Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956), nicknamed Joe Cool, The Comeback Kid, is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. He also briefly played for the Kansas City Chiefs. After winning a college national championship at Notre Dame, Montana started his NFL career in 1979 with San Francisco, where he played for the next 14 seasons.