Super Bowl XVI Super Bowl XVI was an American football game played on January 24 , 1982 , at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac , Michigan ( a suburb of Detroit ) to decide the National Football League champion following the 1981 regular season . It marked the first time that a Super Bowl was held at a cold - weather city . The domed stadium saved the crowd at the game from the very cold and snowy weather , but the weather did affect traffic and other logistical issues related to the game . Icy roads and a windchill well below zero caused the 49ers motorcade to be delayed out on the slippery roads before they finally made it to the Silverdome , although no one was hurt and the team made it there with plenty of time before kickoff . The National Football Conference NFC champion San Francisco 49ers ( 16 - 3 ) defeated the American Football Conference AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals ( 14 - 5 ) , 26 - 21 . Although the Bengals gained 356 yards of total offense to the 49ers ' 275 , San Francisco forced 5 turnovers and jumped to a 20 - 0 lead by halftime . This marked the first time in Super Bowl history that the team which compiled the most yards and touchdowns lost . 49ers quarterback Joe Montana was named the Super Bowl MVP , completing 14 of 22 passes for 157 yards and one touchdown , while also rushing for 18 yards and a touchdown on the ground . Background . San Francisco 49ers . San Francisco finished the regular season with a league - best 13 - 3 record . The 49ers ' success surprised many because they finished with a 6 - 10 record during the previous season , and a 2 - 14 record before that ( they even still had home blackouts early on in the 1981 season , the last blackouts for the 49ers to date ) . A major reason for the team ' s improvement was the emergence of their young quarterback Joe Montana . In just his third season in the league , Montana completed 311 out of 488 passes ( a 63 . 7 completion percentage ) for 3 , 565 yards and 19 touchdowns . His favorite targets were receivers Dwight Clark ( 85 receptions , 1 , 104 yards , and 4 touchdowns ) and Freddie Solomon ( 59 receptions , 969 yards , and 8 touchdowns ) . Running back Ricky Patton was the top rusher on the team with 543 yards and 4 touchdowns , while also catching 27 passes for 195 yards . Multi - talented running back Earl Cooper also provided the team with a good running and receiving threat , rushing for 330 yards and catching 51 passes for 477 yards . Much of San Francisco ' s success was aided by their offensive line , which featured Dan Audick ( LT ) , John Ayers ( LG ) , Fred Quillan ( C ) , Randy Cross ( RG ) , and Keith Fahnhorst ( RT ) . Although the 49ers had 3 rookies starting as defensive backs , they all were major defensive threats : Carlton Williamson recorded 4 interceptions , Eric Wright had 3 , and Ronnie Lott recorded 7 interceptions and tied an NFL record by returning 3 of them for touchdowns . Three - year veteran defensive back Dwight Hicks led the team with 9 interceptions , which he returned for 239 yards and a touchdown , giving the secondary a total of 23 . Defensive end Fred Dean and linebacker Jack " Hacksaw " Reynolds were big contributors up front , making it difficult for the opposing teams to rush the ball ; Dean became a 49er after an in - season trade with the San Diego Chargers and piled up 12 sacks for San Francisco . Cincinnati Bengals . The Bengals finished with the best regular season record in the AFC at 12 - 4 . Cincinnati was also a surprise team because , like the 49ers , they also had recorded a 6 - 10 record during the previous season . And prior to this year , they had never won a playoff game in their entire history . Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson was the top rated passer in the league and won both the NFL Most Valuable Player Award and the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award . He completed 300 out of 479 ( 62 . 6 percent ) of his passes for 3 , 754 yards and 29 touchdowns , with only 10 interceptions . Anderson was also an outstanding scrambler , rushing for another 320 yards and another touchdown . The Bengals main deep threat was rookie wide receiver Cris Collinsworth , who caught 67 passes for 1 , 009 yards and 8 touchdowns . Tight end Dan Ross had 71 receptions for 910 yards and 5 touchdowns , while wide receiver Isaac Curtis recorded 37 passes for 609 yards and 2 touchdowns . Fullback Pete Johnson was the leading rusher on the team , with 1 , 077 yards and 12 touchdowns . He was also a good receiver out of the backfield , catching 46 passes for another 320 yards and 4 touchdowns . A big reason for Cincinnati ' s production on offense was their line , led by future Hall of Famer Anthony Munoz . On special teams , punter Pat McInally made the pro bowl with a 45 . 