According to 49ers.com on Tuesday, former San Francisco 49ers Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive back and halfback Jimmy Johnson of Dallas, Texas passed away at the age of 86 on Wednesday, May 8. Johnson played 16 seasons with the 49ers from 1961 to 1976.
In 205 games, Johnson had 47 interceptions for 615 yards and two touchdowns, along with seven fumble recoveries for 31 yards and one safety. Johnson’s first pick six came on October 16, 1966. Johnson had a 35-yard interception return for a touchdown in a 44-7 49ers win over the Atlanta Falcons at Atlanta Stadium. At the time, Johnson put the 49ers up 31-7. Johnson’s second pick six came on December 20, 1970 in another 49ers’s blow out win on the road. This time, he accomplished the feat in a 38-7 49ers win over the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Johnson’s interception return for a major score was for 36 yards and put San Francisco up 17-7 at the time. Johnson’s safety also came in a 49ers win. It came in San Francisco’s first game of the 1970 season, a 49ers’s 26-17 win over Washington on September 20, 1970.
Five times Johnson was selected to the Pro Bowl. He was selected in 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1974.
Johnson was the 49ers’s first round pick, sixth overall, in the 1961 NFL Draft out of UCLA. He was selected one spot behind Hall of Fame tight end Mike Ditka of Carnegie, Pennsylvania, who was selected fifth overall by the Chicago Bears.
In 1977, Johnson’s number 37 was retired by the 49ers. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1994.
While growing up, the three greatest 49ers were possibly quarterbacks Joe Montana and Steve Young, and wide receiver Jerry Rice, who we declare as the second best football player of all-time. However, before that we had Jimmy Johnson as one of San Francisco’s finest.
