How a 49ers sideline mix-up led to one of their greatest Super Bowl moments

John Taylor's game-winning Super Bowl catch counts as one of the greatest moments in San Francisco 49ers history, the decisive play to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in January 1989.  

Here's a little-known detail: Taylor wasn't supposed to be on the field for the play.

This historical nugget surfaced in a conversation earlier this week with former 49ers tight end Brent Jones. Joe Montana and Co. ran "70 halfback curl U up" four or five times in practice ahead of Super Bowl XXIII. Every time, Jones was out there ("U" signified the second tight end).

But when the 49ers lined up for second-and-2 from the Cincinnati 10-yard line, trailing 16-13 with 39 seconds left, head coach Bill Walsh called that play but forgot to change personnel.

"We were in a stressful situation on the sideline," Jones told the Chronicle. "I was standing next to Bill when the offense was walking to the line. He yelled, ‘We're supposed to have two tight ends in there!' Bill called the play, but he didn't signal for two tight ends. …

"Talk about crunch time. It was pretty crazy."

Video of Taylor's catch confirms he improvised and became the second tight end. Taylor was positioned on the line of scrimmage, left hand on the ground, next to left tackle Bubba Paris. John Frank, the team's top tight end in the 1988 season, lined up alongside right tackle Harris Barton.

Jerry Rice ran in motion from right to left. Roger Craig and Tom Rathman were in the backfield. Taylor ran his route perfectly, feigning a move to his left before turning upfield and finding a sliver of open space in the end zone.

Montana placed the ball perfectly to Taylor. Touchdown.

"JT hadn't practiced that play all week," Jones said. "But he's super smart and he knew all the positions."

Taylor didn't respond to two requests for comment on the play. But he addressed his famous catch in 2023, when he appeared on stage alongside Rice and Christian McCaffrey at the Dwight Clark Legacy Event.

Taylor was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time Super Bowl champion in a career spent entirely with San Francisco. But he understands his unique, special place in 49ers lore. 

"People never understand how much that (catch) will change your life," Taylor told the audience. "Prior to me making that catch, most people knew me for a play here or play there. I had a couple of touchdowns on Monday night, that type of deal.

"My younger brother was still in college at that time, and he said to me, ‘How would you have felt if you had dropped that?' I told him I probably would have been the loneliest person in the world and unemployed. But fortunately I wound up catching it, so that kept me around for a little while."

At one point during the '23 event, moderator Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area noted Rice's statistics in that Super Bowl: 11 catches for 215 yards and one touchdown. After the crowd applauded, the normally soft-spoken Taylor raised his hand to share some follow-up numbers.

"Check this out," he said. "John Taylor: one catch, 10 yards (laughter). I always told people I was never big on stats. All I cared about was getting the W."

Jones said he and Taylor have never talked about the personnel confusion preceding his triumphant catch. Both players were early in their NFL careers, in their second season: Jones was 25 years old and had eight catches that year, while Taylor was 26 and had 14 catches. 

Jones later earned four Pro Bowl berths and also became a three-time champ. He could have been a Super Bowl hero, too – but it worked out quite nicely for the 49ers.

"I have thought about it a few times, but I was so excited to win the Super Bowl," Jones said. "I didn't really care at the time. It would have been quite amazing, though."

This article originally published at How a 49ers sideline mix-up led to one of their greatest Super Bowl moments.