Divisional Round, 1981: San Francisco 38 New York 24

Game information
25-year-old San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana led the 49ers to victory in his first playoff game, completing 20 of 31 passes for a career-high 304 yards and two touchdowns and an interception.

The 49ers jumped to a 24–7 lead in the second quarter, and scored two touchdowns in the final quarter to secure the victory. San Francisco took the opening kickoff and advanced 85 yards in 13 plays, assisted by a defensive holding penalty on a punt that allowed them to keep the drive going. Montana finished the drive with an 8-yard touchdown to tight end Charle Young. Two drives later, the Giants countered when quarterback Scott Brunner threw a pass to wide receiver Earnest Gray, who caught it at his own 40, evaded three 49ers defensive backs, and raced to the end zone for a 72-yard touchdown reception. 49ers running back Amos Lawrence returned the following kickoff 47 yards to the Giants 48-yard line. The 49ers soon faced 3rd and 17 from the 44, but Montana was able to convert with a 39-yard completion to Dwight Clark, which led to a 22-yard field goal by Ray Wersching that gave them a 10–7 lead on the first play of the second quarter.

On the Giants next possession, Ronnie Lott's interception gave the 49ers a first down on their own 31-yard line, where they drove to a 17–7 lead on Freddie Solomon's 58-yard touchdown reception. Linebacker Keena Turner recovered a fumble from Leon Bright on the first play after the ensuing kickoff, and Ricky Patton scored on a 25-yard touchdown run a few plays later to give the 49ers a 24–7 lead. New York then drove 52 yards in 13 plays to score on 48-yard field goal by Joe Danelo, making it 24–10. The 49ers had a chance to increase their lead before halftime, but Wersching missed a 50-yard field goal attempt with less than a minute left.

On the opening drive of the third quarter, Montana threw an interception to Bill Currier on the Giants 41-yard line. Brunner completed a 59-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Johnny Perkins on the next play to make it 24–17. The next time they had the ball, New York drove 85 yards to the 49ers 4-yard line, but it ended there and Danelo hit the uprights on a 21-yard field goal attempt. In the fourth quarter, Solomon returned a Giants punt 22 yards to the New York 36-yard line, and the 49ers went on to score on Bill Ring's 3-yard rushing touchdown. Later on, Lott returned his second interception of the game 20 yards to the end zone to give San Francisco a 38–17 lead and clinch the game. Brunner then made a 17-yard touchdown to Perkins to close out the scoring.

Solomon was the 49ers top receiver with 6 catches for 107 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 12 yards and returning a punt for 22. Clark added 5 receptions for 104 yards. Perkins finished the day with 7 receptions for 121 yards, while Gray had 3 for 117.

CBS's broadcast of the Giants-49ers NFC Divisional Playoff game also featured the introduction of the telestrator to a national audience.

This was the first postseason meeting between the Giants and 49ers.

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