Super Bowl XXVII Super Bowl XXVII was a football game played on January 31 , 1993 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena , California to decide the National Football League ( NFL ) champion following the 1992 regular season . The National Football Conference ( NFC ) champion Dallas Cowboys ( 16 - 3 ) defeated the American Football Conference ( AFC ) champion Buffalo Bills ( 14 - 6 ) , 52 – 17 ( a then - record 69 combined points ) . The Cowboys won their third Super Bowl in team history , and their first one in fifteen years . The Bills became the first team to lose three consecutive Super Bowls , and just the second team to play in three straight ( the Miami Dolphins played in Super Bowls VI - VIII , winning VII and VIII ) . This is also the first time that three teams from the same division have each won a Super Bowl within one year of each other ( The Cowboys NFC East rivals , the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins won the previous two Super Bowls XXV and XXVI respectively . ) The Bills ' Super Bowl record nine turnovers — four interceptions and five lost fumbles — led to their third consecutive Super Bowl loss . The Cowboys lost two fumbles themselves , tying the Super Bowl record for the most turnovers by both teams ( the Cowboys and the Baltimore Colts also committed a combined 11 turnovers in Super Bowl V ) . Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman was named Super Bowl MVP , completing 22 of 30 passes for 273 yards and four touchdowns , while also rushing for 28 yards . This was the seventh and last Super Bowl to date that the Greater Los Angeles Area has hosted . Background . Arizona ' s Martin Luther King Day controversy . Super Bowl XXVII was originally scheduled to be played at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe , Arizona , the home of the Phoenix Cardinals . Immediately after the Cardinals relocated from St . Louis , Missouri to the Phoenix , Arizona area in 1988 , the NFL was eager to hold a Super Bowl in that state . Meanwhile , Martin Luther King , Jr . Day , the United States federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr , was observed for the first time in 1986 . However , the holiday was only celebrated in 27 states and the District of Columbia during that first year . Opponents across the nation tried to stop the holiday from being recognized in their own local areas . In 1986 , an Arizona holiday honoring King had been declared , through an executive order by Governor Bruce Babbitt after a bill to create the holiday failed in the state legislature . A year later , though , newly - elected Governor Evan Mecham rescinded the holiday in 1987 on the grounds that the holiday had been illegally created . Legislation to create the holiday was passed by the state legislature in 1989 , but opponents to the holiday succeeded in forcing the holiday to undergo a ballot initiative . The NFL met in March 1990 at the Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando , Florida to select the site of the 1993 Super Bowl . Arizona was heavily favored to win selection as the site of the 93 bowl game . Civil Rights advocates in Arizona sent Art Mobley to Orlando to make sure the King Holiday issue was considered in the discussions . The controversy surrounding the Arizona King Holiday issue had become confusing and difficult to follow . Mobley delivered letters to each of the five owners on the site selection committee , providing detailed history and analysis of the situation on the ground in Arizona . Blacks across the nation had already supported a complete entertainment and convention boycott of Arizona that had been called by Dr . King ' s widow , Coretta Scott King and Legendary Singer / Songwriter , Stevie Wonder in response to Governor Mecham rescinding the holiday . State leaders , including US Senators John McCain , Dennis DeConcini and Governor Rose Mofford all flew to Orlando to convince NFL owners that Arizona would do all it could to win a state observance at the earliest ballot box opportunity . The Site Selection Committee was chaired by Philadelphia Eagles Owner and GM , Norman Braman . Braman met with Mobley after the committee voted to award the 93 game to Arizona and vowed that ' if anything was done to dishonor the memory of Dr . King , ' the committee would vote to rescind the award of the game to Arizona . Mobley and Braman held an impromptu news conference to publicly reiterate the warning . Arizona voters rejected the 1990 initiative to create a King holiday . The NFL , which had an increasing