Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Dallas Cowboys to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1992 season. The Cowboys defeated the Bills by the score of 52–17, winning their third Super Bowl in team history, and their first one in 15 years. This game is tied with Super Bowl XXXVII as the fourth-highest scoring Super Bowl with 69 combined points, as of 2023.[5] The Bills became the first team to lose three consecutive Super Bowls, and just the second of three teams to play in three straight (the Miami Dolphins played in Super Bowls VI–VIII, winning VII and VIII, and the New England Patriots played in Super Bowls LI–LIII, winning LI and LIII). The following 1993 season, the Bills became the only team to both play and lose four consecutive Super Bowls (on January 30, 1994, losing Super Bowl XXVIII to the Dallas Cowboys 30–13). The game was played on January 31, 1993, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, and is the last NFL championship game to date to be held in a non-NFL stadium. It was also the seventh Super Bowl held in the Greater Los Angeles Area, which did not host another until Super Bowl LVI in 2022.
"1993 Super Bowl" redirects here. For the Super Bowl that was played at the completion of the 1993 season, see Super Bowl XXVIII.
Buffalo Bills (4)
(AFC)
(11–5)
January 31, 1993
98,374[3]
45.1
(est. 90.99 million viewers)[4]
66
$850,000
Jack Buck and Hank Stram
The Bills advanced to their third consecutive Super Bowl after posting an 11–5 regular season record, but entered the playoffs as a wild card after losing tiebreakers. The Cowboys were making their sixth Super Bowl appearance after posting a 13–3 regular season record. It was the first time that the two franchises had played each other since 1984.
The Cowboys scored 35 points off of a Super Bowl-record nine Buffalo turnovers, including three first half touchdowns. Bills backup quarterback Frank Reich, who replaced injured starter Jim Kelly in the second quarter, threw a 40-yard touchdown on the final play of the third quarter to cut the lead to 31–17. Dallas then scored three more touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman was named Super Bowl MVP, completing 22 of 30 passes for 273 yards and four touchdowns for a passer rating of 140.6, while also rushing for 28 yards.
In response to Fox's Super Bowl counterprogramming of a special episode of In Living Color during the previous year, the NFL booked Michael Jackson to perform during the entire Super Bowl XXVII halftime show. Jackson's performance started the league's trend of signing top acts to appear during the Super Bowl to attract more viewers and interest.
Background[edit]
Arizona's Martin Luther King Day controversy[edit]
Super Bowl XXVII was originally scheduled to be played at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona, the home of the Phoenix Cardinals and the Arizona State Sun Devils.[6][7] In 1983, U.S. president Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday honoring African-American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Many states had adopted the holiday at the state level by the time it was first observed in 1986. Arizona governor Bruce Babbitt issued an executive order creating the state holiday after the state legislature had voted it against it.[8] Babbitt's successor, Evan Mecham, rescinded the order upon taking office in January 1987 on the grounds that Babbitt did not have the authority to issue such an order.[9][10] Mecham had made his displeasure for the holiday widely known, saying that King did not deserve a holiday.[11][12] In response, Dr. King's widow Coretta Scott King and musician Stevie Wonder spearheaded an entertainment and convention boycott of Arizona, condemning Mecham for rescinding the law and accused him of racism.[13][14] Mecham was impeached and removed from office in 1988 on charges of obstruction of justice and financial misconduct. In September 1989, the state legislature approved the holiday, and it was signed into law by new governor Rose Mofford.[15][16] However, a petition drive blocked enactment of the law until voters approved it at the ballot box.[17]
On March 13, 1990, the NFL held its annual owners meeting in Orlando, Florida. One of the items on the agenda was to determine a host city for Super Bowl XXVII. Three cities submitted bids: Los Angeles/Pasadena (Rose Bowl), San Diego (Jack Murphy Stadium), and Phoenix/Tempe (Sun Devil Stadium).[18] While the Los Angeles proposal guaranteed the most profit,[7] Phoenix represented a fresh market for the game, and the owners wanted to reward Cardinals owners Bill Bidwill for his years of service to the league.[18] Arizona civil rights activist Art Mobley was sent to the meeting to lobby against Phoenix winning the vote, attempting to build awareness to the MLK Day controversy.[19] The vote was conducted and Tempe was awarded the game, but committee chairman and Eagles owner Norman Braman warned that if the upcoming MLK Day ballot initiative failed, the NFL would not hesitate to pull the game from Arizona and move it elsewhere.[19] The relocation effort was heavily pressured by NFL players, of which the majority of them are African American. Many players expressed concern in playing a Super Bowl in a state which MLK Day wasn't recognized.[19]
