20 best quarterback seasons in NFL history

1. Joe Montana, 49ers (1989)

You could make a case that the 1989 San Francisco 49ers were the greatest single-season team in NFL annals. They are certainly in the conversation when it comes to the 57-year Super Bowl Era. In George Seifert’s first season as head coach, the club finished 14-2 during the regular season. They suffered a one-point loss to the Rams and a four-point setback to the Packers, both defeats at home.

The team was literally unstoppable in the postseason and made easy work of the Minnesota Vikings (41-13), Rams (30-3), and Denver Broncos (55-10) by a 126-26 count. It adds up to a combined point differential of plus-100.

That season, quarterback Joe Montana would play and start in only 13 regular-season contests. When he was on the field, he was nothing short of spectacular. The Pro Football Hall of Fame completed 70.2 percent of his throw for 3,521 yards and a modest 26 scores with only eight interceptions. He escaped the pocket 49 times for 227 yards and three touchdowns.

Montana was nothing short of amazing during the aforementioned 1989 playoffs. He connected on a blistering 78.3 percent of his passes. He threw for a combined 800 yards, 11 touchdowns, and zero interceptions. In fact, the 49ers did not commit a turnover in the three-game postseason sweep. Talk about coming up big when it counted most!