4 yards per punt average . The Bengals also had a good defense that had not given up more than 30 points in any of their regular season or playoff games . Their line was anchored by defensive ends Ross Browner and Eddie Edwards , who did a great job stopping the run . Cincinnati ' s defense was also led by defensive backs Louis Breeden and Ken Riley , and Linebackers Bo Harris , Jim LeClair , and Reggie Williams , who intercepted four passes and recovered three fumbles . Playoffs . The Bengals went on to win their first ever playoff game by defeating the Buffalo Bills , 28 - 21 , and then defeated San Diego Chargers , 27 - 7 , in a game known as the Freezer Bowl because of the - 59 windchill conditions at Riverfront Stadium . Meanwhile , the 49ers went on to defeat the New York Giants , 38 - 24 , and then narrowly beat the Dallas Cowboys , 28 - 27 , on a last minute touchdown pass known as The Catch . Super Bowl pregame news . The 49ers had handily beaten the Bengals in a December game played in Cincinnati and consequently were installed as a 2 - point favorite . That said , going into Super Bowl XVI most experts agreed that both teams were very evenly matched , but many thought Pete Johnson ' s rushing ability could prove to be the difference . Some also pointed out that Ken Anderson was an established 11 - year veteran who had just finished the best season of his career , while the young Montana was only just starting to emerge as a top notch quarterback . Furthermore , Anderson had advanced through the playoffs without throwing a single interception , while Montana had been intercepted 4 times , 3 of them occurring in the NFC title game . Cincinnati head coach Forrest Gregg became the second person to play in a Super Bowl and then be a head coach in a Super Bowl . Gregg played in Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II as a member of the Green Bay Packers . Tom Flores , who coached in Super Bowl XV , was the first . This was the first Super Bowl to feature two first - time participants since Super Bowl III . ( There has been only one since , Super Bowl XX between the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots ) . This was also the only Super Bowl to date between two teams who had losing records the previous season , although Super Bowl XXXIV matched a team that had a losing record in 1998 ( St . Louis Rams ) vs . a team that finished a mediocre 8 - 8 that year ( Tennessee Titans ) . This is the only Super Bowl to have ever been played at the Pontiac Silverdome . This was also only the second of 16 Super Bowls to not take place in one of the three so - called " Big Super Bowl Cities " ( the other was Houston in 1974 ) . Fourteen of the previous 16 Super Bowls took place in either Miami , Florida , New Orleans , Louisiana or in the Greater Los Angeles Area . The Super Bowl did return to Michigan for Super Bowl XL but that game was played at Ford Field in Detroit , which by 2006 had replaced the Pontiac Silverdome as the home site for the Detroit Lions . Television and entertainment . The game was televised in the United States by CBS and featured the broadcast team of play - by - play announcer Pat Summerall and color commentator John Madden ( the latter making his Super Bowl debut as a broadcaster ) . The broadcast also featured the introduction of the telestrator to a national audience . This was also the first Super Bowl to be telecast in Canada , being simulcast on CTV . The game was one of the most watched broadcasts in American television history , with more than 85 million viewers . The final national Nielsen rating was a 49 . 1 ( a 73 share ) , which is still a Super Bowl record , and ranks second only to the final episode of " M * A * S * H " in 1983 among television broadcasts in general . ( Super Bowl XLV holds the record for total U . S . viewership , with an average audience of 111 million , but only earned a rating of 47 . 