percentage of African American players , and urged by the NFL Players ' Association , voted to yank Super Bowl XXVII from Arizona , and awarded it instead to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena , California . A citizens coalition called ' Arizonans for a Martin Luther King Jr . Holiday , ' led by Reverend Warren H . Stewart Sr . , organized to bring all sides together in a campaign call ' Victory Together One Clear Choice . ' Two years after the loss of more the $ 350 million in major convention business and the 1993 Super Bowl , Arizona became the first and only state to popularly vote for and pass a Dr . Martin Luther King Jr . State Holiday . Faced with the boycott , Arizona voters finally approved the holiday by ballot in 1992 , and on March 23 , 1993 , the NFL awarded Super Bowl XXX ( 1996 ) to Tempe . The resurrection of the Dallas Cowboys . Super Bowl XXVII saw the resurrection of the Cowboys . Between 1966 and 1985 , the team made the playoffs 18 out of 20 seasons under coach Tom Landry , including 5 Super Bowl appearances and 2 Super Bowl wins . But in the late 1980s , the team suffered several losing seasons , including a 3 - 13 regular season record in 1988 . Then Jerry Jones bought the team on February 25 , 1989 , and promptly fired Landry , the only head coach Dallas ever had . Jones replaced Landry with University of Miami head coach , Jimmy Johnson . With Johnson as head coach and Jones as his own general manager , people in the league thought they could take advantage of them . Both lacked NFL experience , and instead of hiring coaching assistants with experience in the league , they hired ones that worked with Johnson in Miami . And Jones fired the two men that brought previous success to Dallas : its founding president Tex Schramm and its famed personnel man Gil Brandt . The Cowboys ' 3 - 13 record in 1988 did have a silver lining , it was the worst in the league and thus gave the Cowboys the first pick in the 1989 NFL Draft . Jones and Johnson picked UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman , who would eventually go on to be selected to the Pro Bowl 6 times in his NFL career . Meanwhile , Jones and Johnson immediately started to shuffle the team ' s depth chart to find players talented enough to build a winning team . Linebacker Ken Norton Jr . , one of the few holdovers from Landry ' s last losing seasons , would later claim that he would often go into a player huddle and meet new teammates for the first time . Then , Jones and Johnson made a move midway through the 1989 season that shocked many in the league : they traded their only Pro Bowl player , running back Herschel Walker , to the Minnesota Vikings for five veteran players and eight draft choices . Although the Cowboys finished the 1989 season with a 1 - 15 record , their worst record since the team ' s inception , the foundations for the Cowboys ' return to glory had been set . Although Dallas had the league ' s worst record , they traded away the first pick in the 1990 draft so they could get backup quarterback Steve Walsh in the supplemental draft . Then with the 17th pick , they drafted running back Emmitt Smith , and the trifecta of Aikman , Smith , and wide receiver Michael Irvin ( who was drafted by Landry in 1988 ) was now set . Dallas also signed veteran tight end Jay Novacek away from Phoenix , who went on to make the Pro Bowl in five of his six years with the Cowboys . Johnson also started to rebuild the team by drafting players who were fast , quick , and athletic . The defense was designed to become aggressive , while the offense was made to be a conservative one that did not make mistakes . The Cowboys finished 7 - 9 , but Smith won the NFL Rookie of the Year Award and Jimmy Johnson was selected as NFL Coach of the Year . By the 1991 season , the Cowboys finished with an 11 - 5 record and made the playoffs for the first time in six years . In 1992 , the Cowboys finished with a 13 - 3 regular season record , the second best in the league . Although not a single one of their defensive players made the Pro Bowl , Dallas was ranked as the number one defense in the league ( allowing only 4 , 278 yards ) and ranked as the number one defense against the run ( allowing only 1 , 244 ) , bringing back many fans memories of the Doomsday Defenses of old . The defensive line was anchored by Jim Jeffcoat ( 10 . 5 sacks ) and Tony Tolbert ( 8 . 