Niner Noise
FanSided

Ranking the top 10 playoff moments in San Francisco 49ers history

By Peter Panacy

24 Sep 2000: Jerry Rice #80 of the San Francisco 49ers get congradulated on his touchdown by teammate Jeff Garcia #5 during the game against the Dallas Cowboys at the Texas Stadium in Irving, Texas. The 49ers defeated the Cowboys 41-24.Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez /Allsport
24 Sep 2000: Jerry Rice #80 of the San Francisco 49ers get congradulated on his touchdown by teammate Jeff Garcia #5 during the game against the Dallas Cowboys at the Texas Stadium in Irving, Texas. The 49ers defeated the Cowboys 41-24.Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez /Allsport /
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No. 5: The Vernon Post

When: January 14, 2012

The 49ers had established something of a dynasty again in the early 2010s, riding the tenacity and attitude of head coach Jim Harbaugh during his first year in San Francisco.

When the Niners welcomed quarterback Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Divisional Round, they had to know the only way to pull off a win was to do so in shootout fashion.

And that’s exactly how it went.

Both the 49ers and Saints swapped scores six times in the fourth quarter — the last culminating in an epic pass from quarterback Alex Smith to tight end Vernon Davis.

“I looked at Alex. He looked back at me,” Davis later recalled, via 49ers.com. “I took off, came off with some explosion, got to about 10 yards, planted my left foot, soon as I could turn, the ball was right on me.”

Davis caught it with nine seconds to go, in case you forgot.

In doing so, this game-winning grab earned the accolade, “The Vernon Post” or, according to some, “The Catch III.”

Fans will never forget it either.