The best of the 49ers: Naming San Francisco’s All-Decade Team

It’s been an eventful decade for the San Francisco 49ers as they hope to end it on a high note Sunday in an important regular season game against the Seattle Seahawks. It may end up being one of the most pivotal over the past 10 years, particularly if a win paves the way for the No. 1 seed and a run to the Super Bowl.

So let’s take a quick jog down memory lane to dive into The Bee’s All-Decade Team, which wound up being a more straightforward exercise than expected given there the team has spent the last 10 years as either elite or downright terrible with not much mediocrity in between.

Quarterback

First team: Colin Kaepernick

Second team: Jimmy Garoppolo

Third team: Alex Smith

Garoppolo’s current season has been the best statistical campaign of the decade for any 49ers signal caller. His 3,693 yards and 27 touchdowns are easily the most while Kaepernick’s 3,369 yards in 2014 and 21 touchdowns in 2013 are second, respectively. But Kaepernick gets the nod here because of his four playoffs wins, most of which were quite memorable. His first playoff game against the Packers was one of the most explosive of any quarterback of the last 10 years when he set a record with 181 rushing yards and two scores while adding 263 yards through the air and a pair of touchdown passes. He’s also the only quarterback this decade to lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl, though Smith came close. Smith gets the honorable mention here because of his efficiency in the 2011 and 2012 seasons before being replaced. But his 12-of-26 performance in the conference title game, that included just one completion to a receiver, is the reason why we can’t put him above Garoppolo despite having a larger sample (35 starts to 23) to work with.

Running back

First team: Frank Gore

Second team: Carlos Hyde

Does this one need any explanation? Gore may end up getting his number 21 retired whenever he officially hangs up his cleats as he continues to climb the list of all-time rushing leaders. His 5,512 rushing yards dwarfs any other player with San Francisco this decade. Hyde is No. 2 at 2,729, but he didn’t play well enough with the 49ers to stick around for a second contract. There’s no third-team player here because the pickings are slim. Matt Breida is third among running backs this decade with 1,886 yards. Kendal Hunter is fourth with 1,202.

Wide receiver

First team: Anquan Boldin, Michael Crabtree

Boldin and Crabtree are the only 49ers wideouts this decade to have more than 1,600 yards. Boldin appeared in 46 games over three seasons and averaged over 1,000 yards each, finishing with 3,030 and 16 touchdowns as a 49er. He was easily the team’s most reliable and consistent wideout of the last 10 years. Crabtree’s 3,702 yards were the most of any 49ers player this decade, though he had just one campaign of at least 1,000 yards, in 2012 when he broke out with nine touchdown catches during San Francisco’s run to the Super Bowl. Third on the list of receiving yards this decade? Marquise Goodwin (1,543), which illustrates how much the 49ers have struggled to find receivers. Perhaps that changes in the 2020s if Kyle Shanahan can stick around.

Tight end

First team: George Kittle

Second team: Vernon Davis

A fair case could be made Davis deserves the first-team nod here, particularly given he made one of the plays of the decade when he caught the game-winning touchdown pass against the Saints in the 2011 Divisional Round of the playoffs, capping a 180-yard, two-touchdown performance. But Davis was never considered one of the best all-around players in the NFL, which Kittle has quickly become over the last two seasons. Kittle set the NFL record for tight ends with 1,377 receiving yards in 2018 while also serving as arguably the league’s premier blocking tight end. He’s the league’s highest-graded player this year by scouting service Pro Football Focus and makes this 49ers offense almost unbeatable when he’s playing at his best. Could we ever say the same about Davis? Plus, Kittle’s remarkable fourth-and-2 catch against the Saints earlier this month could be the most memorable play of the year should San Francisco wind up with a sixth Lombardi Trophy come February.

Tackle

First team: Joe Staley, Anthony Davis

Staley has made the Pro Bowl six times and has been the only regular starting tackle of this decade. So, yes, he was an easy call. Davis played at a very high level for longer than any other right tackle and it isn’t particularly close. Mike McGlinchey would have been given more consideration, but the promising second-year player simply doesn’t have the body of work or accolades since getting drafted in the first round of the 2018 draft. Davis was a key piece of one of the NFL’s best offensive lines during the three-year run of contention under Jim Harbaugh.

Guard

First team: Mike Iupati, Alex Boone

This was also pretty straightforward. Aside from these two, the 49ers have had issues this decade at finding consistency at the guard positions. They might have their pairing for the immediate future in Laken Tomlinson and Mike Person, but neither have played as well as Iupati and Boone from 2011 to 2013. Tomlinson has been serviceable to good for most of the last three seasons, but it took some developing for him to get there. Iupati and Boone were integral to those rough-and-tumble 49ers teams.

