Beginning in 2005 was a new era of San Francisco 49ers football.
Head coach Mike Nolan, son of former 49ers coach Dick Nolan, was hired by Owners Denise and John York to restore a once proud franchise. The organization drafted quarterback Alex Smith with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, passing up Cal’s Aaron Rodgers.
Things couldn’t have looked brighter.
Unfortunately, the next six seasons were dreadful. From 2005-2010 the 49ers won a total of 37 of 96 regular season games and never made the postseason. Try as they might, it didn’t seem like the organization cared too much about the product they were putting on the field.