49ers: 2017 squad has a lot of similarities to San Francisco's 1979 team

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan used a comparison to his team’s 1979 start after starting off the year with an 0-7 record. But the similarities don’t end there.

During the offseason, the San Francisco 49ers cleaned out their front office and hired a first-time head coach armed with the hopes of turning a team around that finished 2-14 the year before.

Lacking talent, the Niners got off to an 0-7 start to the season, raising questions whether or not the new regime had what it would take to get the red and gold back on track.

Sound familiar? Well, that’s exactly what happened in 1979.

San Francisco 49ers /

San Francisco 49ers

Here we are in 2017, though, and the 49ers have entrusted their future with general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan. Unlike 1979, Shanahan did not hold both head coaching and GM duties, as did the late Hall of Famer, Bill Walsh.

Yet there are plenty of other comparisons between the two teams.

Shanahan, whose 2017 Niners are off to another 0-7 start, actually drew on the comparison, per Chris Biderman of Niners Wire:

"I was telling them how big of a team that was because they were the first team to win a Super Bowl here and they did it in ’81, and kind of talked to them a little bit about the ’79 season, when they were 2-14. Talked to them about the ’80 season, when they were 6-10. And I told them how the ’81 season was what started it all and talked to them about how I don’t think they just got to that ’81 season."

The winless streak to start the year is one thing. Let’s look at a few other comparisons.

Both 49ers Teams in the Wake of Terrible Management

He might be beloved by 49ers fans, but former owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr.’s start didn’t exactly get off on the right foot.

Fans today need no reminder how much former general manager Trent Baalke mismanaged the roster into ineptitude. But it’s hard to classify Baalke as the worst GM in team history. Instead, that honor should go to Joe Thomas, who was one of DeBartolo’s first moves.

6 Jan 1990: San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo celebrates during a playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California. The 49ers won the game, 41-13. Mandatory Credit: Otto Greule /Allsport /

Thomas only lasted in San Francisco from 1977 through 1978 but was responsible for a series of bad trades, including five total NFL Draft picks for an aging and increasingly ineffective O.J. Simpson.

Not unlike the last few seasons, Thomas was also responsible for jettisoning multiple head coaches in a span of just two years before being fired himself after 1978. Perhaps current CEO Jed York noticed DeBartolo’s mistakes and decided to clean house with a fresh start.

Again, it’s familiar.

The Veteran Quarterback and the Rookie

This is certainly a stretch, but the Niners started off the year with a veteran quarterback under center, Brian Hoyer, eventually giving way to a third-round rookie draftee, C.J. Beathard.

In 1979, however, Walsh’s 49ers employed an unheralded Steve DeBerg, who would eventually lose his starting job to one Joe Montana.

Beathard isn’t destined for Montana-like greatness, although both were taken in the third round.

Some Statistical Similarities

Both Shanahan and Walsh are and were known for their ingenious offensive systems. Walsh’s 49ers certainly had far more success his first season, and one might argue this benefited a rebuilding Niners defense in 1979.

Take a look at the side-by-side comparisons:

49ers Team Records and League Ranks Table
						Poin	Poin	Poin		Off	Off	Def	Def	Over	Over	Over	Over
Year	Tm	W	L	T	Div. Finish	PF	PA	PD	Coaches	Pts	Yds	Pts	Yds	T/G	Pts±	Yds±	out of
2017	San Francisco 49ers	0	7	0	4th of 4	123	186	-63	Shanahan	25	20	30	28	22	29	30	32
1979	San Francisco 49ers	2	14	0	4th of 4	308	416	-108	Walsh	16	6	27	20	19	27	10	28

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/27/2017.

San Francisco’s offense has been worse this season — ranked 25th compared to 1979’s ranking of 16th. But one could argue the 2017 bunch has had more success in the points differential, as seen above.

Nevertheless, both teams were bad. But that doesn’t mean things stay that way.

The Path to Greatness

Shanahan also pointed out what the 1979 group was going through in his recent team meeting, via Biderman:

"I think they went through a lot of stuff in those two years prior to that and some hard work. And they had to grind out and find out the types of people that Coach Walsh wanted on that team. And I think they went through a lot of adversity to get to that ’81 team. I kind of made some comparisons to that what we’re going through right now."

It wasn’t easy back then, much like it’s not easy right now.

One of the best examples of Walsh’s struggles can be summed up in NFL Network’s A Football Life series, this particular one on the Hall of Fame coach:

According to the series, Walsh questioned whether or not he had what it took to implement a successful program. So bad were the 49ers that year, they were even hosting open tryouts for anyone off the street wishing to attend.

One might hope the current Niners haven’t reached that point just yet.

More from Niner Noise

But the important thing to remember is this — the 1979 San Francisco squad hit the reset button and built the foundations for what was needed the following year.

In 1980, the 49ers finished 6-10 — notable improvement. And we all know what happened in 1981.

None of this is to say the 2017 season is merely the opening act for a return to Super Bowl glory in a couple of years.

Next: Top 5 head coaches in 49ers franchise history

But it’s happened before. It could again.

San Francisco 49ers: 2017 squad has a lot of similarities to 1979

By Peter Panacy | Oct 28, 2017