Reflecting on the 49er Rivalry of the 90s

[MrKennedyKennedy]

One of the significant Cowboy rivals that will visit Big D in Texas Stadium's farewell season is the San Francisco 49ers, whom I rank third behind the Commanders and Eagles on the list of Dallas' most significant rivals.

(I rank them ahead of the Giants because they don't have the heated back-and-forth playoff history that Dallas has with the Niners. Also, Dallas/San Fran playoff games have had happier memories for us than the Giants)

Granted, San Francisco is not much to write about these days (other than Frank Gore), but I'm sure some of us will still remember the days when San Fran was the only other NFC team that Dallas was ranked up with.

Sports Illustrated summed it up best:

Why did we have to mess around so long with all this extraneous stuff?

Of course, there had to be a Regular Season and Surprising Teams and Resurgent Teams and Disappointing Teams and Experts Calculating Which Team Has A Chance To Sneak In As A Wild-Card Playoff Longshot, and the myriad Pregame Shows and Postgame Wrap-ups and Hope Springing Eternal In Rust-Belt Cities Where Football Is So Much Like Life, and Franchises Looking To The Future and Where Will Georgia Take Her Boys and Blah Blah Blah.

But it was all Nonsense. Had been all season. Only two Real Teams existed: the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers. All others were mobiles hanging in The Classroom Where Football Is Taught.

The 49ers and the Cowboys played each other once this year, on Nov. 13 in San Francisco, and it was a Big Game. None of this Maybe The Little Team From Green Bay Or The Clever Team From Chicago Can Pull Off An Upset. No, these were Men Duking It Out.

Observers were filled with a distinct sense that Troy and his Boys would be back.

And now they are, and thank god the swill has finally run off into the gutters where it belongs.

I'll also ask these questions as well:

1. Was there ever a '49ers Week' like we have with 'Commanders Week?'

2. How did you compare anticipating 49er games to the anticipation of Commanders/Eagles game?

3. What are your favorite Cowboy/Niners memories?

 

[zrinkill]

1. Was there ever a '49ers Week' like we have with 'Commanders Week?'

2. How did you compare anticipating 49er games to the anticipation of Commanders/Eagles game?

3. What are your favorite Cowboy/Niners memories?

1. No

2. We respected the 49ers more, it was usually the Real Superbowl.

3. The WE WILL WIN NFC championship game

 

[Nav22]

Growing up as a die-hard Cowboys fan in the Bay Area during the early-mid 90s was awesome.

 

[CowboyMark]

I have a friend who is a niner's fan and I already bet him $100. He really sees the niners winning the division and upsetting the cowboys in our house. Whats funny is that he looks serious when saying it. Anyways, the boys vs niners rivalry is one of the best in the history of the nfl and will bring back good memories for me. In particular the 93 NFC title game which I attended.

 

[lonestar6]

One thing that sets some rivalries ahead of others in my view is the quality of teams of team involved, and for that, early-mid 90's Cowboys vs 49ers can't be beat IMHO (in recent times Pats vs Colts comes close). Those 49ers teams were championship caliber teams (and the only team I was afraid of back then). Knowing that gave just that extra boost in the anticipation levels for those games, and not just for fans of both teams but the entire NFL as well.

Frankly, I haven't anticipated any Commanders game even a fraction as much since the 1992 opener on Monday night. They've been mired in mediocrity for so long ever since, and even when they beat the Cowboys they tend to suck doing it, so the games aren't as interesting. Eagles and Cowboys in the last few years have been decent and early 90s were pretty good, but still nowhere near 49ers level.

Favorite Cowboys/49ers moment was when Alvin Harper caught that 70 yard pass from Aikman in the 92 championship game and it dawned on me the Cowboys were going slay the dragon.

 

[Boysboy]

I'll also ask these questions as well:

1. Was there ever a '49ers Week' like we have with 'Commanders Week?'

2. How did you compare anticipating 49er games to the anticipation of Commanders/Eagles game?

3. What are your favorite Cowboy/Niners memories?

I WILL say this-back in '94 when the only 2 great teams in the NFL were us and the Niners, I DID make an exception and rooted FOR Philly when they played the Niners that year.(prolly my only time doing so)

They did us a favor that day when they smacked them 40-8 at Candlestick.(also happened to be Charlie Garner's coming out party)

Anyhow...

1) Yes, '94 in particular-we were coming off a short week from the Mon Night Giants game and had to travel out to the West Coast. The biggest game for both teams as it decided HFA. I remember marking my calender months ahead of time. Too bad we lost a tough win-Aikman's INTs in the endzone ended up deciding it, but Mike Shanahan had a brilliant game plan with Young moving around in and out of the pocket.

2) Depends-during our battles with the Niners, I saw them as a bigger threat than the Eagles/Giants. Like I said above, when the Niners played the Eagles one year, I rooted for the latter.

3) Smacking them in the '93 NFCCG-this was AFTER Jimmy Johnson inadvertantly guaranteed a win a few days before. He retracted his statement, but the Niners already put it up on their BB. Didn't matter.

Upsetting them in the '92 NFCCG-noone gave us a chance, but our "young" team came out and looked like CHAMPIONS. Even Madden commented on our "championship-like" drives in the 2nd half.

'96 reg season game @Candlestick-Barry Switzer finally got his first win against the Niners in 4 tries. Looked like the Niners had it locked up until Elvis Grbac threw an INT to Fred Strickland. The next day, SF's own mayor threw Grbac under the bus.

 

[CrazyCowboy]

nothing is like our Cowboys--nothing!

 

[lurkercowboy]

Yes, there was a 49ers week. The games were all hyped to a great degree, the 1995 game especially. ESPN had a mid-week preview show that year.

Personally, I really looked forward to the regular season matchups just as much as the divisional rivals.

Favorite was the 1992 playoff game. I wore the same shirt I wore for the 1981 championship game. Yes it still fit.