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SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Steve Young has won a Super Bowl with the San Francisco 49ers. He's a two-time league MVP, and he's finished as the NFL's top-rated passer six times in his career.

	Steve Young has been sacked 16 times in his last three games against the Packers.

And at least once, the 37-year-old Young would like to beat the Green Bay Packers.

Young, who set club records this season with a league-high 36 touchdowns passes and 4,170 yards passing, gets another crack at the Packers (11-5) when they come to Candlestick Point on Sunday to play the 49ers (12-4) in a wild-card game.

"I'm sure I don't need to remind him" that he hasn't beaten the Packers, 49ers coach Steve Mariucci said. "I'm sure he knows. But this happens to be a team sport, and no one man can win or lose a game for you. Steve has had a tremendous season, probably the most productive season of his life. If he's ready to play a good playoff game, it's now, because he's healthy, and he's confident, and he's on top of his game."

Young enters the game 0-8 against the Packers, including four starts while he was with Tampa Bay. He also has gone 0-4 with San Francisco, including playoff defeats in each of the last three years, though he played only two series in a 1996 divisional game because of cracked and dislocated ribs.

"In the NFL, you're always facing an obstacle," Young said Wednesday. "It's been that way from the second I showed up.

"I think they've been a road block for us because it's meant them going to the Super Bowl or us, and we haven't gotten over that. We're an organization that has a tremendous amount of pride, and when somebody has beaten you a number of times in a row, it becomes a thing that you want even more so to overcome."

The focal point of the 49ers attack, Young has never been able to put together a solid game against the Packers, mainly because the Packers wouldn't let him.

Young has been sacked 16 times in the last three games, including a career-high nine times in a 36-22 loss at Green Bay on Nov. 1. He's also thrown at least one interception and fumbled at least once in each of those games.

"It's no secret to anybody that Steve, just like Brett Favre for us, makes that team go," said Green Bay coach Mike Holmgren, who coached Young as an assistant Brigham Young and with the 49ers.

"He's having as fine a year as he's ever had, and he's had some great ones. I think he's playing the position beautifully, and if you cannot contain him a little bit you will not win, it's that simple.

"Our defense is predicated on trying to do good job against Steve Young. He can hurt you throwing and running, and you have to be able to tackle him and make life a little uncomfortable for him."

Young said he's resisted the notion to let his frustrating run against Green Bay get personal.

"I learned this from Ronnie Lott, you try to keep it where you play nameless, faceless opponents," Young said.

Young said the 49ers also have other factors in their favor, including a healthier offensive line, the home field, three exceptional wideouts in Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens and J.J. Stokes and the expectation of a better running game with Garrison Hearst and Terry Kirby. Hearst, however, remains questionable with a pulled right hamstring.

"We can play better football," Young said. "If you look back on the games we played, we haven't.

"It's all written for you, being mistake-free, not get behind, avoid the things that kill you in the playoffs. I don't feel it necessarily has to be any deeper than that. Let's just go win a game."