Tom Brady mourns death of 49ers great Dwight Clark

Former 49ers great Dwight Clark died Monday at the age of 61 after a battle with ALS.

Tom Brady, who grew up a 49ers fan in San Mateo, CA, called Clark one of his idols and posted a tribute to the late wide receiver on Instagram. . .

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Dwight Clark was one of my idols growing up in San Mateo. I was lucky enough to be at the game where my hero Joe Montana perfectly placed the game winning throw/catch to Dwight in the corner of the end zone to beat the cowboys in the 1981 season. I was 4 years old and cried to my parents the entire first half because I couldn’t see the field when the grown ups would stand and scream for the 49ers. I got a chance to meet him when we happened to share the same orthodontist in San Mateo and I sabotaged one of his visits just to meet him and shake his hand. He was incredibly gracious to me that day as a young boy. And I never forgot the impact he made on me as all of our heroes do. I am sad tonight hearing of his passing of ALS but I know he is now resting and at peace finally after many years valiantly fighting such a terrible disease. Thank you for the great memories and RIP!

A post shared by Tom Brady (@tombrady) on Jun 4, 2018 at 4:34pm PDT

Clark's wife released the following statement on her husband's Twitter account:

Dwight Clark was a two-time Pro Bowler, two-time Super Bowl champion, and will forever be known for "The Catch" vs the Cowboys in the 1981 NFC Playoffs.