The 1957 San Francisco 49ers season was the team's eighth season in the NFL. Coming off a 5–6–1 record in 1956, the 49ers tied for the best record in the Western Conference at 8–4.
Organizational history
San Francisco continued their late-season success from the previous year, and won five of their first six games, and were in first place in the West midway through the season. The Niners then lost three straight on the road to drop to 5–4, but then won the final three games to close out the season at 8–4, their best season since 1953.
The 49ers tied with the Detroit Lions at the top of the Western Conference, and split their two regular-season games in November, with the home teams winning. This forced a tie-breaking playoff game at Kezar Stadium on December 22. The winner would host the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Browns for the NFL championship the following week.
The 49ers built a 24–7 lead at halftime, and extended it to twenty points in the third quarter. Detroit's hall of fame quarterback Bobby Layne had been lost for the season two weeks earlier, and backup Tobin Rote lead the Lions' rally, scoring 24 unanswered points in the second half to win, 31–27, which ended the 49ers' season.
Eight weeks earlier on October 27, 49ers' owner Tony Morabito, age 47, suffered a heart attack in the press box at Kezar during the second quarter of the game against the Chicago Bears. He died shortly after arriving at Mary's Help Hospital on Guerrero Street. The team was notified of his death at halftime, and with tears in their eyes, they went back out and won a come-from-behind victory.
Quarterback Y. A. Tittle had another strong season for the 49ers, completing 63.1% of his passes for 2,157 yards and 13 TD's. He also rushed for 6 TD's. End Billy Wilson led the club with 52 receptions for 757 yards, along with a team high 6 TD's. Running back Hugh McElhenny led in rushing with 478 yards on 102 attempts.
The 1957 season was the first in 49er franchise history in which the team broke even financially.Glenn Dickey, The San Francisco 49ers: The First Fifty Years. Atlanta, GA: Turner Publishing, 1995; p. 25.
Offseason NFL draft
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue 1 August 18 New York Giants W 24–15 1–0 Kezar Stadium 2 August 25 Washington RedskinsW 27–20 2–0 Kezar Stadium 3 September 1 Cleveland Browns W 21–17 3–0 Kezar Stadium 4 September 7 vs. Chicago Cardinals W 27–21 4–0 Husky Stadium 5 September 13 at Los Angeles Rams L 27–58 4–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 6 September 22 Philadelphia Eagles W 17–14 5–1 Kezar Stadium Regular season Schedule Game Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap Sources 1 September 29 Chicago Cardinals L 10–20 0–1 Kezar Stadium 35,743 Recap 2 October 6 Los Angeles Rams W 23–20 1–1 Kezar Stadium 59,637 Recap 3 October 13 at Chicago Bears W 21–17 2–1 Wrigley Field 45,310 Recap 4 October 20 at Green Bay Packers W 24–14 3–1 Milwaukee County Stadium 18,919 Recap 5 October 27 Chicago Bears W 21–17 4–1 Kezar Stadium 56,693 Recap 6 November 3 Detroit Lions W 35–31 5–1 Kezar Stadium 59,702 Recap 7 November 10 at Los Angeles Rams L 24–37 5–2 L.A. Memorial Coliseum 102,368 Recap 8 November 17 at Detroit Lions L 10–31 5–3 Briggs Stadium 56,915 Recap 9 November 24 at Baltimore Colts L 21–27 5–4 Memorial Stadium 50,073 Recap 10 December 1 at New York Giants W 27–17 6–4 Yankee Stadium 54,121 Recap 11 December 8 Baltimore Colts W 17–13 7–4 Kezar Stadium 59,950 Recap 12 December 15 Green Bay Packers W 27–20 8–4 Kezar Stadium 59,100 Recap Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.
Standings
Western Conference Playoff
Round Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Sources Western Conference December 22 Detroit Lions L 27–31 0–1 Kezar Stadium 60,118
Personnel Staff / Coaches
Roster 1957 San Francisco 49ers roster Quarterbacks
Running backs
P/LB
Receivers
P
K Offensive linemen G/T/DE G T T T/G/DT C G T
Defensive linemen DE DT DT DE Linebackers MLB OLB/MLB OLB OLB/DE
Defensive backs CB/LB S/RB CB/S CB CB S S Reserve lists S (IR)
rookies in italics
References
SHRP Sports