The issue began to heat up again as election day approached. Polls were mixed, but generally showed that the Arizona electorate approved of an MLK holiday.[20] However, the issue was confusing to voters since there were two competing initiatives.[17] Proposition 301 called for replacing Columbus Day with MLK Day while Proposition 302 would create a new paid holiday on King's birthday.[17] Both initiatives required a yes/no vote, and some voters were unsure if they could vote "yes" on both. Both propositions were defeated;[21][22] Proposition 302 lost by a narrow 49.2%–50.8% margin, while Proposition 301 fell convincingly (24.6%–75.4%). Some observers believed that The NFL Today on CBS Sports may have created a backlash on the vote. Two days before the election, Greg Gumbel reported that the NFL was threatening to move the game if the vote failed. Some voters resented that notion, and felt they were being intimidated by the league, and voted "no" in protest.[23][24] After the failed vote, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue recommended that the game be moved, and announced that the issue would be on the agenda at the next owners meeting.[25]
The NFL reopened the bidding for Super Bowl XXVII at the owners meetings Kohala, Hawaii, on March 19, 1991. The Phoenix/Tempe contingent was permitted to defend their position, and the two losing cities (Pasadena and San Diego) also made presentations to the selection committee.[26][27] After deliberating for over three hours, owners voted by a better than 3⁄4 margin to pull the game from Tempe.[28][29] The Rose Bowl was voted as the replacement site, the first time it had hosted the game since XXI. The NFL offered a compromise by reserving Super Bowl XXX for Tempe on a "preliminary" and "conditional" basis.[30][24][31] Arizona voters approved the MLK Day holiday in November 1992. The NFL responded by formally assigning XXX to Tempe at their March 1993 meeting.[32]
Broadcasting[edit]
The game was broadcast on television in the United States by NBC. Dick Enberg served as the play-by-play announcer with color commentator Bob Trumpy in the broadcast booth. CBS was originally scheduled to broadcast Super Bowl XXVII, but the NFL allowed NBC and CBS to swap Super Bowls XXVI and XXVII so CBS could use Super Bowl XXVI as a strong lead-in for its coverage of the 1992 Winter Olympics.[37]
Bob Costas hosted all the events with analyst Mike Ditka, who joined NBC almost immediately after he was fired as head coach of the Chicago Bears earlier in January. Other contributors included former Boston Globe sportswriter Will McDonough (assigned to Buffalo's locker room); former Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders tight end Todd Christensen; The Tonight Show host Jay Leno; Cris Collinsworth (participating in an NFL Experience piece with Christensen as well as reporting from the Dallas locker room); former Los Angeles Lakers basketball player Magic Johnson (then working as a commentator for the NBA on NBC; Johnson was assigned to an interview with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin); Paul Maguire; Gayle Gardner; Jim Lampley (who would replace Costas as host of NFL Live for the following season); and Dateline NBC correspondent Deborah Roberts (producing a special report on the Michael Jackson halftime show). Also included was an interview with former New York Jets defensive end Dennis Byrd and his wife Angela in the first one-on-one interview since Byrd suffered a paralyzing neck injury (which he eventually recovered from) suffered in a collision with teammate Scott Mersereau during their game against Kansas City.
NBC's Super Bowl lead-out program was the series debut of Homicide: Life on the Street. This would be the third successful series to premiere after a Super Bowl (The A-Team, which premiered after Super Bowl XVII, and The Wonder Years, which premiered after Super Bowl XXII, were the other two successful series).
Super Bowl XXVII was broadcast to 125 countries around the world. In addition to the United States, this Super Bowl was also broadcast in Canada on CTV, in Germany on Tele 5, in Mexico on Canal 5, in Australia on the ABC, in the Philippines on GMA Network and World TV 21 and the United Kingdom on Channel 4.
The NFL's Greatest Games episode A Man and His Moment features Jimmy Johnson reading excerpts from his book Turning the Thing Around: My Life in Football, interspersed with game footage and audio from Super Bowl XXVII. It was based on the Super Bowl XXVII highlight film, which had the same title as this episode.
Entertainment[edit]
Pregame ceremonies[edit]
The pre show featured The Rockettes dance company in a tribute to Hollywood music and cinema in the United States. Also featured were former Eagles singer Glenn Frey and Fleetwood Mac.
Country music singer Garth Brooks sang the national anthem. He was accompanied by actress Marlee Matlin, who signed the anthem for the deaf fans. Brooks very nearly did not perform the anthem—he left the stadium less than an hour before he was slated to sing, because of a dispute with NBC, regarding a video he asked them to air for the song "We Shall Be Free". Television producers spotted rocker Jon Bon Jovi in the crowd and were prepared to have him perform the anthem, until Brooks was finally coaxed back into the stadium.
The coin toss ceremony featured a future infamous celebrity, former Bills running back O. J. Simpson, who was working for NBC Sports at the time.