5 sacks ) , along with Charles Haley , who had led the NFC in sacks in 1990 and had been acquired by Dallas in a trade with San Francisco . While Norton anchored the linebacking core , the team ' s solid secondary was led by defensive backs Kenneth Gant and James Washington , who both recorded 3 interceptions each . Dallas ' spectacular offense , led by Aikman who had the best season of his career by completing 302 out of 473 passes for 3 , 445 yards and 23 touchdowns while throwing only 14 interceptions , was one of the league ' s finest , finishing fourth in the league in total yards . Superstar running back Emmitt Smith led the NFL in rushing , with 1 , 713 yards and scoring 18 rushing touchdowns , while also catching 59 passes for 335 yards and another touchdown . Fullback Daryl Johnston was also an asset in the backfield , provding Smith with effective blocking and hauling in 32 receptions . Irvin , the team ' s emotional lightning rod , caught 78 passes for 1 , 396 yards and 7 touchdowns . Other contributors on the offense included wide receiver Alvin Harper ( 35 receptions for 562 yards and 4 touchdowns ) and Novacek ( 68 receptions for 630 yards and 6 touchdowns ) . Dallas ' dominant offensive line was led by Pro Bowlers Nate Newton and Mark Stepnoski . With all this talent the Cowboys would be considered by many to be one of the deepest and most talented teams to ever take to the gridiron . The Buffalo Bills ' third attempt for a Super Bowl title . The Bills entered Super Bowl XXVII trying to avoid becoming the first team to lose three consecutive Super Bowls . Once again the team was loaded with Pro Bowl players , boasting 12 Pro Bowl selections . During the regular season , Buffalo ' s no - huddle offense ranked as the number two offense in the league ( 6 , 114 yards ) and ranked as the number one rushing offense ( 2 , 436 ) . Running back Thurman Thomas rushed for 1 , 487 yards and 9 touchdowns during the regular season , while also catching 58 passes for 626 yards and another 3 touchdowns . Running back Kenneth Davis rushed for 613 yards , caught 15 passes for 80 yards , and added another 251 yards returning kickoffs . Quarterback Jim Kelly had 269 out of 462 completions for 3 , 457 yards , 23 touchdowns , and 19 interceptions . Wide receiver Andre Reed led the team with 65 receptions for 913 yards and 3 touchdowns , receiver James Lofton contributed 51 receptions for 786 yards and 6 touchdowns , and wide receiver Don Beebe caught 33 passes for 554 and 2 touchdowns . Also tight end Pete Metzelaars recorded 30 receptions for 298 yards and 6 touchdowns . The Bills also had one of the best offensive lines in the NFL , led by Pro Bowlers Will Wolford , Jim Ritcher , and Howard Ballard , along with center Kent Hull . On defense , the line was anchored by end Bruce Smith ( 14 sacks ) and nose tackle Jeff Wright ( 6 sacks , 1 fumble recovery ) , who were fully recovered after missing almost all of the previous season due to injuries . The Bills were once again led by their trio of linebackers Darryl Talley ( 77 tackles , 4 sacks ) , Shane Conlan ( 66 tackles , 2 sacks , 1 interception ) , and Pro Bowler Cornelius Bennett ( 52 tackles , 4 sacks , 3 fumble recoveries ) . The defensive secondary was aided by the emergence of second year safety Henry Jones , who tied for the NFL lead with 8 interceptions , returning them for 263 yards and 2 touchdowns . Safety Mark Kelso recorded 7 interceptions , while Pro Bowl cornerback Nate Odomes had 5 . However , the Bills quest for a third consecutive Super Bowl suffered a major setback when they lost the final game of the season to the Houston Oilers . The loss caused the Bills to finish with an 11 - 5 record , losing out on the AFC East title to the Miami Dolphins based on tie - breaking rules , and thus making them a wild card team for the playoffs . Thus , even if they won their first playoff game , they would have to win two on the road to make the Super Bowl . To make matters worse , Kelly also suffered strained knee ligaments during the loss to the Oilers and had to miss the first 2 playoff games . Furthermore , their first opponent in the playoffs ended up being the Oilers . A headline on a Buffalo newspaper stated the Bills situation : " Bills Begin The Longest Road Today . " Playoffs . The Cowboys easily defeated their first playoff opponent , the Philadelphia Eagles , 34 - 10 . Dallas ' defense held the Eagles to only 178 offensive yards and sacked quarterback Randall Cunningham 5 times . Meanwhile , the Cowboys recorded 160 rushing yards and 185 passing yards . Aikman completed 15 of 25 passes and 2 touchdowns , while Smith ran for 114 yards and a touchdown . Dallas then defeated the San Francisco 49ers , 30 – 20 , in