Jerry Rice

Jerry Rice always has been good with his hands. He had to be. As a high school student, he helped his father painstakingly lay bricks in the sweltering summer months in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi.

"I would be standing on this tall scaffold and they would toss the bricks up to me," he said. "I was catching bricks all day. One of my brothers would stack four bricks on top of each other and toss them up. They might go this way and that, and I would catch all four. I did it so many times, it was just a reaction."

Rice has used that catching ability to become one of the greatest pass receivers in NFL history. He owns nearly every NFL career receiving record. Additionally, his 18 touchdowns, 109 receptions, and 1,625 receiving yards are all postseason records. But Rice's greatness goes far beyond his numbers. His work ethic is legendary, and he constantly strives to improve his game. Few receivers can match what he can do after catching the football. And, when it comes to clutch catches, he wrote the book.

Rice was the 49ers' first-round draft choice out of Mississippi Valley State in 1985. He has helped San Francisco to three Super Bowl victories, two with Joe Montana at quarterback and one with Steve Young. In Super Bowl XXIII, his 11 catches for 215 yards earned him most-valuable-player honors.