A rainbow appeared over the 49ers’ practice facility late Wednesday afternoon as they worked out in a light rain.
It may or may not have been the same one quarterback Steve Young has been riding since that October afternoon in Detroit, when he rallied the Niners from a 14-point deficit to a 27-21 victory. It was the first of 10 straight wins for San Francisco and erased all the nagging doubts from a stunning 40-8 loss to Philadelphia at Candlestick Park the week before.
“We saw 14-0, and we were looking into the deep chasm of despair,” said Young. “We were staring it in the face. We were at the bottom. I think the whole team looked at it and said, `This is not us,’ and from that moment on ran away from it as fast as they possibly could.
“Here we are now, and I think it’s because of that moment, when the whole team knew we were not going to be defined that way.”
Young earned NFL Most Valuable Player honors Wednesday for his record-setting season, and on Saturday he’ll direct what may be the most lethal offense the game has ever seen. Though often imitated, this 49ers offense may never be duplicated.
Young set an NFL record with a passer rating of 112.4 and moved ahead of former teammate Joe Montana as the league’s career passing leader with a 96.7 rating. San Francisco set team records in points (505), touchdowns (66) and average points (31.6) this season as the fourth-highest scoring team in NFL history.
“If things keep progressing, this could be considered the best offense to play the game,” said tight end Brent Jones. “I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t our goal.”
What makes the 49ers’ offense so difficult to defense is it’s lack of a weakness in any area-running, passing or blocking.
“In the NFL, any good defense can take away something,” said Young. ” `We’re not going to let them run,’ or `We’re not going to let them throw.’ If you make that commitment to us, I think we’re good enough to hurt you either way.”
“The great thing for us is that William (Floyd) and Ricky (Watters) have gotten better and better together, so our running game has been such that if we get the crazy defense, now we can move the ball anyway.”
It helps when you also have the greatest wide receiver ever. Jerry Rice became the all-time touchdown leader this season (139 and counting), adding 13 TD catches in ’94. The improved off-the-field relationship between Young and Rice has helped them on the field.
“Steve is a good guy off the field, and that was something I didn’t realize at first until I really got a chance to know him,” said Rice. “We had a chance to talk about so many situations, so many things. It takes a chemistry like that if you’re going to jell and try to become a better football team.”
“This year it seemed like teams were going to take the extra linebacker inside,” Young said. “It seemed like teams did not want to get beat by Brent Jones inside. He was moving around inside very well last year, caught a lot of balls, and they were much more aware of him. When you take that first step to lock down the tight end and keep him from getting upfield, it keeps you from getting outside to prevent that pass.”
Young has come a long way from his days at Tampa Bay. He threw 21 interceptions to 11 touchdowns in his two seasons there before being shipped to San Francisco in 1987 so Vinny Testaverde could quarterback the Bucs. Young waited patiently behind Montana, getting only 10 starts in four seasons before his breakthrough year in 1991. By ’92, he had his first MVP award.
“When you talk about Most Valuable Player honors, I think about what a team would be like if you take that one individual off the field,” said Deion Sanders. “That’s what he means to me. We couldn’t function the way we function without a Steve Young. He’s everything to this team.”
Montana was the unquestioned master of the 49ers’ offense, but Young has somehow managed to out-Joe Joe in the hearts of many San Franciscans. He may not be considered Montana’s equal until he takes the Niners to a Super Bowl title, but now that Young is out of Montana’s shadow, he is having the time of his life.
“This year, I just enjoyed going out on the field, smelling the grass and all that kind of stuff,” he said. “That’s like little kids. That’s the great thing about playing football. You get to act like a kid all the time. Like we’ve proven.”
