How Elite Were They? #47- Joe Montana’s 14-win 1984 Season

Originally published on Dec. 16, 2024

By Zane Miller

When we last left off in covering the career of legendary San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana, he had just had his breakout season in 1981, not only ending the team’s four-year long streak of losing seasons but also leading them to their first Super Bowl title in franchise history. However, Montana could not replicate the same team success in the strike-shortened 1982 campaign, as despite leading the NFL in touchdown passes and finishing second in passing yards, San Francisco’s poor defense and running game led to an underwhelming 3-6 record.

Montana and the 49ers bounced back in 1983, as the team drafted future Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott at cornerback and should-be Hall of Famer Roger Craig at running back. Montana had another excellent season, finishing inside the top-five in both passing touchdowns and passing yards to get the 49ers back above the playoff line with an NFC West title, though they would be eliminated in the NFC Championship Game by the Washington Redskins (now Washington Commanders). In 1984, though, San Francisco would see a commanding performance of historic proportions.

Montana wouldn’t have to wait long for a chance to enact his revenge on the Redskins, as the two teams faced each other on Monday Night Football just two weeks into the season on September 10^th. In a hotly contested affair after the 49ers squandered a 27-3 halftime lead, Montana threw for 381 yards, the most he would have in a game in 1984, along with two touchdown passes and a rushing TD to dispose of Washington 37-31.

On October 21^st, Montana and company had another excellent showing against the winless Houston Oilers (now Tennessee Titans), passing for three touchdowns and 353 yards, including an 80-yard bomb to wide receiver Dwight Clark, to avenge their season’s lone loss a week earlier with a 34-21 victory over Houston. Not satisfied with giving up 21 points to a far inferior opponent, the 49ers set out to prove themselves just a week later against the Los Angeles Rams. In what was arguably the best overall game of their spectacular season, the 49ers took down their division rivals with a 33-0 shutout victory in front of the Rams’ home fans. Of course, Montana had his finest game of the season, throwing for three touchdowns and 365 yards with no interceptions as the 49ers improved to 8-1.

As a matter of fact, the team would not lose again for the rest of the year, going 15-1 to become the first team in NFL history to reach 15 wins in the regular season. Montana was the starting quarterback for 14 of those wins, with the only game not started by him going to backup Matt Cavanaugh, who led the team to a 23-9 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in week 3. Montana ended the 1984 campaign fourth in the league in passing touchdowns with 28, and sixth in passing yards with 3,630. However, both of these would be overshadowed by sophomore sensation Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins, who set new league records in both categories with 48 touchdowns and 5,084 yards.

Nonetheless, the real prize was still up for grabs, and the 49ers would start their playoff journey in the divisional round against the wild-card New York Giants after securing the first-round bye. Remaining at home for the December 29^th matchup, San Francisco jumped out to a two-possession lead at halftime, before both defenses pitched a second half shutout. Despite the Giants forcing three turnovers, it wouldn’t be enough as the 49ers moved on with a 21-10 win. Montana’s performance was certainly shaky at times, throwing three interceptions, though this also came along with three touchdowns and 309 yards through the air. Meanwhile, Giants quarterback Phil Simms threw for 218 yards and no touchdowns with a pair of interceptions.

While the calendar turned the page to 1985, the road to Super Bowl XIX continued to go through Candlestick Park as the 49ers hosted the Chicago Bears in the NFC Championship Game. While the Bears would prove themselves as a force to be reckoned with later on in the calendar year, it wouldn’t happen this time as the 49ers picked up a 23-0 shutout to advance to the Super Bowl. Despite holding a slim 6-0 lead at halftime, San Francisco pulled away with a pair of touchdowns as the defense held pat in the second half. Montana nabbed a touchdown pass and 233 passing yards against two interceptions, while Bears quarterback Steve Fuller, who had taken over for an injured Jim McMahon earlier in the season, struggled with just 87 passing yards and no touchdowns while also throwing an interception in the loss.

January 20^th was the date of Super Bowl XIX in Stanford, California, just 45 minutes south of San Francisco. This essentially made it a home game for the 49ers against the visiting Miami Dolphins despite not playing in their home stadium, with the next time a team had a decided home field advantage in a Super Bowl coming over 35 years later in the 2020 season.

Looking to cap off an incredible season of their own, the Dolphins jumped out to a first quarter lead, though Montana and the 49ers were able to set the tone with a 33-yard touchdown pass to backup running back Carl Monroe. The glimpse of hope for Miami was extinguished in the second quarter, however, as Montana found Craig to retake the lead, followed by two more touchdown runs as the normally red hot Dolphin offense suddenly went cold. Though they were able to pull together two short field goals before the end of the half, cutting the lead to 28-16, that would be all the stifling 49ers defense would allow. They shut out Miami in the second half while the offense put the Lombardi Trophy further out of reach, culminating in a 38-16 victory in front of Bay Area faithful.

Montana claimed his second Super Bowl title with his best performance of the playoffs, throwing three touchdowns, two of which went to Craig, along with 331 yards and no interceptions to also claim his second Super Bowl MVP award. On the other side, the historical season by Marino ended on a sour note, as despite adding a touchdown pass and 318 yards, the two interceptions and four sacks taken proved costly.

Becoming one of just two men to win Super Bowl MVP twice, Montana’s reign in the Bay Area was in full swing. However, while his personal statistics continued to stay at an elite level, it would surprisingly take a while before the Comeback Kid crossed the 12-win barrier again.