# 1995 San Francisco 49ers season

The 1995 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 46th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their 50th overall.
Fresh from their victory in the Super Bowl the previous season, the 49ers lost cornerback Deion Sanders to Dallas and running back Ricky Watters to Philadelphia. Despite a mediocre 5–4 start, the 49ers went 11–5 and for the fourth straight time, they repeated as NFC West champions. The 49ers finished the season as the league's top scoring offense, averaging 28.6 points per game. They also finished number one in total defense, surrendering just 275 yards per game, along with being the top rushing defense and finishing second in points allowed. However, a stunning 27–17 loss to Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs stripped the 49ers of their title defense and ended their season. This would be the first of three consecutive seasons that the Packers beat the 49ers in the playoffs. From 1990 to 2000, the 1995 49ers were the only NFC team to lose a divisional-round playoff game following a first-round bye.
Jerry Rice caught a career-high 122 receptions along with 1,848 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns.
It was also the final season the 49ers wore their Super Bowl era uniforms.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

1995 San Francisco 49ers draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 10 | J. J. Stokes | Wide receiver | UCLA | |
| 4 | 127 | Tim Hanshaw | Guard | BYU | began play in 1996. |
| 6 | 201 | Antonio Armstrong | Linebacker | Texas A&M | |
| 7 | 238 | Herb Coleman | Defensive end | Trinity International | |
| Made roster ||||||

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 3 | at New Orleans Saints | W 24–22 | 1–0 | Louisiana Superdome | 66,627 |
| 2 | September 10 | Atlanta Falcons | W 41–10 | 2–0 | 3Com Park | 63,627 |
| 3 | September 17 | New England Patriots | W 28–3 | 3–0 | 3Com Park | 66,179 |
| 4 | September 25 | at Detroit Lions | L 24–27 | 3–1 | Pontiac Silverdome | 76,236 |
| 5 | October 1 | New York Giants | W 20–6 | 4–1 | 3Com Park | 65,536 |
| 6 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 7 | October 15 | at Indianapolis Colts | L 17–18 | 4–2 | RCA Dome | 60,273 |
| 8 | October 22 | at St. Louis Rams | W 44–10 | 5–2 | Busch Memorial Stadium | 59,915 |
| 9 | October 29 | New Orleans Saints | L 7–11 | 5–3 | 3Com Park | 65,272 |
| 10 | November 5 | Carolina Panthers | L 7–13 | 5–4 | 3Com Park | 61,722 |
| 11 | November 12 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 38–20 | 6–4 | Texas Stadium | 65,180 |
| 12 | November 20 | at Miami Dolphins | W 44–20 | 7–4 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 73,080 |
| 13 | November 26 | St. Louis Rams | W 41–13 | 8–4 | 3Com Park | 66,049 |
| 14 | December 3 | Buffalo Bills | W 27–17 | 9–4 | 3Com Park | 65,568 |
| 15 | December 10 | at Carolina Panthers | W 31–10 | 10–4 | Clemson Memorial Stadium | 76,136 |
| 16 | December 18 | Minnesota Vikings | W 37–30 | 11–4 | 3Com Park | 64,975 |
| 17 | December 24 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 27–28 | 11–5 | Georgia Dome | 51,785 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Game summaries
#### Week 1: at New Orleans Saints

The Niners began their Super Bowl defense on the road and raced to a 24–9 lead despite an injury to Steve Young (accidentally kicked in the back of his neck) that necessitated play by Elvis Grbac for part of the first half. Two second-half Saints scores only closed the final to 24–22 Niners.

#### Week 4: at Detroit Lions

The Niners suffered their first defeat of the season in a 27–24 loss at the 0–3 Lions. The game lead tied or changed four times in the second half and a last-second Niners field goal attempt failed.

