The San Francisco 49ers signed wide receiver Bryant Johnson.

The San Francisco 49ers terminated quarterback Trent Dilfer's contract Thursday, possibly signaling the end of the 14-year veteran's career.

The Steel City heroes, just a season removed from the fifth Super Bowl championship in franchise history, are beginning to look a lot more like title contenders in year one under new coach Mike Tomlin than they did in the 16- game sideline swansong of Bill Cowher.

Linebacker Manny Lawson will miss the rest of the San Francisco 49ers' season after tearing a ligament in his left knee.

Like his carefully plotted football plays, 49ers legend Bill Walsh scripted much of his own funeral send-off as well.

From its all-star list of speakers to the musical selections -- "Danny Boy" and the Glide Memorial Choir singing "Amazing Grace" -- Walsh made the call.

It all began about nine months ago -- shortly after Walsh disclosed he was suffering from a deadly form of leukemia -- when the family approached former 49ers public relations head Kirk Reynolds about planning his funeral. Reynolds, you may recall, produced the infamous 49ers training video a couple of years back.

Soon Reynolds was having breakfast in Woodside with Walsh to talk about what kind of funeral he wanted, and to go over his extensive Rolodex of friends.

In the months that followed, Reynolds had countless meetings and conversations with Walsh, his son Craig and others to plan the services. They culminated less than a week before the coach's passing, with two meetings of the two.

"When I told him we were going to have both a private and a public service, he told me nobody is going to come,'' Reynolds said.

"I kind of chuckled and said, 'You can't be serious.' ''

Reynolds didn't tell Walsh that the public service -- scheduled for Friday, a day after the private service at Stanford Memorial -- was being planned for the 65,000-seat Candlestick Park.

Its hard to say goodbye to someone as great as Bill Walsh.

Walsh died at his Woodside home Sunday morning July 30, 2007, following a long battle with leukemia.