Sporting a 15-1 record, the 1984 San Francisco 49ers were one of the greatest teams ever to win the Super Bowl. Mixed in the shuffle of their offensive mega-stars such as Joe Montana, Dwight Clark and Roger Craig was running back Wendell Tyler. This is his story.
The Early Years
Wendell Tyler was born in Shreveport, Louisiana on May 20, 1955. He and his family moved to Los Angeles when he was young and Tyler was soon starring at nearby Crenshaw High School where he garnered the attention of UCLA.
He spent his first two years in Westwood being sprinkled into the offense, averaging well over five yards a carry and scoring seven touchdowns between his freshman and sophomore years. Going into his junior year, Wendell Tyler was ready to take over as the lead back in Dick Vermeil's ground control offense.
After all of that waiting, nothing was going to stop him. Not even a broke wrist he suffered just before the season began. He would play the whole year with one hand and eventually defenses noticed his injury and began attacking the ball with more vigor, causing many fumbles. Still he didn't let that late discovery deter him.
That year, he led the Pac-8 by averaging 6.5 yards a carry while the Bruins earned a rare conference title, stamping their ticket to the Rose Bowl where the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes waited.
Facing long odds at victory, Dick Vermeil had spent the weeks leading up to the big game by controversially leading his team through two-a-days. After facing a team-wide mutiny, he convinced his troops that the only way to go into the game was to prepare and play as hard as they could, at once bringing honor to their names as well as the school, win or loss.
The Bruins may have been weary after all of the extra practices, but they entered the Rose Bowl prepared. Wendell Tyler had a terrific day, rushing for 172 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown that proved to be the finishing touch on a 23-10 upset. Including the Rose Bowl, Wendell Tyler's 1,388 rushing yards and 6.7 yards per carry in 1975 were both school records.
Emboldened by the upset, Vermeil left for Philadelphia after that game and Terry Donahou took his place in 1976. Although the Bruins again went 9-2-1, they finished second in the conference to USC and finished the season losing 36-6 to Alabama in the Liberty Bowl. Wendell Tyler finished his college career having rushed for 3,181 yards and averaged 6.04 yards per carry. With such gaudy stats in hand, Tyler was ready for the NFL.
The Rams
Wendell Tyler was picked up by the local Los Angeles Rams in the third round of the 1977 NFL Draft. he spent the first two years of his career behind veteran running backs such as Lawrence McCutcheon and John Cappelletti while slowly acclimating himself to the offense. In two years, Tyler rushed for 362 yards and three touchdowns.
Having touched the ball just 16 times the previous year, he carried and caught the ball 250 times in 1979 while rushing for 1,109 yards and scoring ten total touchdowns. The Rams were underdogs for much of the year, but they won when it mattered most. Wendell Tyler's 32-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter sparked the Rams to a surprising 21-19 victory over the two-time defending conference champion Cowboys in the first round of the playoffs and his 86 hard fought yards on the ground helped lead his team to a rugged 9-0 win over the resurgent Tampa Bay Buccaneers to stamp their ticket to the Super Bowl. Ironically, the big game was held in, of all places, the Rose Bowl, the sight of Wendell Tyler's greatest memory of the sport to date.
Facing a Steel Curtain defense that was on its last legs, Wendell Tyler was less than stellar in the Super Bowl, rushing 17 times for 60 yards as the Rams fell to the Steelers 31-19. At the time, the future looked bright for the young running back. But life has a way of humbling us all.
That offseason, he was sleeping in the backseat when his brother-in-law fell asleep at the wheel and drove off a ravine in West Virginia. It took rescue teams hours to find them and waht they found proved to be truly life changing for everyone involved. Wendell Tyler had dislocated his hip and doctors told him that he had about a 10% chance of ever playing football again. In response, he turned to his Bible and meditated on the Word. Soon, he felt a peace that surpassed all understanding. He knew that he would play football again.
While he only suited up for four games that year, his prediction proved to be accurate. He bounced back well in 1981, rushing for 1,074 yards and 12 touchdowns while catching 45 passes for 436 yards and another five touchdowns. After gaining nearly 1,000 all-purpose yards and scoring 13 touchdowns in the strike-shortened 1982 season, Wendell Tyler became trade bait.
The 49ers
In 1983, the Rams realized that they hada shot at drafting one of the preeminent running backs of all time, Eric Dickerson. Wanting to clear some space on their books as well as a spot in their running backs room, they traded Wendell Tyler a little used defensive lineman named Cody Jones and a third round pick to San Francisco for one of the 49esr two second round picks and a fourth rounder.
The 49ers ultimately took Nebraska running back Roger Craig in the second round, but kept him on the bench to soak up their new addition's knowledge. Tyler played well that first year, gaining over 1,000 all-purpose yards and scoring six touchdowns for the 10-6 49ers. Although they lost to the Redskins by a field goal in the NFC Championship game, they knew that brighter days were ahead. After watching his young rookie gain over 1,100 all-purpose yards and score 12 touchdowns, 49ers coach Bill Walsh knew that the had to find a way to get both running backs on the field at the same time.
So he switched Craig to fullback for 1984. The move went well for all involved. While Wendell Tyler rumbled on the ground to the tune of a franchise-record 1,262 yards and seven touchdowns, Roger Craig gained over 1,200 all-purpose yards while scoring 10 touchdowns. Still, only one of them (Tyler) made it to their first Pro Bowl that year. Meanwhile, Joe Montana and the rest of the 49ers kept on winning, eventually ending the regular season 15-1.
Having ended the previous year with a whimper, the 49ers were determined to redeem themselves. Although Tyler rushed 14 times for a paltry 35 yards, his teammates more than made up for his shortcomings in their 20-10 opening round win ove the New York Giants. He was a key reason why they beat the Bears 23-0 in the NFC Championship Game the following week, rushing 10 times against a great front-seven for 68 yards and a touchdown. Next stop: the Super Bowl.
It was a crisp January evening when the 49ers met the Miami Dolphins in Stanford Stadium for Super Bowl XVIIII. With the league's two most potent offenses garnering the spotlight, most expected the game to be a shootout. Although the early going proved to live up to the hype, the 49ers' stout nickel defense shut down Dan Marino and his high-flying offense for the entire second half.
Meanwhile Wendell Tyler and Roger Craig gained yards and made the kinds of plays that win championships. For the night, Tyler had rushed 13 times for 65 yards and caught four passes for an additional 70 while Craig tied a Super Bowl record by scoring three touchdowns in the 38-16 pasting. At long last, the man who had just a 10% chance of ever playing the game again was a Super Bowl champion.
Later Years
Although still a fullback, Roger Craig became the first to gain 1,000 yards on the ground and through the air in 1985. Meanwhile, Wendell Tyler gained more than 1,000 all-purpose yards of his own while scoring eight touchdowns. With Craig's momentum within the offense, 1985 was Tyler's last hurrah. He retired after rushing just 31 times in 1986. Today, he's a success in real estate and as a motivational speaker for Sports Celebrity Marketing.
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