#### Week 11: vs. Dallas Cowboys

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| 49ers | 17 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 38 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 20 |
at Texas Stadium, Dallas, Texas
* Date: November 12, 1995
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. PDT
* Game weather: 48 °F or 8.9 °C, relative humidity 39 percent, wind 15 miles per hour (24 km/h; 13 kn)
* Referee: Bob McElwee
* TV announcers (Fox): Pat Summerall (play-by-play) and John Madden (color commentator)
Game information :
First quarter
SF - Jerry Rice 81-yard pass from Elvis Grbac (Jeff Wilkins kick) 49ers 7–0
SF - Merton Hanks 38-yard fumble return (Jeff Wilkins kick) 49ers 14–0
SF - Jeff Wilkins 26-yard field goal 49ers 17–0
Second quarter
SF - Derek Loville 1-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick) 49ers 24–0
Dal - Emmitt Smith 1-yard run (Chris Boniol kick) 49ers 24–7
SF - Derek Loville 19-yard pass from Elvis Grbac (Jeff Wilkins kick) 49ers 31–7
Third quarter
Dal - Chris Boniol 26-yard field goal 49ers 31–10
Dal - Chris Boniol 37-yard field goal 49ers 31–13
Fourth quarter
SF - Elvis Grbac 1-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick) 49ers 38–13
Dal - Michael Irvin 8-yard pass from Jason Garrett (Chris Boniol kick) 49ers 38–20
49ers
Elvis Grbac: 20–30, 305 yards, 2 TD, 0 Int
Cowboys
Troy Aikman: 4–6, 29 yards, 0 TD, 1 Int
Wade Wilson: 15–26, 134 yards, 0 TD, 2 Int
Turnovers
49ers - 0
Cowboys - 4 :
In one of the biggest upsets of the year, the injury-depleted 49ers thrashed the Cowboys 38–20. Coming into this game, the Cowboys were the NFL's best team, with an 8–1 record. The 49ers, on the other hand, were sitting at 5–4 coming off disappointing losses to New Orleans and the expansion Panthers by a combined score of 24–14. Steve Young was out with injury and Elvis Grbac was the 49ers' starting quarterback, but he had consistently struggled, completing 55 passes for 570 yards but with four INTs. As a result, the Cowboys were 14-point favorites coming in.
On just the second play of the game, Grbac split two defenders and hit Jerry Rice for an 81-yard touchdown, putting the 49ers up 7–0. On the ensuing possession, Michael Irvin fumbled the ball and it was picked up by Merton Hanks for a 38-yard touchdown, putting the 49ers up by two touchdowns just 1 minute and 24 seconds into the game. On the Cowboys' ensuing drive, they again turned it over (Troy Aikman interception) that resulted in a 49ers field goal. The 49ers led 17–0 just 4 minutes and 58 seconds into the game. By halftime, the 49ers had an astonishing 31–7 lead and held on for the win, upsetting the red-hot Dallas Cowboys. The Cowboys turned the ball over four times in the game, while the 49ers had no turnovers.

## Standings

NFC West :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(2)}$ San Francisco 49ers | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 457 | 258 | L1 |
| $^{(6)}$ Atlanta Falcons | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 362 | 349 | W1 |
| St. Louis Rams | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 309 | 418 | L3 |
| Carolina Panthers | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 289 | 325 | L1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 319 | 348 | W1 |

## Postseason
### Schedule

| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Stadium |
| Wild Card | First-round bye | First-round bye | First-round bye | First-round bye | First-round bye |
| Divisional | January 6, 1996 | Green Bay Packers (3) | L 17–27 | 0–1 | 3Com Park |

### Game summaries
#### NFC Divisional Playoffs: vs. (3) Green Bay Packers

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Packers | 14 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 27 |
| 49ers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
at Candlestick Park
* Date: January 6, 1996
* Game time: 1 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: 52 °F or 11.1 °C, relative humidity 85%, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h; 4.3 kn)
* TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton (play-by-play) and Matt Millen (color commentator) First quarter Second quarter Third quarter Fourth quarter
** GB - Craig Newsome 31-yard fumble return (Chris Jacke kick). Packers 7–0
** GB - Keith Jackson 3-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick). Packers 14–0
** GB - Mark Chmura 13-yard pass from Brett Favre (Chris Jacke kick). Packers 21–0
** SF - Jeff Wilkins 21-yard field goal. Packers 21–3
** SF - Steve Young 1-yard rush (Jeff Wilkins kick). Packers 21–10
** GB - Chris Jacke 27-yard field goal. Packers 24–10
** GB - Chris Jacke 26-yard field goal. Packers 27–10
** SF - Derek Loville 2-yard rush (Jeff Wilkins kick). Packers 27–17
The 49ers, who were almost 10-point favorites in the game, were upset by the visiting Green Bay Packers. Green Bay set the tone early with a Craig Newsome 31-yard fumble return for a touchdown, and never looked back. Even though Steve Young had more pass attempts, completions and passing yards than his counterpart 1995 League MVP Brett Favre, he failed to throw for a touchdown and finished with 2 interceptions. The 49ers had 4 turnovers in the game. This was the final game for 49ers wide receiver John Taylor. 49ers didn’t win a Super Bowl until 1994, but in 1996 49ers got in the playoffs and win to the Eagles 14-0 and lost to the Packers 35-14 in the Divisional Round.

## Awards and records

* Led NFL, Points Scored, 457 Points
* Jerry Rice, Franchise Record, Most Receiving Yards in One Game, 289 Receiving Yards (December 18, 1995)
* Jerry Rice, Franchise Record, Most Receptions in One Season, 122 Receptions
* Jerry Rice, NFL Record, Most Receiving Yards in One Season, 1,848 Receiving Yards
* Jerry Rice, Pro Bowl MVP