No. 3: Justin Smith
Part of me wanted to make defensive end Justin Smith No. 1 on this list. He represents everything that I love about football.
Maybe even everything I love about people.
He was the most relentless, hard-working and honest football players to ever throw on a 49ers jersey. Best of all, he was incredibly strong, athletic, and talented too.
Smith was the reason San Francisco had so much success operating its 3-4 base scheme during that time.
The “Cowboy” ate up multiple blockers, allowing players like EDGE Aldon Smith to rack up the sack totals almost seamlessly.
Justin Smith retired, of course, before the 2015 season. And the Niners defense hasn’t been quite the same since.