9 and a 69 share ) . The pregame festivities featured the University of Michigan Band . Singer Diana Ross performed the national anthem . The coin toss ceremony featured hall of fame quarterback Bobby Layne . Up with People provided the halftime entertainment featuring a salute to the 1960s and Motown . This was the first Super Bowl to be played in the Midwest . Game summary . First Quarter The Bengals had the first opportunity to score early in the game . After returning the opening kickoff 17 yards , San Francisco ' s Amos Lawrence was hit by Bengals linebacker Guy Frazier and fumbled at his own 26 - yard line ( the first time in a Super Bowl that a turnover took place on the opening kick ) , where John Simmons recovered for Cincinnati . Quarterback Ken Anderson then started the drive off with a completion to wide receiver Isaac Curtis for 8 yards , and followed it up with an 11 - yard pass to tight end Dan Ross . Fullback Pete Johnson ' s 2 - yard run then moved to ball to the 5 - yard line . However , Anderson threw an incomplete pass on first down , then was sacked by defensive end Jim Stuckey on second down for a 6 - yard loss . Facing third down , Anderson tried to connect with Curtis in the end zone , but 49ers safety Dwight Hicks intercepted the ball at the 5 - yard line and returned it 27 yards to the 32 . From there , quarterback Joe Montana led the 49ers offense to the Cincinnati 47 - yard line with 3 consecutive completions . Then , the 49ers ran a fake reverse – flea flicker play that involved wide receiver Freddie Solomon and ended with Montana completing a 14 - yard pass to tight end Charle Young at the 33 . Three running plays and Montana ' s 14 - yard completion to Solomon moved the ball to the 1 - yard line . Finally , Montana scored from there on a 1 - yard quarterback sneak , giving San Francisco a 7 - 0 lead . Second Quarter The Bengals threatened to score early in the second quarter when they advanced across the San Francisco 30 - yard line . But after catching a 19 - yard pass from Anderson at the 5 - yard line , wide receiver Cris Collinsworth lost a fumble while being tackled by 49ers defensive back Eric Wright . After recovering the fumble , the 49ers drove for a Super Bowl record 92 yards , scoring on an 10 - yard pass from Montana to fullback Earl Cooper , increasing their lead to 14 – 0 . The play Cooper scored on had not been called by Bill Walsh for 2 years . Cooper ' s leaping , celebratory spike of the football after scoring became the photo Sports Illustrated used for its post - game cover . With just over 4 minutes left in the half , Montana lead the 49ers on another scoring drive . First , he completed a 17 - yard pass to wide receiver Dwight Clark at the Cincinnati 49 - yard line . Then , running back Ricky Patton ran twice , advanced the ball to the 39 - yard line . Montana ' s next two completions to Clark and Solomon moved the ball to the 5 - yard line . But then Montana threw 2 straight incompletions , forcing the 49ers to settle for kicker Ray Wersching ' s 22 - yard field goal to increase their lead to 17 - 0 . With just 15 seconds left in the half , Ray Wersching ' s ensuing squib kick was muffed by Bengals running back Archie Griffin , and the 49ers recovered the ball on the Bengals 4 - yard line . According to the NFL ' s highlight film for the game , the 49ers had discovered Wersching ' s ability to effectively use the squib during their 1981 season opener when a leg injury kept him from fully powering into the football . A false start penalty against San Francisco prevented them from attempting to score a touchdown , but Wersching kicked a 26 - yard field goal , increasing the 49ers ' lead , 20 – 0 , which was the largest halftime lead in Super Bowl history to that date . Third Quarter After receiving the opening kickoff of the second half , the Bengals drove 83 yards in 9 plays , scoring on a 5 - yard touchdown run by Anderson to cut the deficit to 20 – 7 . This seemed to fire up Cincinnati ' s defense , who limited the 49ers to only 8 plays and 4 offensive yards for the entire third quarter . Later in the quarter , Bengals defensive back Mike Fuller ' s 17 - yard punt return gave the Bengals the ball at midfield . 