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Ranking the Top 5 Defensive Players in 49ers Franchise History

By Nicholas McGee

Dec 1, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker Patrick Willis (52) and inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman (53) react after Willis recorded a sack against the St. Louis Rams in the fourth quarter at Candlestick Park. The 49ers defeated the Rams 23-13. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 1, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker Patrick Willis (52) and inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman (53) react after Willis recorded a sack against the St. Louis Rams in the fourth quarter at Candlestick Park. The 49ers defeated the Rams 23-13. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 2, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; General view of Super Bowl XXIX ring to commemorate the San Francisco 49ers 49-26 victory over the San Diego Chargers at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Fla. on January 29, 1995 at the NFL Experience at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 2, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; General view of Super Bowl XXIX ring to commemorate the San Francisco 49ers 49-26 victory over the San Diego Chargers at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Fla. on January 29, 1995 at the NFL Experience at the George R. Brown Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Bryant Young

Byrant Young’s outstanding talent was obvious from his first season with the 49ers which, luckily for him, happened to be the 1994 Super Bowl-winning campaign.

Young recorded six sacks that year as he won the Lombardi Trophy as a rookie. He did not win another but established himself as one of the best to pull on a 49er uniform in a stellar 14-year career.

Forming a fearsome partnership with fellow defensive tackle Dana Stubblefield, Young quickly became one of the top players at a position in the league as the duo dominated in the nineties.

Young twice put up double-digit sacks, doing so for a second time in 1999 to win Comeback Player of the Year having suffered a season-ending leg injury the year before.

Even as the 49ers declined in the mid-2000s, Young remained a force up front and had 20 sacks in his final three seasons as San Francisco hovered between mediocrity and ineptitude.

Young was fittingly carried off the field following the final game of his career, and a place in the 49ers’ Hall of Fame is inevitable for this member of the 10-year club.