On Sunday, the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys meet in the playoffs for the first time in 27 years. There are five other playoff games in the Wild Card round, but this matchup may be one of the most talked-about this weekend.
Half of Fame quarterback and 49ers legend Steve Young has a good feeling about his former team's chances against the Cowboys. He joined KNBR this week to discuss the much-hyped bout between old rivals.
"I've got a good feeling [about this game]," Young said on KNBR's Tolbert, Krueger & Brooks show. "I've got a feeling the Cowboys might come out fast, but there's just a grittiness [to the 49ers]. I think [the Cowboys are] going to get beat down. Then we get to go renew all the Packer games from '95, '96, '97, '98. Then we do that next week."
Whoa. Wait a minute. Is Young actually already looking past this game against the Cowboys? That is some confidence from the ESPN analyst. The radio hosts wanted Young to tone down the optimism and not jinx the Bay Area squad, even joking that nobody should be checking the weather reports for next weekend in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
"You're right. I guess the Cardinals can beat the Rams," Young jokingly continued. "... No, no, you're right. We get Green Bay regardless. I forgot about that."
Then Young remembered that the 49ers don't travel to Green Bay if they beat the Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles can upset the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In that scenario, the 49ers would travel to face the winner of the Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals playoff game.
Young added, "Players on the field at the moment, they're like, 'No, bro. First things first.'"
Yes, first things first. The 49ers enter Sunday's game at AT&T Stadium with a great deal of confidence, but they still have to take care of business if they hope to keep their Super Bowl hopes alive.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Young below.