# The 49ers defense looks AWESOME! (‘85 Bears?) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-nfl\ **Created:** [December 16, 2022, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630 "2022-12-16T07:08:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/41 "2023-01-05T15:12:39Z")
I have been noticing more ball control offense, now that you mention it. I think I remember some team just set a (franchise?) record long 17-play drive. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/42 "2023-01-05T21:53:13Z")
Getting back to nicknames for great defenses, I started building a list. It’s nowhere near complete but I think it’s a decent start. 1940s — Monsters of the Midway (and 1980s) 1960s — Purple People Eaters 1960s — Fearsome Foursome 1960s, late — The Redwood Forest 1960s, late — Doomsday 1970s, early — No Name 1970s — Steel Curtain 1970s — Sack Pack 1970s, late — Orange Crush 1970s, late — Bruise Brothers 1970s, late — Doomsday II 1970s, late — Gold Rush 1977 — Gritz Blitz 1980s, early — New York Sack Exchange 1980s, early — Crunch Bunch 1980s, early — Silver Rush 1980s, early — Killer Bs 1980s — Big Blue Wrecking Crew 1980s — Da Bears (can refer to entire team but was mostly inspired by their great defense) 1980s — Monsters of the Midway (and above, 1940s) 1980s, late — Dome Patrol 1980s, late — Miami Pound Machine 1980s, late — SWAT team 1990s, early — Gang Green 1990s — The Border Patrol 1990s — Blitzburgh 2000s, early — Homeland Defense 2010s, early — Bulls on Parade 2010s, early — Sack Nation 2010s, early — Sons of Anarchy 2015 — No Fly Zone 2017 — Jackson 5 2017 — Sacksonville 2010s, early — The Legion of Boom 2010s, late — The Ghosts (“seeing ghosts”) 2010s, late — New Jack City 2010s, late — Purple Pain 2020s — Department of Defense 2020s — The Gravediggers 2020s, early — Blitz, Inc. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/43 "2023-01-05T22:46:08Z")
Now do offense! The only ones I can think of offhand are the hogs and the greatest show on turf. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/44 "2023-01-05T23:24:49Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > Now do offense! They don’t seem to be as likely to have nicknames. A few I can think of: - Air Coryell (early 1980s Chargers) - Ground Chuck (early 1980s Seahawks) - The Fun Bunch (1980s Redskins, esp. the wide receivers, also known as “The Smurfs”) ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/45 "2023-01-05T23:28:35Z")
IMHO it is more likely for individuals on the offense to have nicknames than groups. While with defenses the opposite is true. I am not sure why that is. Maybe it’s because you often have multiple people involved in tackling/sacking but just one guy scoring a touchdown or throwing a football. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/46 "2023-01-05T23:43:40Z")
Greatest Show on Turf (St Louis Rams) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/47 "2023-01-05T23:44:33Z")
> [@Chingon](#): > > Greatest Show on Turf Which @EllisDee had mentioned, in his post to which I was replying. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2023, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/48 "2023-01-05T23:45:32Z")
Damnit, I was looking for capital letters ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/49 "2023-01-06T00:15:37Z")
Sorry about that, I generally dictate my posts on the dope and it’s kind of a pain in the butt to go back and capitalize. I was lazy. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/50 "2023-01-06T07:59:58Z")
Lest we forget — the West Coast Offense! ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/51 "2023-01-06T09:10:20Z")
LOL, that’s a style of play not a nickname. Like Air Raid. 😆 ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/52 "2023-01-06T16:29:03Z")
It must certainly is a nickname. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/53 "2023-01-06T17:02:26Z")
My buddy the Bills fan always refers to the Jim Kelly era as the “K-Gun offense.” I don’t know if that’s a nickname or just the actual name of the system, like West Coast offense. I guess the Run and Shoot would also be in that group. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/54 "2023-01-06T17:24:14Z")
We’re talking about nicknames for a particular group of offensive players, the West Coast Offense was an offensive strategy Bill Walsh came up with. It’s not the same thing at all. It’s like counting “Air Raid” and “Run and Shoot” as nicknames. What players were part of the West Coast Offense? ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/55 "2023-01-06T18:29:35Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > What players were part of the West Coast Offense? That’s an excellent definition. If it doesn’t identify a very specific group of players, it’s not a nickname. Like when we say Greatest Show and Turf, we immediately think Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt. (I had to Google the receivers’ names, sadly. Memory is not what it used to be.) ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/56 "2023-01-06T22:46:19Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > What players were part of the West Coast Offense? When the term was first used, it was solidly associated with Joe Montana, Roger Craig, Tom Rathman, Taylor, Rice, etc. It’s since been used for any similar offense, sure. As for more recent, more specific nicknames for offensive units, the current crop of offensive skill players for the 49ers - George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, Juszczyk, Jennings, and joined this season by Christian McCaffrey - has earned “YAC Bros.” as their name. YAC meaning yards after catch, which the group leads the league in fairly handily. As for the defense, the most obvious nickname for a 49ers defense is already used by the cheerleader squad: the Gold Rush. There plenty of other related terms, but nothing seems to stick. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/57 "2023-01-06T23:01:26Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > When the term was first used, it was solidly associated with Joe Montana, Roger Craig, Tom Rathman, Taylor, Rice, etc. It’s since been used for any similar offense, sure. It was a trick question. There is no group of players called the “West Coast Offense” because it wasn’t a group of players. It was a system, not a unit. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2023, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/58 "2023-01-07T04:22:23Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > As for more recent, more specific nicknames for offensive units, the current crop of offensive skill players for the 49ers - George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, Juszczyk, Jennings, and joined this season by Christian McCaffrey - has earned “YAC Bros.” as their name. YAC meaning yards after catch, which the group leads the league in fairly handily. Yeah I guess it’s a thing. [![](https://i.imgur.com/pVpzCNO.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/pVpzCNO.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2023, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/59 "2023-01-07T20:16:41Z")
It’s not that catchy of a nickname but it’s an impressive group for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2023, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630/60 "2023-01-08T05:12:32Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > It was a trick question. There is no group of players called the “West Coast Offense” because it wasn’t a group of players. It was a system, not a unit. It was a system, and while it never became a nickname for any unit there were many players on the 49ers that, as groups, they became the system and the system became the methodology implemented by those groups. This is more applicable to the 49ers than to other teams that deployed the system. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-49ers-defense-looks-awesome-85-bears/976630.md?page=4)