1952 San Francisco 49ers season

1952 San Francisco 49ers season
Owner	Tony Morabito
General manager	Louis Spadia
Head coach	Buck Shaw
Home field	Kezar Stadium
Results
Record	7–5
Division place	3rd NFL National
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	7 RB Hugh McElhenny RB Joe Perry WR Gordy Soltau C Bill Johnson DL Ed Henke DL Leo Nomellini LB Hardy Brown
← 1951 49ers seasons 1953 →

The 1952 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 3rd season in the National Football League and their 7th overall. They were coming off a 7–4–1 record in 1951.

The 49ers won their first five games by at least two touchdowns and had visions of playing in their first-ever NFL Championship Game. However, they lost five of their final seven games to finish at 7–5, third place in the six-team National Conference (which became the Western Conference in 1953).

Y. A. Tittle emerged as the starting quarterback, as he had a completion rate of 51.0% along with eleven touchdowns and 1,407 yards. Frankie Albert also had some action, completing 55.0% of his passes, along with eight TDs and 964 yards.

Joe Perry rushed for a team-high 725 yards and eight TDs, while rookie Hugh McElhenny had 684 yards on 98 attempts (7.0 yards/carry), along with six rushing TDs, while he caught 26 passes for 367 yards and earned another three touchdowns. Gordie Soltau led the club with 55 receptions for 774 yards and seven TDs.

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	August 10	San Francisco Broncos	W 79–0	1–0	Kezar Stadium	8,700
2	August 17	Washington Redskins	W 35–0	2–0	Kezar Stadium	35,234
3	August 24	Chicago Cardinals	W 38–14	3–0	Kezar Stadium	34,901
4	September 3	at Los Angeles Rams	W 17–7	4–0	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	67,799
5	September 7	at Pittsburgh Steelers	W 29–14	5–0	Forbes Field	21,759
6	September 13	at Cleveland Browns	W 35–31	6–0	Rubber Bowl	30,119
7	September 19	at San Jose Packers	W 76–0	7–0	Spartan Stadium	6,839

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Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance	Recap
1	September 28	Detroit Lions	W 17–3	1–0	Kezar Stadium	52,750	Recap
2	October 4	at Dallas Texans	W 37–14	2–0	Cotton Bowl	12,566	Recap
3	October 12	at Detroit Lions	W 28–0	3–0	Briggs Stadium	42,842	Recap
4	October 19	at Chicago Bears	W 40–16	4–0	Wrigley Field	46,338	Recap
5	October 26	Dallas Texans	W 48–21	5–0	Kezar Stadium	26,887	Recap
6	November 2	Chicago Bears	L 17–20	5–1	Kezar Stadium	58,255	Recap
7	November 9	at New York Giants	L 14–23	5–2	Polo Grounds	54,230	Recap
8	November 16	at Washington Redskins	W 23–17	6–2	Griffith Stadium	30,863	Recap
9	November 23	at Los Angeles Rams	L 9–35	6–3	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	64,450	Recap
10	November 30	Los Angeles Rams	L 21–34	6–4	Kezar Stadium	49,420	Recap
11	December 7	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 7–24	6–5	Kezar Stadium	13,886	Recap
12	December 14	Green Bay Packers	W 24–14	7–5	Kezar Stadium	17,579	Recap
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

NFL National Conference
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Detroit Lions	9	3	0	.750	7–3	344	192	W3
Los Angeles Rams	9	3	0	.750	8–2	349	234	W8
San Francisco 49ers	7	5	0	.583	6–3	285	221	W1
Green Bay Packers	6	6	0	.500	3–6	295	312	L3
Chicago Bears	5	7	0	.417	4–6	245	326	W1
Dallas Texans	1	11	0	.083	1–9	182	427	L2

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

San Francisco's players selected for the Pro Bowl:

Player	Position
Hardy Brown	Linebacker
Ed Henke	Defensive line
Bill Johnson	Offensive line
Hugh McElhenny	Running back
Leo Nomellini	Defensive line
Joe Perry	Running back
Gordie Soltau	Wide receiver

• 1952 49ers on Pro Football Reference
• SHRP Sports