Game summary[edit]
First quarter[edit]
The game got off to a promising start for Buffalo. After both teams were forced to punted on their opening possessions, Bills wide receiver Steve Tasker blocked Cowboys punter Mike Saxon's ensuing punt, knocking the ball out of bounds at the Dallas 16-yard line. Four plays later, running back Thurman Thomas scored on a 2-yard touchdown run to give the Bills the 7–0 early lead.
Dallas then reached their own 40-yard line on their next drive, but an illegal formation penalty on offensive tackle Mark Tuinei nullified running back Emmitt Smith's 12-yard run. Quarterback Troy Aikman then threw two consecutive incompletions, and the Cowboys were forced to punt again. The Bills subsequently advanced to midfield with the aid of a roughing the passer penalty on Cowboys defensive tackle Leon Lett and a 21-yard pass from quarterback Jim Kelly to wide receiver Andre Reed.
Then the wave of turnovers began. On the next play, a blitz by safety Kenneth Gant led to Kelly throwing an interception to safety James Washington, who returned the ball 13 yards to the Bills 47-yard line. Six plays later, aided by a 20-yard reception by wide receiver Michael Irvin on 3rd-and-16, the Cowboys tied the game on Aikman's 23-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jay Novacek.
Buffalo had to start at their own 10 following the ensuing kickoff due to an illegal block by Bills linebacker Mark Maddox.[44] On the first play of the drive, defensive end Charles Haley strip-sacked Kelly, and defensive tackle Jimmie Jones picked the ball out of the air at the 2-yard line and dove into the end zone for a touchdown to give Dallas a 14–7 lead. The Cowboys had scored two touchdowns in a span of 15 seconds, the shortest time between touchdowns in Super Bowl history.
The Cowboys nearly forced yet another turnover when Bills wide receiver Brad Lamb returned the ensuing kickoff 33 yards to the Buffalo 37-yard line before Gant stripped the ball from him, but linebacker Keith Goganious recovered the ball for Buffalo on the 42. Running back Kenneth Davis then ran twice for a gain of 14 yards to end the first quarter.
Second quarter[edit]
On the first play of the second quarter, Kelly's 40-yard completion to Reed set up 1st-and-goal for the Bills at the Cowboys' 4-yard line. But the Dallas defense immediately tightened up as Buffalo failed to score on three rushing attempts. On fourth down, Kelly's pass was intercepted in the end zone for a touchback by safety Thomas Everett.
Despite being forced to punt following Everett's interception, Dallas began to take over the game from there. On Buffalo's next drive, linebacker Ken Norton Jr. delivered a hard hit on Kelly that re-injured the latter's knee, which he sprained earlier in the season, and playoff star Frank Reich took Kelly's place. Reich started out well, completing his first two passes, including a 38-yard completion to Reed to advance the ball to the Dallas 22-yard line, while Davis was also a major contributor on the drive, rushing five times for 28 yards. However, Thomas was stopped for no gain on 3rd-and-1 at the 4-yard line. Rather than attempt another fourth-down play near the goal line, the Bills settled for kicker Steve Christie's 21-yard field goal to cut their deficit to 14–10 with 3:24 left in the half.
The Cowboys exploded in the closing minutes of the first half. First, they responded to the Bills' field goal on their next possession with a 5-play, 72-yard drive, which consisted of a pair of passes from Aikman to Smith and Novacek for 17 yards, followed by a 38-yard run by Smith to give Dallas a first down inside the Buffalo 20-yard line as the half came to the two-minute warning. Aikman then finished the drive with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Irvin, increasing the lead to 21–10. On the first play of the Bills' ensuing drive, Thomas caught a swing pass from Reich, but fumbled the ball while being tackled by Lett, and Jones recovered it at the Buffalo 18-yard line. Aikman then threw another touchdown pass to Irvin to give Dallas a 28–10 lead (Irvin's two touchdown receptions made him the seventh player to do so in a Super Bowl. Irvin also became the second player, after Washington Redskins wide receiver Ricky Sanders in Super Bowl XXII, to catch two touchdowns in a single quarter. Furthermore, Irvin's two catches occurred in a span of 18 seconds, the fastest pair of touchdowns scored by the same player in Super Bowl history).
With just over a minute left in the first half, the Bills barely avoided another turnover when Davis recovered a fumbled handoff from Reich. But two plays later, cornerback Larry Brown intercepted Reich's pass at the Dallas 28-yard line to preserve the Cowboys' 18-point lead at halftime.
