1988 San Francisco 49ers season The San Francisco 49ers 1988 season was their 43rd season in the National Football League . The season was highlighted by their third Super Bowl victory . In 1988 , the 49ers struggled . At one point , they were 6 - 5 and in danger of missing the playoffs but rose to defeat the Washington Redskins on a Monday night , eventually finishing the season at 10 - 6 . They gained a measure of revenge by thrashing the Minnesota Vikings 34 - 9 in the first round . The 49ers then traveled to Chicago ' s Soldier Field , where the chill factor at gametime was 26 degrees below zero . They defeated the Chicago Bears 28 - 3 in a NFC Championship game upset . For the 49ers , it was their first Super Bowl appearance since they defeated the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX . They had made the playoffs in the three seasons between Super Bowl XIX and Super Bowl XXIII , but were eliminated each time in the first round , primarily because of the poor performances by their offensive stars in those games ; quarterback Joe Montana , receiver Jerry Rice and running back Roger Craig all failed to produce a single touchdown . Regular season . In the 1988 season , San Francisco won the NFC West with a 10 - 6 regular season record , but it was a long uphill battle . The team had a quarterback controversy with Montana and Steve Young each starting at quarterback during the season . But after a 6 - 5 start , Montana led the 49ers to win 4 of their final 5 regular season games . Montana finished the regular season with 238 completions for 2 , 981 yards and 18 touchdowns , and also added 132 rushing yards . His favorite target was Rice , who recorded 64 receptions for 1 , 306 yards ( a 20 . 4 yards per catch average ) and 9 touchdowns . Craig was also a key contributor with a total of 2 , 036 combined rushing and receiving yards and 10 touchdowns , earning him the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award . Fullback Tom Rathman also made a big impact , rushing for 427 yards and catching 42 passes for 387 yards . The 49ers defense was led by defensive backs Ronnie Lott , Eric Wright , Jeff Fuller , and Tim McKyer , who recorded a combined total of 18 interceptions . McKyer led the team with 7 , while Lott recorded 5 . Linebacker Charles Haley was also a big contributor with 11 . 5 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries . Playoffs . NFC Divisional Playoff . Scoring Summary 1st Quarter MIN - Chuck Nelson 47 yard field goal MIN 3 - 0 SF - Jerry Rice 2 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 7 - 3 2nd Quarter SF - Jerry Rice 4 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 14 - 3 SF - Jerry Rice 11 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 21 - 3 3rd Quarter MIN - Hassan Jones 5 yard pass from Wade Wilson ( kick failed ) SF 21 - 9 4th Quarter SF - Roger Craig 4 yard rush ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 28 - 9 SF - Roger Craig 80 yard rush ( kick failed ) SF 34 - 9 NFC Championship Game . Scoring Summary 1st Quarter SF - Jerry Rice 61 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 7 - 0 2nd Quarter SF - Jerry Rice 27 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 14 - 0 CHI - Kevin Butler 25 yard field goal SF 14 - 3 3rd Quarter SF - John Frank 5 yard pass from Joe Montana ( Mike Cofer kick ) SF 21 - 3 4th Quarter SF - Tom Rathman 4 yard rush ( Mike Cofer kick ) 28 - 3 Super Bowl XXIII . The game is remembered for the 49ers ' fourth - quarter game - winning drive . Down 16 - 13 , San Francisco got the ball on their own eight yard line with 3 : 10 on the clock and marched 92 yards down the field in under three minutes . They then scored the winning touchdown on a Joe Montana pass to John Taylor with just 34 seconds left in the game . 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice was named the Super Bowl MVP . He caught 11 passes for a Super Bowl record 215 yards and one touchdown , while also rushing once for 5 yards . This was also the final NFL game coached by the 49ers ' Bill Walsh . This was also the final Super Bowl that Pete Rozelle presided over as NFL Commissioner . Scoring summary . 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter