10 traits that set 49ers fans apart from rest of the NFL
By Peter Panacy
No. 8: Bill Walsh is the greatest head coach of all time
OK, so there are going to be plenty of fanbases out there who disagree, and there are likely plenty of well-respected NFL historians and analysts who will, too.
But you’re going to have a hard time convincing any San Francisco fan that New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick or even Packers legendary head coach Vince Lombardi are the best head coaches in football history over the 49ers’ own, Bill Walsh.
Sure, Belichick can claim the most Super Bowl titles, while the Lombardi Trophy is named after, well, Vince Lombardi. And other coaches will be in the ring as well.
Yet let’s lay claim to the fact Walsh did more than just win three Super Bowl titles and heavily influenced the fourth, all taking a downtrodden Niners franchise out of the doldrums in the late 1970s and turning into arguably the greatest dynasty of all time until Belichick met quarterback Tom Brady.
It was the way Walsh changed the game with his heavily influential West Coast offense, the base system that probably led to nearly 75 percent of teams’ offensive schemes today.
Heck, Belichick would probably agree.