Why fans loved the Jerry and Eddie show
Last Sunday was Jerry Rice’s Day at Monster Park as the NFL
legend caught his final touchdown pass from another Hall of Famer,
Steve Young, in a special halftime celebration that allowed the
greatest receiver in the history of the NFL to officially retire a
San Francisco 49er.
Press Pass
Why fans loved the Jerry and Eddie show
Last Sunday was Jerry Rice’s Day at Monster Park as the NFL legend caught his final touchdown pass from another Hall of Famer, Steve Young, in a special halftime celebration that allowed the greatest receiver in the history of the NFL to officially retire a San Francisco 49er.
Although the day belonged to No. 80, it was clear among the chants of “Jerry, Jerry” that reverberated throughout the stadium last Sunday that the 60,000-plus crowd was equally excited at the chance to chant “Eddie, Eddie” when first caught a glimpse of the former 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo, who, along with Young, Bill Walsh, George Seifert, Roger Craig, Ronnie Lott, Brent Jones and others, were on hand for the festivities.
It was also clear that while the 49ers Faithful still loves Eddie D. they are not thrilled with his sister Denise and her husband John York, who took over the franchise roughly a decade ago after Eddie became caught up in a Louisiana riverboat gambling scandal that forced him to turn the ownership reigns over his sister.
As Rice addressed the crowd, any mentions of Walsh, DeBartolo, Joe Montana, Young or Seifert drew deafening roars, but those frenzied cheers soon became boos the instant Rice mentioned the team’s current ownership in any capacity.
Clearly, it was as if the sight of Eddie DeBartolo on the field that he once owned that allowed the fans briefly relive the team’s most-storied period – a time when the mentality for any player wearing a 49er uniform was “Super Bowl or Bust.”
It was as if the retirement of Rice was the last connection to the only owner to ever bring the franchise a Super Bowl title – and this owner brought them an NFL-record five!
No doubt people will get this feeling one more time when Bryant Young – the only remaining 49er from the team’s last Super Bowl championship team – retires. But after that all of the ties to Eddie D and the franchise that he took from the basement to the apex of the league will be lost.
Just like Yankee stadium will always be known as the house that Ruth built regardless of what A-Rod or anyone else does. 49er greatness will always be associated with the teams that DeBartolo helped assemble.
Even though the franchise seems to be finally headed in the right direction again the players, owner and teams of the 1980s and ’90s will always be the measuring stick, and that, perhaps unfairly, won’t change until the team wins it all again.
Hearing the fireworks and seeing Rice’s daughter sing “Hero” and then hearing Jerry reflect on his wonderful years in San Francisco was difficult to do without a Kleenex near by but it was something that I will never forget.
Seeing Rice retire is the equivalent of seeing Lou Gehrig or Ruth or Wayne Gretzky or Richard Petty retire. He is simply the best wide receiver his sport has ever seen.
And after catching “One last touchdown pass from Steve Young” (Rice’s final request) in a suit, it really became apparent just what a historic event it was. It also made you think that the 44-year-old legend could still play.
It also made you realize that there will never be another receiver quite like him. Rice played for the 49ers from 1985 to 2000 and retired from the NFL before the start of last season.
He holds several NFL records, including career touchdowns (208), receptions (1,549) and receiving yards (22,895). In 20 seasons, he made 13 trips to the Pro Bowl and he has three Super Bowl rings.
Simply put, over the years he became known as the GOAT, which sums up his career in a nutshell – Greatest Of All Time…
Clearly, they’ll never be another Jerry Rice. And for that matter there will never be another Eddie D.
