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San Francisco 49ers: Ranking the top 10 teams in franchise history

By Robert Morrison

JAN 1990: THE VINCE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRIOR TO THE SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS 55-10 SUPER BOWL XXIV VICTORY OVER THE DENVER BRONCOS. MANDATORY CREDIT: RICK STEWART/ALLSPORT
JAN 1990: THE VINCE LOMBARDI TROPHY PRIOR TO THE SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS 55-10 SUPER BOWL XXIV VICTORY OVER THE DENVER BRONCOS. MANDATORY CREDIT: RICK STEWART/ALLSPORT /
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Defensive lineman Jim Burt of the San Francisco 49ers  Mandatory Credit: Getty Images
Defensive lineman Jim Burt of the San Francisco 49ers  Mandatory Credit: Getty Images /

The 49ers are one of the most storied franchises in NFL history, having won five Super Bowls and winning 570 games since 1946. This is Niner Noise’s top 10 teams in team history.

There are several ways to attempt to figure out who the best teams in San Francisco 49ers history might be, but one of the problems is how long the franchise has been around.

Since few of us weren’t around in 1946 when the team began playing games in the All-American Football Conference (AAFC), nor do we have much memory of its early NFL squads or even much before the heyday in the 1980s and 1990s, it’s difficult to rely on the eye test.

So Niner Noise developed a formula based on several criteria to help build the list of top 10 teams in 49ers history.

The formula is based on team success (wins, division titles, playoff wins, etc.), team statistics (overall offense and defense) and some elements of individual player success (MVPs, Rookie of the Year awards, league leaders, etc.), attempting to encompass all the pieces which factor into great football teams.

The criteria are scored as follows:

Team Success

1 point for every regular-season win

5 points for a division title

5 points for Wild Card round win/first-round bye

5 points for divisional-round win

10 points for NFC Championship game win

15 points for Super Bowl win

Team Statistics

15 points for top 5 offense

10 points for top 10 offense

5 points for top 15 offense

1 point for offense in bottom 15

15 points for top 5 defense

10 points for top 10 defense

5 points for top 15 defense

1 point for offense in bottom 15

5 additional points for top offense/defense in the league

Individual Recognition

5 points for any individual who wins MVP, Offensive or Defensive Player Of the Year

2 points for any individual who wins any Rookie of the Year award

2 points for any individual who leads the NFL in overall passing, rushing yards, or receiving yards

5 points for any player who sets a single-season record for any major stat (passing yards, passing touchdowns, rushing yards, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, etc.)

Based on these numbers, we developed the following list of the top 10 teams. And don’t worry, we’ll even show our work.

And so, without further ado, the top 10 teams in 49ers history.