2 penalties and a 4 - yard sack pushed them back to their own 37 , but on third down , Collinsworth ' s 49 - yard reception from Anderson moved the ball the San Francisco 14 - yard line . Johnson then later successfully converted on a fourth down run , giving the Bengals a first down on the 3 - yard line . On that play , the 49ers only had 10 players on the field because LB Keena Turner , who was seriously ill with the chicken pox during Super Bowl week , missed a call to enter the game . On first down , Johnson drove into the line and gained 2 yards down the 49ers 1 - yard line . The Bengals then tried to run Johnson into the line on second down , but lost a yard when a charging rush prevented the Bengals from establishing an up - the - middle blocking plan . Cincinnati receiver David Verser also missed a blocking audible by Anderson . On third down , 49ers linebacker Dan Bunz made probably the key defensive play of the game . Anderson faked to Johnson and threw a swing pass out to running back Charles Alexander , who was isolated on Bunz . Bunz , however , corralled Alexander at the line of scrimmage on an open - field tackle and kept him from reaching the end zone . Highlights showed that Alexander was supposed to have entered the end zone before making his cut and his early turn prevented a touchdown pass . Rather than attempting a field goal on fourth down , the Bengals sent Johnson into the middle of the line one last time . But San Francisco linebackers Dan Bunz , Jack " Hacksaw " Reynolds and cornerback Ronnie Lott tackled him for no gain , giving the ball back to the 49ers . Fourth Quarter The 49ers only gained 8 yards on their ensuing drive , and Bengals got the ball back after receiving Jim Miller ' s 44 yard punt at their own 47 - yard line . Taking advantage of their great starting field position , the Bengals marched 53 yards in 7 plays and scored a touchdown on a 4 - yard pass from Anderson to Ross . With the score , the deficit was cut to 20 - 14 with 10 : 06 left in the fourth quarter . But the 49ers countered with a 50 - yard , 9 - play drive that took 4 : 41 off the clock , and included Montana ' s 22 - yard pass to receiver Mike Wilson and 7 consecutive running plays . Wilson ' s reception was a play Bill Walsh specifically designed for the Super Bowl that capitalized on the Bengals ' doing a long - run coverage on Wilson anytime he ran a pass route over 20 yards ; Wilson simply ran 25 yards straight out and then cut back to receive Montana ' s precision pass . Wersching ended the drive with a 40 - yard field goal to give San Francisco a 23 - 14 lead with just 5 minutes left . On the Bengals first play after receiving the ensuing kickoff , Wright intercepted a pass from Anderson . After returning the interception 25 yards , Wright fumbled while being tackled by Bengals guard Max Montoya , but San Francisco linebacker Willie Harper recovered the ball at the Bengals 22 - yard line . The 49ers then ran the ball on 5 consecutive plays , taking 3 minutes off the clock , to advance to the Cincinnati 6 - yard line . Wersching then kicked his fourth field goal to increase the 49ers lead to 26 – 14 with less than 2 minutes left in the game . Wersching ' s 4 field goals tied a Super Bowl record set by Green Bay Packers kicker Don Chandler in Super Bowl II . Because of his 4 field goals and the close score , this is the only Super Bowl in which the losing team scored more touchdowns than the winning team ( Cincinnati 3 , San Francisco 2 ) . Anderson completed 6 consecutive passes on the Bengals ensuing drive , the last one a 3 - yard touchdown pass to Ross , to make the score 26 – 21 , but with less than 20 seconds left in the game . The Bengals tried an onside kick , but Clark recovered the ball for the 49ers , allowing San Francisco to run out the clock to win the game . Notable performances . The game featured several great performances by players on both teams . Montana threw for 157 yards and a touchdown , while rushing for another 18 yards and a touchdown . Wright had an interception and forced a fumble . Collinsworth caught 5 passes for 107 yards , an average of 21 . 4 yards per catch . Cris Collinsworth and Dan Ross became the second pair teammates to each have 100 yards receiving in a Super Bowl . Collinsworth had 107 , while Ross had 104 . John Stallworth and Lynn Swann were the first to do so in Super Bowl XIII . Ross is the only tight end to have 100 yards receiving in a Super Bowl . Fuller gained 35 yards on 4 punt returns . Ross recorded a Super Bowl record 11 receptions for 104 yards and 2 touchdowns ( the most ever by a tight end in a Super Bowl ) and he remains tied for the most receptions in a Super Bowl with Jerry Rice ( who tied Ross ' record in the Super Bowl rematch ) , Deion Branch , and Wes Welker . Anderson finished the game with 25 out of 34 pass completions for 300 yards and 2 touchdowns , with 2 interceptions . He also gained 14 rushing yards and a touchdown on 6 carries . Anderson ' s 25 completions and his 73 . 5 completion percentage were both Super Bowl records .