the NFC Championship Game . This was the first time that the two teams met in the NFC Championship since the 49ers narrowly beat the Cowboys during the 1981 season on a late touchdown pass known as " The Catch " . The 49ers came into the game with the league ' s best regular season record at 14 – 2 and led the league in scoring with 431 points . But in this game , the Cowboys built a 24 – 13 lead going into the fourth quarter , as Aikman capped a nine minute drive with a 16 - yard touchdown pass to Smith . However , 49ers quarterback Steve Young ' s 5 - yard touchdown pass to Jerry Rice cut the lead 24 - 20 with 4 : 22 left in the game . But instead of trying to run out the clock with a running play , Aikman threw a 70 - yard completion to Harper . Three plays later , Aikman threw a 6 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Kelvin Martin to clinch the victory ( the extra point was blocked ) . Aikman finished with 332 passing yards and 2 touchdowns , with no interceptions . The Bills first defeated the Houston Oilers , 41 – 38 in overtime , in what became known as " The Comeback " . Nothing seemed to go right for the Bills in the first half . In addition to playing without Kelly and Bennett , Thomas was knocked out of the game with a hip injury . The Bills offense could only score a single field goal , while their defense played even worse , as Oilers quarterback Warren Moon passed for 222 yards and 4 touchdowns , and Houston jumped to a 28 - 3 halftime lead . Then , backup quarterback Frank Reich ' s first pass of the second half was intercepted by Bubba McDowell and returned 58 yards for a touchdown , making the score 35 - 3 . However , the Bills suddenly stormed back to score 5 unanswered touchdowns to overcome the seemingly insurmountable odds . First , Davis scored on a 1 - yard touchdown run . Then Buffalo recovered an onside kick and immediately scored again on Reich ' s 36 - yard touchdown pass to Beebe . Reich then threw touchdowns of 26 and 18 yards to Reed . In the fourth quarter , Reich hit Reed with a 17 - yard score to give the Bills a 38 - 35 lead . The Oilers kicked a field goal late in the game to send it into overtime , but Odomes ' interception in the extra period set up kicker Steve Christie ' s game winning field goal to give the Bills the biggest comeback win in NFL history . Buffalo then recorded a 24 - 3 win on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers , the AFC Central champions with the AFC ' s best regular season record at 11 - 5 . Although Kelly and Thomas had not recovered enough to play for this game , Reich threw for 160 yards , 2 touchdowns , and no interceptions , while Davis rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown . Meanwhile , the defense redeemed themselves for giving up 38 points against the Oilers by holding the Steelers to only a field goal . The Bills then defeated the Miami Dolphins , 29 - 10 , in the AFC Championship . The Dolphins were coming off a 31 - 0 blowout playoff win over the San Diego Chargers . But Buffalo ' s defense dominated the Dolphins offense , intercepting quarterback Dan Marino twice , recovering 3 fumbles , and limiting Miami to just 33 rushing yards . Although Buffalo ' s offense had trouble scoring touchdowns because Kelly and Thomas were rusty coming back from their injuries , Christie scored 5 field goals to make up for the difference . Kelly did connect with Thomas on a screen pass for a 17 yard touchdown , and Ken Davis ran it in from two yards out for another score . As a result , the Bills became the fourth wild - card team to advance to the Super Bowl . This marked the first time since the AFL - NFL merger that the two Super Bowl teams each won their conference championship on the road . Dallas winning in San Francisco and Buffalo in Miami . Super Bowl pre - game news and notes . Even though the Bills had more experienced players than the Cowboys , Dallas was favored to win Super Bowl XXVII based on the recent dominance of NFC teams in the Super Bowl . Some writers and fans were starting to compare Buffalo to the Super Bowls losers Minnesota Vikings and the Denver Broncos . Still , many thought that the inexperienced Cowboys might panic under the pressure of playing in their first Super Bowl , and thus make a number of mistakes . Also , some thought Buffalo ' s no - huddle offense could eventually wear down and dominate Dallas ' young defense . Finally , Jimmy Johnson was looking to become the first head coach to win a college football national championship ( University of Miami in 1987 ) and a Super