The 1952 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 3rd season in the National Football League and their 7th overall. They were coming off a 7–4–1 record in 1951.
The 49ers won their first five games by at least two touchdowns and had visions of playing in their first-ever NFL Championship Game. However, they lost five of their final seven games to finish at 7–5, third place in the six-team National Conference (which became the Western Conference in ).
Y. A. Tittle emerged as the starting quarterback, as he had a completion rate of 51.0% along with eleven touchdowns and 1,407 yards. Frankie Albert also had some action, completing 55.0% of his passes, along with eight TDs and 964 yards.
Joe Perry ran for 725 yards and eight TDs, while rookie Hugh McElhenny had 684 yards on 98 attempts (7.0 yards/carry), along with six rushing TDs, while he caught 26 passes for 367 yards and earned another three touchdowns. Gordie Soltau led the club with 55 receptions for 774 yards and seven TDs.
Offseason NFL draft
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 August 10 San Francisco Broncos W 79–0 1–0 Kezar Stadium 8,700 2 August 17 Washington Redskins W 35–0 2–0 Kezar Stadium 35,234 3 August 24 Chicago Cardinals W 38–14 3–0 Kezar Stadium 34,901 4 at Los Angeles Rams W 17–7 4–0 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 67,799 5 September 7 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 29–14 5–0 Forbes Field 21,759 6 at Cleveland Browns W 35–31 6–0 Rubber Bowl 30,119 7 at San Jose Packers W 76–0 7–0 Spartan Stadium 6,839
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 28 Detroit Lions W 17–3 1–0 Kezar Stadium 52,750 Recap 2 October 4 at Dallas Texans W 37–14 2–0 Cotton Bowl 12,566 Recap 3 October 12 at Detroit Lions W 28–0 3–0 Briggs Stadium 42,842 Recap 4 October 19 at Chicago Bears W 40–16 4–0 Wrigley Field 46,338 Recap 5 October 26 Dallas Texans W 48–21 5–0 Kezar Stadium 26,887 Recap 6 November 2 Chicago Bears L 17–20 5–1 Kezar Stadium 58,255 Recap 7 November 9 at New York Giants L 14–23 5–2 Polo Grounds 54,230 Recap 8 November 16 at Washington Redskins W 23–17 6–2 Griffith Stadium 30,863 Recap 9 November 23 at Los Angeles Rams L 9–35 6–3 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 64,450 Recap 10 November 30 Los Angeles Rams L 21–34 6–4 Kezar Stadium 49,420 Recap 11 December 7 Pittsburgh Steelers L 7–24 6–5 Kezar Stadium 13,886 Recap 12 December 14 Green Bay Packers W 24–14 7–5 Kezar Stadium 17,579 Recap Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.
Standings
Personnel Roster 1953 San Francisco 49ers roster Quarterbacks P
Running backs
Receivers
K Offensive linemen G G C T/DT G T/DT C/LB
Defensive linemen DT DT/MG/DE DT DE/WR MG DE DE Linebackers MLB OLB/MG OLB/QB
Defensive backs CB S S/CB CB/WR Reserve lists DE (IR) MG (IR) WR (Military) T (Military) RB (Military) WR (IR) Pete Schabarum RB (Military) RB (IR)
rookies in italics
Pro Bowl San Francisco's players selected for the Pro Bowl:
Player PositionHardy Brown LinebackerEd Henke Defensive endBill Johnson CenterHugh McElhenny Running backLeo Nomellini Defensive tackleJoe Perry Running backGordie Soltau Wide receiver
References
External links 1952 49ers on Pro Football Reference SHRP Sports