What Could Have Been...

I came across this article last week and forgot to post it, so I apologize if this is a repeat.

I realize that hindsight is 20/20, but - man, I wish we would have pulled the trigger on getting Joe instead of rolling with Neil. Who knows what the results would have been, but I would have loved to have seen it.

Montana to the Steelers

 

So one more reason to hate NOD?

 

Interesting. I can see the argument from both sides, in a way. N O'D was shaping up to be the long term answer (longer term than Joe would have been). Doubtless salary would have been an issue as well. I also wonder if such a famed QB arriving on a team that was in no way QB-centric may have caused more issues than benefits.

All that said... wow. Think of how those seasons might have panned out.

 

The 49ers ran the ball tons, and played great defense.

 

WOW! That would've been a heckuva a pairing for a couple years. We had a good D and were running the ball! Man the imaginations goes ape **** with that scenario.

 

I'm not sure I said they didn't?

 

Trading for a 37 yr old QB when Neil was still considered "the real deal" was not and is not something this team does. Maybe, it would have worked out. I'm betting not.

Fun to speculate, but Steve Young in his prime would likely have killed the old man.

 

Marino!

 

You didn't. But you seemed to imply that Montana was used to his team revolving around him.

 

When the hell was NOD considered "the real deal"?

 

This is why I stated, "Hindsight is 20/20", because it is obviously not the standard method of operation for the club. However, knowing now that Neil never led us to Superbowl victory - I would gladly give the old man the keys to the car. Who knows, maybe one or two more Lombardi Trophies may have been sitting in that case.

I would love to take that bet - not because it would have been a sure thing, but that would have been a heck of a game. Our squad was loaded in 1994. We would have been a much better match up for the 49'ers than the Bolts.

 

And we passed on Dan Marino because we had Mark Malone.

 

I learned not to worry 'bout "what ifs".

 

I think it had to play a role, Blast. What you're saying is true but the fact they had Malone on the roster and they had high hopes for him played into the decision I'm sure. The Steelers drafted Malone to be their next franchise quarterback and so they felt they had bigger needs than to draft a QB. They weren't keen on spending two first round draft picks on quarterbacks in four seasons. In the end, they felt that Rivera would give them more of an immediate return at a bigger position of need. Unfortunately, it didn't work out.

 

Didn't Rivera have a really bad wreck that ended his career? It wasn't necessarily that he was a bust but that he just didn't get to play that long?

 

He did. About halfway through his rookie season he was driving drunk, wrecked and was paralyzed. He would have been a beast but a stupid, fateful decision ended a promising career.

 

Oh wow. I didn't realize he wrecked that early. Even if he had been truly great he still would have probably went through the whole thing where they would have been like "well yeah but you're not Marino".

 

Would have been great. I better get off here and take the dog out. She looks like she has to go out drop an O'Donnel.

 

Also, if I remember correctly, Marino was alleged to have used marijuana. Back then it was a bigger deal. Now, it would not even be a blip on the screen.

 

I thought it was cocaine?

 

That's what I remember. It never made any sense to me that a guy with an alledged cocaine problem would end up in south Florida!?

 

What's really messed up is I've read that some people think the reason his kid is mentally retarded is because of his drug abuse. That's an incredible allegation to make!