Bowl . As of 2010 , Johnson and Cowboys successor Barry Switzer remain the only coaches ever to achieve this goal . Television and entertainment . The game was broadcast in the United States by NBC with Dick Enberg handling the play - by - play duties and color commentator Bob Trumpy in the broadcast booth . Bob Costas hosted all the events with analyst Mike Ditka . After the game , " " premiered on NBC . This was the last of five Super Bowls at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena . Two other Super Bowls were played nearby at the Los Angeles Coliseum . As previously mentioned , this would be the seventh and final ( to date ) Super Bowl in the Los Angeles area , tying New Orleans at the time for the city to host the most Super Bowls . Pregame ceremonies . The pre show featured The Rockettes dance company in a tribute to Hollywood , music , and the movies . 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 . 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 . Halftime show . Michael Jackson performed during the halftime show . Unlike many previous years , he was the " only " performer in the entire halftime show . Jackson started the performance by being catapulted on stage and then simply standing frozen in one of his famous ' Dangerous ' poses . Jackson ' s set included songs " Jam " ( with the beginning of " Why You Wanna Trip On Me " ) , " Billie Jean " and " Black or White " . The finale featured an audience card stunt , a video montage showing Jackson participating in various humanitarian efforts around the world , and a choir of 3 , 500 local Los Angeles area children singing " We Are The World " , later joining Jackson as he sang his single " Heal the World " . Part of the halftime show can be found on Michael Jackson ' s " Dangerous - The Short Films " DVD . However , the DVD only features the " Heal The World " performance of the halftime show , and omits the show opening and a medley of " Jam " , " Billie Jean " and " Black Or White " . Because of Jackson ' s star power , the Fox network declined to broadcast counter - programming against the halftime show like they did during Super Bowl XXVI ' s show in the previous year ( Fox aired a special live edition of " In Living Color " on that occasion ) . Fox would never broadcast counter - programming again against the Super Bowl ; on December 19 , 1993 , the network signed an agreement to broadcast NFL ( replacing CBS as the NFC television broadcaster ) starting in 1994 . It was the first Super Bowl where the audience figures actually increased during the half - time show . The selection of Jackson for the halftime show was in response to sagging interest in recent performances , notably in the two years immediately prior . NFL and network officials decided it was necessary to sign top acts for the halftime in future years to boost future viewership and interest . Game summary . Things started out well in the beginning for Buffalo . On their first possession , the Cowboys were forced to a three - and - out . Bills special teams expert Steve Tasker then blocked the ensuing punt , knocking the ball out of bounds at the Cowboys 16 - yard line . Four plays later , 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 nullified running back Emmitt Smith ' s 12 - yard run . 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 15 - yard roughing the passer penalty on Cowboys defensive lineman Leon Lett and a 21 - yard reception by wide receiver Andre Reed . Then the wave of turnovers began . On the next play , Dallas safety James Washington intercepted Jim Kelly ' s pass and returned it 13 yards to the Bills ' 47 - yard line . The Cowboys then drove 47 yards in 6 plays to tie the game on Aikman ' s 23 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Jay Novacek . On the Bills ' first play of their next drive , Dallas defensive end Charles Haley sacked Kelly and forced a fumble . Cowboys 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 his team a 14 - 7 lead . Dallas had scored 2 touchdowns in a span of 15 seconds , the fastest pair in Super Bowl history . Early in the second quarter , Kelly ' s 40 - yard completion to Reed gave the Bills a first down at the Cowboys 4 - yard line . But the Bills failed to score on 3 rushing attempts . On fourth down , Kelly ' s pass was intercepted in the end zone by safety Thomas Everett . On Buffalo ' s next drive , linebacker Ken Norton , Jr . hit Kelly , re - injuring the quarterback ' s knee that he sprained earlier in the season , and playoff hero Frank Reich took Kelly ' s place . Reich