Lowell Cohn: 49ers who played with fire

This column is almost impossible to write. I've been making a list - I like making lists. A list of the top 10 most competitive 49ers I've covered.

Two things I notice: It's difficult limiting the list to 10. It's hard to find a current 49er who belongs. So, although the list is neutral in its intent, it's sure not neutral in its content.

The list does not include coaches. It could. Among the most competitive coaches I ever met were Bill Walsh, who always used boxing analogies encouraging his players to knock opponents out, metaphorically and not so metaphorically.

The list also would include George Seifert, Bobb McKittrick, Mike Holmgren, Dennis Green, Sam Wyche and Jim Harbaugh, always looking to spit in someone's eyes - totally metaphorical. I think. Harbaugh was the most “us-against-them” football coach I ever encountered. The mindset works for him. Plus, he is smart, verbally playful, a pain in the rear. And I miss him. I bet you do, too.

Compare those fire-breathing coaches to poor Chip Kelly, so retiring, with his shy half-smile, talking so fast you hardly can decipher him. He could be a docent at a museum. This is the heir to Walsh and Harbaugh. Are we witnessing reverse evolution?

But, OK, no coaches on today's list.

How about players? The list could go on forever. Here are 10.

When the 49ers were the 49ers instead of this thing we see on Sundays, they had Joe Montana. He was a cool competitor. Never felt pressure. At least never showed he felt pressure. Was at his greatest under duress. See The Catch. And his passes always led receivers, arrived in exactly the right place.

Steve Young was hot. Played in a turmoil of joy and aggression. Would bluntly run over your head or delicately throw the perfect pass between three defenders. Both Young and Montana competed at the highest level.

As did Jerry Rice, greatest receiver of all time, greatest route runner of all time. He had lefties throw him the ball during warm-ups to replicate Young's action and ball rotation.

And the Niners had Ronnie Lott, who would knock your head off, who often did not execute the play the defense was supposed to run, but followed his instincts and prevailed because, aside from being on a level of his own for sheer talent, he was a brilliant player.

And there was Charles Haley, maybe the Niners' greatest-ever defender, recently inducted into the Hall of Fame. Could disrupt an offense all by himself.

And Roger Craig, who ran hard and caught passes and was sprinter fast.

And Terrell Owens, who sometimes seemed nuts, but ran over the middle and took hard hits and outran cornerbacks and safeties and, after Rice and maybe John Taylor (he should make the list) is the most dynamic wide receiver in Niners history.

Patrick Willis. What a player. What a competitor. He could outrun running backs. Fast running backs. With him playing linebacker, teams had trouble running against the 49ers - as opposed to now. He could cover wide receivers. He could cover everyone. Off the field he was the most polite man - called me “sir.” On the field, he was Ronnie Lott reincarnated. Delivered vicious but fair football hits. And then he would help a guy up.

Justin Smith. Belongs in the Pantheon of greatest 49ers defenders. Could control the line of scrimmage. Could overpower two offensive linemen at once. Was a living symbol the Niners defense was elite and could win games even if the offense didn't produce.

Frank Gore. What a pleasure to watch week after week. He is not tall. He would burrow under defenders, burrow under the pileup near the line of scrimmage and he kept churning his legs. Like a windup toy. You thought he was down, but he gained five more yards. Just churning. Pure desire. Refused to stop. And he had open-field speed. Not sure where it came from. Maybe the best 49ers running back ever.

OK, that's 10. I know I left out people. I apologize to Dwight Clark, Fred Dean, Hacksaw Reynolds, Carlton Williamson, Keena Turner, Brent Jones, Eric Wright, Freddie Solomon, Russ Francis, Charle Young. All deserve to be on the top 10 list. And there are more, many more. Please forgive me.

Which brings us to now. To the depleted 49ers. To the degraded 49ers. To the sad 49ers.

Which player or players contend for the list? Only one. NaVorro Bowman.

Absolutely in the tradition of 49ers greatness. Would have been a star on any team in any era. Walsh and Seifert would have salivated for a linebacker and leader like him. May have been better than Willis. But he's gone with his second enormous, career-threatening injury. So the Niners don't have him. May never again have him the way he once was.

Is there anyone else? Someone who competes for the all-time competitor list?

Well, Joe Staley for sure. Great left tackle. Maybe the best in the league. It's just that I haven't included offensive linemen. No Randy Cross. No Keith Fahnhorst. Great players. I see the offensive line as a unit, a group of guys who work as one. And although the current offensive line is pretty good, it's not the best. So, include Staley if you'd like. But he's an unusual pick.

And his iffy status on the list, despite his talent, shows how bereft the Niners are. How the list seems to have died out. I'm not blaming anyone, although I could. I'm just mourning.

For more on the world of sports in general and the Bay Area in particular, go to the Cohn Zohn at cohn.blogs.pressdemocrat.com. You can reach Staff Columnist Lowell Cohn at lowell.cohn@pressdemocrat.com.