1956 San Francisco 49ers season

1956 San Francisco 49ers season
OwnerTony Morabito
General managerLouis Spadia
Head coachFrankie Albert
Home fieldKezar Stadium
Results
Record5–6–1
Division place3rd NFL Western
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The 1956 San Francisco 49ers season was the team's seventh season in the National Football League (NFL) (eleventh in team history).

San Francisco brought in a new head coach for the second straight season, replacing Red Strader with former 49ers quarterback Frankie Albert, who played with the team from their AAFC days in 1946 until 1952.

The Niners got off to a rough start, winning just one of their first seven games, before going unbeaten down the stretch. The team finished the year with a 5–6–1 record, good for 3rd place in the Western Conference.

Offensively, Y. A. Tittle threw for a team-high 1,641 yards and 7 touchdowns, and had 56.9% of his passes completed. Hugh McElhenny rushed for a team-best 916 yards and 8 touchdowns, while Billy Wilson caught a club-high 60 receptions for 889 yards, along with 5 touchdowns. Bob St. Clair blocked 10 field goal attempts.[1]

Pre-season

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1956 NFL draft

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Main article: 1956 NFL draft
1956 San Francisco 49ers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 2 Earl Morrall *  Quarterback Michigan State
2 15 Bruce Bosley *  Center West Virginia
3 26 Bill Herchman  Defensive tackle Texas Tech
4 40 Frank Pajaczkowski  Back Richmond
6 64 Tony Sardisco  Guard Tulane
7 75 Larry Barnes  Fullback Colorado State played with 49ers in 1957.
8 88 Charley Smith  Defensive end Abilene Christian
9 99 Jim Cox  End Cal Poly
10 112 Jerry Zaleski  Back Colorado State
11 123 Stew Pell  Tackle North Carolina
12 136 Roger Swedberg  Tackle Iowa
13 147 Ralph Moody  Back Kansas
14 160 R. C. Owens  Halfback College of Idaho began play with 49ers in 1957.
15 171 Reed Henderson  Tackle Utah State signed with Edmonton Eskimos (WIFU)
15 172 Gene Boyd  Back Abilene Christian
16 184 George Herring  Quarterback Mississippi Southern
17 195 Dick Weiss  Tackle Ole Miss
18 208 Bill Yelverton  Defensive end Ole Miss
19 219 Pete Arrigoni  Back Arizona
20 232 Bob Scarbrough  Center Auburn
21 243 L.C. Joyner  Halfback Contra Costa JC
22 256 Clarence Wessman  End San Jose State
23 267 Mike Monroe  Back Washington
24 280 Ed Wallace  Tackle San Diego City College
25 291 Paul Goad  Fullback Abilene Christian
26 304 Rommie Loudd  Linebacker UCLA signed with BC Lions (WIFU)
27 315 Jerry Gustafson  Quarterback Stanford signed with BC Lions (WIFU)
28 328 Jerry Drew  Back California
29 339 Dean Benson  Guard Willamette
30 351 Bob Mitchell  Tackle Puget Sound
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career
Source:[2]

Regular season

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Schedule

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Game Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap Sources
1 September 30 New York Giants L 21–38 0–1 Kezar Stadium 41,751 Recap
2 October 7 Los Angeles Rams W 33–30 1–1 Kezar Stadium 56,489 Recap
3 October 14 Chicago Bears L 7–31 1–2 Wrigley Field 47,526 Recap
4 October 21 Detroit Lions L 17–20 1–3 Briggs Stadium 55,662 Recap
5 October 28 Chicago Bears L 21–38 1–4 Kezar Stadium 52,612 Recap
6 November 4 Detroit Lions L 13–17 1–5 Kezar Stadium 46,708 Recap
7 November 11 Los Angeles Rams L 6–30 1–6 L.A. Memorial Coliseum 69,828 Recap
8 November 18 Green Bay Packers W 17–16 2–6 City Stadium 17,986 Recap
9 November 25 Philadelphia Eagles T 10–10 2–6–1 Connie Mack Stadium 19,326 Recap
10 December 2 Baltimore Colts W 20–17 3–6–1 Memorial Stadium 37,227 Recap
11 December 8 Green Bay Packers W 38–20 4–6–1 Kezar Stadium 32,433 Recap
12 December 16 Baltimore Colts W 30–17 5–6–1 Kezar Stadium 43,791 Recap
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text. Saturday: December 8.

Standings

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Program from the 1956 season finale against the visiting Baltimore Colts.
NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Chicago Bears 9 2 1 .818 8–2 363 246 W2
Detroit Lions 9 3 0 .750 8–2 300 188 L1
San Francisco 49ers 5 6 1 .455 5–5 233 284 W3
Baltimore Colts 5 7 0 .417 3–7 270 322 W1
Los Angeles Rams 4 8 0 .333 3–7 291 307 W2
Green Bay Packers 4 8 0 .333 3–7 264 342 L2
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
NFL Eastern Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
New York Giants 8 3 1 .727 7–3 264 197 W1
Chicago Cardinals 7 5 0 .583 7–3 240 182 W1
Washington Redskins 6 6 0 .500 5–5 183 225 L2
Cleveland Browns 5 7 0 .417 4–6 167 177 L1
Pittsburgh Steelers 5 7 0 .417 4–6 217 250 W1
Philadelphia Eagles 3 8 1 .273 3–7 143 215 L3
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Personnel

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Staff / Coaches

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1957 San Francisco 49ers staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Chief of Offense / Offensive Coordinator - Red Hickey
 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • None - N/A



Roster

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1956 San Francisco 49ers roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs


Wide receivers

Tight ends


Offensive linemen


Defensive linemen


Linebackers


Defensive backs


Special teams


Reserve lists
  • Vacant

rookies in italics

References

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  1. ^ Jack Cavanaugh (2008). Giants Among Men, p.46. Random House, ISBN 978-1-4000-6717-6
  2. ^ "1956 San Francisco 49ers Draftees". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
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