Bill Walsh was not afraid of talent. He hired assistant coaches who were extremely good, and he did it with the expectation that they would move on — up to head coaching positions. And in fact, about fifteen of them did. He didn’t feel that you sold your soul to the company store. While you were a 49er, you were expected to give it your all, but Bill was very enlightened in the way he supported the lives and careers of employees beyond just what they could do for his team.

Exhibit a ferocious and intelligently applied work ethic directed at continual improvement;

Accuracy, accuracy, precision in execution of everything at all levels. No sloppiness. Game-level focus was the price of admission. Obviously,