Third quarter[edit]
Dallas then took the opening drive of the second half and advanced 77 yards in 11 plays, which included two receptions by Irvin for 37 yards and four runs by Smith for 28 yards. However, on 3rd-and-goal at the Buffalo 2-yard line, Aikman's pass to Novacek in the end zone was overthrown, forcing Dallas to settle for kicker Lin Elliott's 20-yard field goal, increasing their lead to 31–10. After the Bills' next possession resulted in a punt and the Cowboys' resulted in a turnover on downs, Buffalo responded to Dallas' field goal with a 5-play, 61-yard drive, which ended with Reich's 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Don Beebe on the last play of the quarter. Despite their five turnovers in the first half, Buffalo only trailed Dallas 31–17 going into the final quarter, and after their comeback from the 32-point deficit to the Houston Oilers in the Wild Card game, a two-touchdown comeback seemed perfectly within their capabilities.
Fourth quarter[edit]
However, the Cowboys tightened up on both offense and defense, and held the Bills scoreless for the rest of the game. On Dallas' next possession, Smith fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Aikman, but resulted in a 12-yard loss. Two plays later, Aikman completed an 18-yard pass to Smith, but it brought up 4th-and-1 and the Cowboys punted. During the punt, Bills cornerback Cliff Hicks fumbled the catch and had to fall on the ball at the Buffalo 12. From there, the Bills did not gain a yard and punted back to the Cowboys. After an 11-yard run by Smith, Aikman threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to wide Alvin Harper, giving Dallas a 38–17 lead, and essentially putting the game away.[45] However, the Cowboys were not done adding to their lead. On the second play of the Bills' next possession, Everett intercepted a pass from Reich and returned it 22 yards to the Buffalo 8-yard line, setting up another touchdown three plays later on Smith's 10-yard run. Two plays after Buffalo received the ensuing kickoff, Reich fumbled a high snap while in a shotgun formation. Norton recovered the loose ball and returned it 9 yards for a touchdown, capping off the scoring at 52–17. The 21 points by the Cowboys is the most for a team in the 4th quarter, matched by the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV.[46][47] The Cowboys also became just the second team to score two defensive touchdowns in a Super Bowl. The Raiders also did so in Super Bowl XVIII with a blocked punt return and an interception return.
One of the more memorable moments of the game came after the Cowboys had built a 35-point lead. Cowboys defensive end Jim Jeffcoat strip-sacked Reich, and Lett picked up the ball with no one in front of him, appearing ready to score on a 64-yard fumble return, but Beebe ran a showboating Lett down from behind and stripped him of the ball just before he crossed the goal line, as the ball rolled out of the end zone for a touchback. Lett would redeem himself when he sacked Reich to end the game and give the Cowboys their first championship title since 1978. After the game, in an otherwise dejected Buffalo locker room, Bills owner Ralph Wilson went straight to Beebe and thanked him for his hustle and perseverance.
Smith was the top rusher of the game, rushing for 108 yards and a touchdown, while also catching 6 passes for 27 yards. Irvin was the Cowboys' leading receiver with 6 receptions for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns. Novacek added 7 receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown. Lett recorded a sack, a fumble recovery, and 2 forced fumbles.
Reich and Kelly combined for 22 out of 38 completions for 276 yards and a touchdown, but also threw 4 interceptions. Thomas, who gained 2,113 combined rushing and receiving yards during the season, was held to just 29 combined rushing and receiving yards in the game. Reed was the Bills' top receiver with 8 receptions for 152 yards. Bills running back Kenneth Davis was their leading rusher with 86 yards. Davis also caught 3 passes for 16 yards and returned a kickoff for 21 yards, giving him 123 total yards.
Buffalo had seven possessions which ended in four plays or less because of turnovers and resulted in five Dallas touchdowns.[44] Irvin and Bills receiver Andre Reed each had over 100 yards receiving, making it the first time players from different teams had at least 100 yards receiving in a Super Bowl; Irvin had 114 yards, while Reed had 152. Reed's total is the highest for a player on a losing team.
Postgame notes[edit]
By virtue of his national championship with Miami in 1987, Jimmy Johnson also became the first coach to win both an NCAA Division I-A/FBS national championship and a Super Bowl. Only two coaches have since accomplished the feat: Johnson's Cowboys successor Barry Switzer of Oklahoma and Pete Carroll of USC and Seattle.
Aikman, Irvin and Norton also provided commentary for the 1992 Cowboys' installment of America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions, narrated by Alec Baldwin. The 1992 Cowboys were also ranked 5th out of the first 40 Super Bowl winning teams as selected by a 53-person panel of "Blue Ribbon" experts on the NFL and were the highest-placing Cowboys team.[48]
For the first (and to date only) time in Super Bowl history, officials changed shirts at halftime, going from short sleeves in the first half to long sleeves for the second.
Donnie Hampton died January 30, 1995, at age 47, one day after Super Bowl XXIX.