59 days until 49ers kickoff: Who wore it best? Who wears it now?

The San Francisco 49ers kick off the 2015 NFL regular season on Monday Night Football, on September 14. That game means San Francisco is now a mere 59 days away from kicking off its 2015 regular season. We've moved out of the 60s! In the spirit of that approaching date, I thought I would steal this idea from our Oakland Raiders site.

Who wore it best: LB Willie Harper (1973-1983)

One of my recent favorite 49ers is Jonathan Goodwin. While he is not a superstar in the NFL, he was a very capable center for the 49ers from 2011 to 2013. Those offensive lines had a certain measure of stability. The tackles and guards got more publicity, but Goodwin was a solid option to man the middle of that line.

That being said, Willie Harper gets the nod here for best wearing No. 59. He spent 11 years with the 49ers, before wrapping up his career with two seasons in the USFL. He was one of the older guys on the roster by the time the team won its first Super Bowl, and according to Harper, the younger guys (at the time Eric Wright, Keena Turner, and others) referred to him as Pops. You can read more about Harper in this 49ers.com article celebrating him as a member of the 10-year club.

Harper's son Josh signed with the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent. The Fresno State product drew a little bit of interest from the 49ers, meeting with the team back at the NFL Combine.

Who wears it now: OLB Aaron Lynch (2014-present)

After three years of Jonathan Goodwin sporting No. 59, Aaron Lynch took over the number last year. He secured his first sack in Week 7, and followed that with four sacks in five weeks. He finished his rookie season with six sacks, and heads into his second season with a chance to build on that. Aldon Smith and Ahmad Brooks will likely start in the team's 3-4 base defense, but I suspect the team will rotate Brooks with Lynch and Eli Harold to keep the pass rush fresh.

I think the team parts ways with Brooks after this season, and at that point (if not sooner), Lynch could very well move right into the starting lineup.