Center

First team: Jonathan Goodwin

Second team: Daniel Kilgore

Current center Weston Richburg may have put together one of the strongest seasons from any center this decade before going on the shelf earlier this month with a torn tendon in his knee. But Goodwin was consistent and did it over a far longer period, appearing in every game from 2011 to 2013, when San Francisco was making its deep playoff runs. Kilgore played well enough replacing Goodwin before getting traded to the Dolphins after the team acquired Richburg in 2018. Kilgore started 39 games for the 49ers during his tenure.

Inside linebacker

First team: Patrick Willis, NaVorro Bowman

Second team: Fred Warner

More straightforward decisions here. Willis and Bowman formed one of the best linebacker tandems in league history, so giving them all-decade team honors was easy. Finding another was a bit more difficult. The 49ers thought Reuben Foster might end up being a difference-making player before his string of arrests led to his release in 2018. Kwon Alexander may be in consideration for the 2020s. For now, Warner has been the 49ers’ best linebacker since No. 52 and 53 were going sideline to sideline on one of the best defenses in recent memory.

Defensive end

First team: Aldon Smith

Second team: Nick Bosa

Third team: Ahmad Brooks

Smith’s 33.5 sacks were among the most of any player ever through two seasons. He was an instant star and seemed poised for a Hall-of-Fame run before off-the-field issues prematurely led to his release before the 2015 season. He was a first-team All-Pro during San Francisco’s Super Bowl season in 2012, but never found that form thereafter. Bosa, even though he’s a rookie, is on this list because he’s been one of the best all-around defensive ends in the league since he was drafted. He’s on his way to winning the defensive rookie of the year and could have a defensive player of the year award in his future. Brooks, meanwhile, was one of the most consistent 49ers players of the decade. He had seven seasons with at least six sacks and led the franchise for the decade with 45.5.

Defensive tackle

First team: Justin Smith

Second team: DeForest Buckner, Ray McDonald

Smith might go down as one of the most underrated players of his generation, and one of the team’s best additions in free agency when he joined the team in 2009 after playing in Cincinnati. The Cowboy was a strong defensive player of the year candidate during the turnaround season in 2011 and was a constant force against both the pass and the run. His ability to eat up blockers in front of Bowman and Willis was massive. Buckner has been the model of consistency since getting drafted seventh overall in 2016. McDonald, though a string of arrests led to his NFL exile, was also a constant along San Francisco’s formidable defensive front.

Cornerback

First team: Richard Sherman

Second team: Carlos Rogers

Third team: Tramaine Brock

Sherman’s only been with the 49ers for two seasons, but it’s no surprise the defense has taken a massive leap forward with him leading the secondary. He brought the same professional approach he had with Seattle to the 49ers’ locker room which has been key to the improvement on defense. His 2019 season might be the best of any San Francisco corner this decade. Rogers didn’t miss a game during his three seasons with the 49ers amid their string of contention under Harbaugh and recorded nine interceptions, including six in 2011. Brock made 40 starts and was one of the regulars of the decade, making 11 interceptions over seven seasons with San Francisco.

Safety

First team: Eric Reid

Second team: Donte Whitner

Third team: Jaquiski Tartt

Reid appeared in 70 games over five seasons and was one of the team’s most consistent players during that span. He was one of the few young players drafted during Harbaugh’s run that developed into a productive starter who has continued to have a strong career in the league. Whitner was a physical force in the middle of the defense who exemplified the defense’s hard-hitting persona from 2011 to 2013. Whitner had five interceptions with the 49ers over that span. Tartt is in his fifth season with San Francisco and has become a reliable player — when healthy.

Specialists

P Andy Lee, K Phil Dawson, LS Kyle Nelson

Lee was one of the NFL’s best punters during his five seasons with San Francisco during the decade, averaging a robust 48 yards per punt, which was crucial while complementing the team’s strong defenses during that run. Bradley Pinion was never among the league’s best punters and was only with the 49ers for four seasons. Dawson over four seasons made 86 percent of his kicks, just slightly below Robbie Gould’s 89.4 percent over his past three seasons. But Gould hasn’t been nearly as good in 2019, missing 8 of 29 kicks. Nelson has been the long snapper for six seasons and has done well to keep his name out of peoples’ minds (which means his snaps haven’t been an issue).

This story was originally published December 27, 2019 at 12:32 PM.