The San Francisco 49ers were one of the best teams in modern football and probably the best team in the 1980’s. With all of their accomplishments, including multiple Super Bowl victories, it is no wonder that they also for awhile became the most popular team in the league too. None of this could have happened though if they had not used their third round pick in the 1979 NFL Draft to select University of Notre Dame quarterback Joe Montana.
Joe Montana was an exceptional football player and played maybe the largest role in bringing the San Francisco franchise back from the lower level of the NFL and into the group of all time great teams. He accomplished many things during his career, and here are five interesting facts about 49ers great Joe Montana.
#1 – The First Of Many. The first touchdown Joe Montana would ever throw in the NFL was a 16 yarder to Bob Bruer in the fourth quarter of a 38-28 loss to the Denver Broncos in 1979. This was the only touchdown he threw during his rookie season as it wasn’t until 1980 that he would become the starter.
#2 – No player would catch more touchdown passes from Joe Montana than Jerry Rice. He and his quarterback would hook up 55 times for scores during their time together.
#3 – Joe Montana threw more touchdown passes against the Atlanta Falcons than he did against any other team in the NFL. Over the course of his career he threw 38 touchdown passes against Atlanta, barely edging out the 37 he threw against the Los Angeles Rams.
#4 – He threw more touchdowns in the second quarter than he did in any other quarter of play. His 89 second quarter touchdowns dwarf the 68 he threw in the fourth quarter, 62 he threw for in the first quarter, and the 54 he threw in the third quarter.
#5 – Davis Gets Amped Up. The last regular season touchdown pass Joe Montana would ever throw came in the game of the 1994 season. It was a 19-9 win over the Raiders and the pass was thrown in the first quarter, went for 47 yards, and was caught by Chiefs wide receiver Willie Davis. The last touchdown pass Montana threw as a 49er came two years earlier and was an eight yarder to running back Amp Lee.
