against the Chicago Bears at home. They highlighted much of what the public expected from their offense. The following week, the 49ers won their second straight home game to start the season 2–0 after beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 27–17.
The 49ers lost their first game on October 3 against the Baltimore Colts despite a career day for Parks, who totaled 231 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns from 9 receptions.
The 49ers lost back-to-back games, taking a 10–27 loss against the Vince Lombardi-led Green Bay Packers in Lambeau Field, a team that would win the 1965 NFL Championship Game against the Cleveland Browns.
The 49ers rallied back after two straight losses to pick up a colossal win against the Los Angeles Rams in the Los Angeles Memorial Colosseum, winning 45–21 behind three passing touchdowns from Brodie.
On October 24, the lack of emphasis on defense led to a disappointing loss to the Minnesota Vikings at home. Despite leading by as much as 21 points, the 49ers defense was unable to protect the lead and dropped their 3rd game in 4 weeks after losing 41–42. A team with all the offensive firepower in the world was beginning to slip up.
The 49ers proceeded to lose their next two games as their defense continued to struggle. Despite averaging around 33 points through their first 6 games, their defense was unable to hold up against the Baltimore Colts and the Dallas Cowboys. The 49ers lost 28–34 to the Colts at home, and lost 31–39 to the Cowboys on the road. The 49ers disappointingly fell to 3–5 despite statistically having the league's best offense.
On the road against the Detroit Lions, the 49ers picked up a huge win thanks to a 75-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown by defensive end Clark Miller. The 27–21 victory was the start of a huge late-season surge as the 49ers began looking ahead to a potential playoffs berth despite the three straight losses.
On November 21, the San Francisco 49ers hosted the Los Angeles Rams in what turned out to be a thrilling conference matchup decided by a 22-yard game-winning field goal from Tommy Davis. The 49ers won 30–27 and once again had hope for a postseason berth as they posted an even 5–5 record with four crucial matchups remaining.
John Brodie made a swift recovery from his injured shoulder, tossing a career-high five passing touchdowns and scoring 45 points on offense in a revenge win from their loss to Minnesota earlier in the season. The 49ers picked up a huge win at home the following week, beating the Detroit Lions 17–14 and putting themselves in position to make the playoffs.
The 49ers' playoff hopes came to a disappointing end after the team was destroyed at Wrigley Field by the Chicago Bears, losing 61–20 as Gale Sayers scored an NFL-record 6 touchdowns in the blowout. The 49ers proceeded to tie the Green Bay Packers the following week to finish their inconsistent season 7–6–1.

## Offseason
### NFL Draft

The San Francisco 49ers had the 2nd overall pick in the 1965 NFL Draft. Although 20 players were drafted, only 13 would suit up and play an NFL game. Picks from the first ten rounds are shown below.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | School/Club Team |
| 1 | 2 | Ken Willard | RB | North Carolina |
| 1 | 13 | George Donnelly | DB | Illinois |
| 2 | 16 | Joe Cerne | C | Northwestern |
| 3 | 29 | Bob Schweickert | QB | Virginia Tech |
| 3 | 30 | Jim Norton | DE | Washington |
| 3 | 42 | Jack Chapple | LB | Stanford |
| 4 | 44 | Larry Todd | RB | Arizona St |
| 5 | 58 | Dave McCormick | T | LSU |
| 9 | 114 | Wayne Swinford | DB | Georgia |
| 10 | 128 | Bob Cappadona | RB | Northeastern |

## Regular season schedule
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap |
| 1 | September 19 | Chicago Bears | W 52–24 | 1–0 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 2 | September 26 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 27–17 | 2–0 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 3 | October 3 | at Baltimore Colts | L 24–27 | 2–1 | Memorial Stadium | Recap |
| 4 | October 10 | at Green Bay Packers | L 10–27 | 2–2 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 5 | October 17 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 45– 21 | 3–2 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Recap |
| 6 | October 24 | Minnesota Vikings | L 41–42 | 3–3 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 7 | October 31 | Baltimore Colts | L 28–34 | 3–4 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 8 | November 7 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 31–39 | 3–5 | Cotton Bowl | Recap |
| 9 | November 14 | at Detroit Lions | W 27–21 | 4–5 | Tiger Stadium | Recap |
| 10 | November 21 | Los Angeles Rams | W 30–27 | 5–5 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 11 | November 28 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 45–24 | 6–5 | Metropolitan Stadium | Recap |
| 12 | December 5 | Detroit Lions | W 17–14 | 7–5 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| 13 | December 12 | at Chicago Bears | L 20–61 | 7–6 | Wrigley Field | Recap |
| 14 | December 19 | Green Bay Packers | T 24–24 | 7–6–1 | Kezar Stadium | Recap |
| Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Standings

NFL Western Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Green Bay Packers | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 8–3–1 | 316 | 224 | T1 |
| Baltimore Colts | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 8–3–1 | 389 | 284 | W1 |
| Chicago Bears | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 7–5 | 409 | 275 | L1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 7 | 6 | 1 | .538 | 6–5–1 | 421 | 402 | T1 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 5–7 | 383 | 403 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 6 | 7 | 1 | .462 | 4–7–1 | 257 | 295 | W1 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 | 2–10 | 269 | 328 | L1 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Cleveland Browns | 11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 11–1 | 363 | 325 | W1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 6–6 | 325 | 280 | W3 |
| New York Giants | 7 | 7 | 0 | .500 | 7–5 | 270 | 338 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 6–6 | 257 | 301 | W1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 5–7 | 363 | 359 | L1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 5–7 | 296 | 309 | L6 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 2 | 12 | 0 | .143 | 2–10 | 202 | 397 | L7 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

## Awards, records, and honors

The 1965 San Francisco 49ers had 4 Pro Bowlers and 1 First Team All-Pro players.
John Brodie - Pro Bowl Selection
Ken Willard - Pro Bowl Selection
John David Crow - Pro Bowl Selection
Dave Parks - Pro Bowl Selection, First Team All-Pro