Joe Montana then made one of his signature fourth quarter drives by completing six passes, the last of which was the go-ahead touchdown to Freddie Solomon, which gave the 49ers a 24–23 lead with 1:23 left. The Lions were not done. Even though backup quarterback Gary Danielson, who had replaced an injured Eric Hipple, had a horrible game with five interceptions, he pieced together a closing drive to put the team within field goal range with 11 seconds left.
Joe Montana led one of his hallmark fourth-quarter drives by completing six passes, culminating in a touchdown to Freddie Solomon that gave the 49ers a 24–23 lead with 1:23 remaining. Despite backup quarterback Gary Danielson, who replaced an injured Eric Hipple and had a subpar game with five interceptions, he managed to construct a final drive to put the team within field goal range with 11 seconds left.