started out well , completing his first 2 passes , including a 38 - yard completion to Reed to advance the ball to the Dallas 22 - yard line . But then Thomas was stopped for no gain on third down and 1 at the 4 - yard line . Rather than attempt another fourth down play near the goal line , the Bills settled for Steve Christie ' s 21 - yard field goal to cut their deficit to 14 – 10 with 3 : 24 left in the half . The Cowboys then stormed down the field on their next possession , scoring in just 5 plays . After a pair of completions by Aikman for 17 yards , Smith ' s 38 - yard run gave the Cowboys a first down inside the Bills ' 20 - yard line . Aikman then finished the drive with a 19 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Michael Irvin , increasing his team ' s lead to 21 – 10 . On the first play of the Bills ' ensuing drive , Thomas caught a swing pass , but fumbled the ball while being tackled by Lett , and Jones recovered it at the Bills 18 - yard line . Aikman then threw his second touchdown pass to Irvin to give the Cowboys a 28 - 10 lead . ( Irvin ' s two touchdown receptions made him the 7th 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 ever scored by a single player in Super Bowl history ) . With about a little over a minute left in the first half , Buffalo barely avoided another turnover when running back Kenneth Davis recovered a fumbled handoff from Reich . But 2 plays later , defensive back Larry Brown intercepted Reich ' s pass at the Dallas 28 - yard line to preserve the Cowboys ' 18 - point lead at halftime . Dallas then took the opening drive of the second half and advanced 77 yards in 11 plays , featuring a 25 - yard reception by Irvin . However , on third down and 2 , Aikman ' s pass to Novacek in the end zone was overthrown , forcing Dallas to settle for Lin Elliot ' s 20 - yard field goal . This increased their lead to 31 - 10 . Both teams were unable to score on each of their next possessions , but on the period ' s final play , Reich threw a 40 - yard touchdown pass to Bills receiver Don Beebe , despite Cowboy complaints that the touchdown should have been nullified because Reich , while scrambling to avoid the Cowboy rush , crossed the 40 - yard line for what should have been ruled an illegal forward pass . So despite 5 first half turnovers , the Bills were only trailing Dallas 31 – 17 going into the final period , and after their comeback from the 32 - point deficit in the playoffs , a 14 - point comeback seemed perfectly within their capabilities . But early in the fourth quarter , Aikman threw a 45 - yard touchdown pass to Alvin Harper . Then on the second play of the Bills ' next possession , Everett intercepted a pass from Reich and returned it 22 yards to Buffalo ' s 8 - yard line , setting up another touchdown on Smith ' s 10 - yard run . After Buffalo received the ensuing kickoff , Reich fumbled a high snap while in a shotgun formation . Norton recovered the loose ball and returned it for a touchdown , increasing the Cowboys ' lead to 52 - 17 . The 21 points by the Cowboys is the most ever for a team in the 4th quarter . The Cowboys also became just the second team to score two non - offensive touchdowns in a game . The Raiders also did so in Super Bowl XVIII with a blocked punt return and an interception return . The most memorable moment of the game came well after the Cowboys had built an insurmountable lead . After both teams lost a fumble on their next possessions , the Bills managed to advance to the Cowboys ' 31 - yard line . But Reich lost a fumble while being sacked by Cowboys lineman Jim Jeffcoat . Lett picked up the ball with no one in front of him and appeared to be headed for a 64 - yard touchdown return . As he started to showboat just before crossing the goal line , Don Beebe raced in from behind and knocked the ball out of Lett ' s arm and into the end zone . The ball then rolled out of bounds for a touchback . If Lett had scored the touchdown , the Cowboys would have topped the previous Super Bowl record of 55 points scored in a game that the 49ers had set three years prior . 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 . 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 . Irvin had 114 yards while Reed had 152 . Reed ' s total is the highest for a player on a losing team . Starting lineups . Source : Officials . For the first ( and to date only ) time in Super Bowl history , the officials changed shirts at halftime . Officials wore their short - sleeved shirts during the first half and their long - sleeved shirts in the second half .