Super Bowl XX Super Bowl XX was an American football championship game played on January 26 , 1986 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans , Louisiana to decide the National Football League ( NFL ) champion following the 1985 regular season . The National Football Conference ( NFC ) champion Chicago Bears ( 18 - 1 ) won their first Super Bowl by defeating the American Football Conference ( AFC ) champion New England Patriots ( 14 - 6 ) , 46 – 10 . The Bears set Super Bowl records for sacks ( eight ) and fewest rushing yards allowed ( seven ) . The Bears ' 36 - point margin over the Patriots was a Super Bowl record until Super Bowl XXIV ( 45 ) . The Patriots were held to negative yardage ( - 19 ) throughout the entire first half , and finished with just 123 total yards from scrimmage , the second lowest total yards in Super Bowl history , behind the Minnesota Vikings ( 119 total yards ) in Super Bowl IX . Bears defensive end Richard Dent , who had 1 . 5 quarterback sacks , forced two fumbles , and blocked a pass , was named the game ' s Most Valuable Player . Background . NFL owners awarded the hosting of Super Bowl XX to New Orleans , Louisiana on December 14 , 1982 . This was the sixth time that New Orleans hosted the Super Bowl . Tulane Stadium was the site of Super Bowls IV , VI , and IX ; while the Louisiana Superdome previously hosted XII and XV . Through 2011 , Super Bowl XX remains the last Super Bowl to feature two teams both making their first appearance in the game . Any future Super Bowl that would have such a combination would have to have the Detroit Lions playing either the Cleveland Browns , Houston Texans , or Jacksonville Jaguars in the game . Both the Lions and Browns won NFL championships before the Super Bowl era . It was also the last Super Bowl until Super Bowl XXXIV between the St . Louis Rams and Tennessee Titans to feature two teams who had never previously won a Super Bowl . Chicago Bears . Under head coach Mike Ditka , who won the 1985 NFL Coach of the Year Award , the Bears went 15 - 1 in the regular season , becoming the second NFL team to win 15 regular season games . The Bears ' defense , " 46 Zone " , allowed the fewest points ( 198 ) , total yards ( 4 , 135 ) , and fewest rushing of any team during the regular season ( 1 , 319 ) . The Bears ' defense led the league with thirty - four interceptions . Pro Bowl quarterback Jim McMahon provided the team with a solid passing attack , throwing for 2 , 392 yards and 15 touchdowns , while also rushing for 252 yards and three touchdowns . Running back Walter Payton , who was then the NFL ' s all time leading rusher with 14 , 860 yards , rushed for 1 , 551 yards . He also caught 49 passes for 483 yards , and scored eleven touchdowns . Linebacker Mike Singletary won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award by recording three sacks , three fumble recoveries , and one interception . But one of the most distinguishable players on defense was a large rookie lineman named William " Refrigerator " Perry . Perry came into training camp before the season weighing over 380 pounds . But after Bears defensive coach Buddy Ryan told the press that the team " wasted " their first round draft pick on him , Perry lost some weight and ended being an effective defensive tackle . He got even more attention when Ditka started putting him in the game at the fullback position during offensive plays near the opponent ' s goal line . During the regular season , Perry rushed for 2 touchdowns , caught a pass for 1 , and was frequently a lead blocker for Payton during goal line plays . The Bears " 46 defense " also had the following impact players : On the defensive line , Pro Bowl er and hall of fame r Richard Dent led the NFL in sacks for the second year in a row with 17 , while Pro Bowler and future hall of fame r Dan Hampton recorded 6 . 5 sacks . In addition to Singletary , linebacker Otis Wilson had 10 . 5 sacks and 3 interceptions while Wilber Marshall recorded 4 interceptions . In the secondary , defensive back Leslie Frazier had 6 interceptions , Mike Richardson recorded 4 interceptions , Dave Duerson had 5 interceptions , and Gary Fencik recorded 5 interceptions and 118 tackles . Chicago ' s main offensive weapon was Payton and the running game . A big reason for Payton ' s success was fullback Matt Suhey as the primary lead blocker . Suhey was also a good ball carrier , rushing for 471 yards and catching 33 passes for 295 yards . The team ' s rushing was also aided by Pro Bowlers Jim Covert and Jay Hilgenberg and the rest of the Bears offensive line . In their passing game , the Bears primary deep threat was wide receiver Willie Gault , who caught 33 passes for 704 yards , an average of 21 . 3 yards per catch , and returned 22 kickoffs for 557 yards and a touchdown . Tight end Emery Moorehead was another key contributor , catching 35 passes for 481 yards . Wide receiver Dennis McKinnon was another passing weapon , recording 31 receptions , 555 yards , and 7 touchdowns . Meanwhile , the players brought their characterizations to the national stage with the " Super Bowl Shuffle " , a rap song the Bears recorded during the season . Even though it was in essence a novelty song , it actually peaked at # 41 on the Billboard charts and received a Grammy nomination for best R & B song by a group . New England Patriots . The Patriots were a cinderella team during the 1985 season because many sports writers and fans thought they were lucky to make the Super Bowl at all . New England began the season losing 3 of their first 5 games , but won 6 consecutive games to finish with an 11 - 5 record . However , the 11 - 5 mark only earned them third place in the AFC East behind the Miami Dolphins and the New York Jets . Quarterback Tony Eason , in his third year in the NFL , was inconsistent during the regular season , completing 168 out of 299 passes for 2 , 156 yards and 11 touchdowns , but also 17 interceptions . Eason suffered an injury midway through the season and was replaced by backup Steve Grogan , who was considered one of the best reserve quarterbacks in the league . Grogan was the starter in 6 of the Patriots ' games , and finished the regular season with 85 out of 156 completions for 1 , 311 yards , 7 touchdowns , and 5 interceptions . Wide receiver Stanley Morgan provided the team with a good deep threat , catching 39 passes for 760 yards and 5 touchdowns . On the other side of the field , multi - talented wide receiver Irving Fryar was equally effective , catching 39 passes for 670 yards , while also rushing for 27 yards , gaining another 559 yards returning punts and kickoffs , and scoring 10 touchdowns . But like the Bears , the Patriots main strength on offense was their rushing attack . Halfback Craig James rushed for 1 , 227 yards , caught 27 passes for 370 yards , and scored 7 touchdowns . Fullback Tony Collins rushed for 657 yards , recorded a team leading 52 receptions for 549 yards , and scored 5 touchdowns . The Patriots also had an outstanding offensive line , led by Pro Bowl tackle Brian Holloway and future Hall of Fame guard John Hannah . New England ' s defense ranked 5th in the league in fewest yards allowed ( 5 , 048 ) . Pro Bowl linebacker Andre Tippett led the AFC with 16 . 5 sacks and recovered 3 fumbles . Linebacker and Pro Bowler Steve Nelson was also a big defensive weapon , excelling at pass coverage and run stopping . Also , the Patriots secondary only gave up 14 touchdown passes during the season , the 2nd fewest in the league . Pro bowl defensive back Raymond Clayborn recorded 6 interceptions for 80 return yards and 1 touchdown , while Pro Bowler Fred Marion had 7 interceptions for 189 return yards . Playoffs . In the playoffs , the Patriots qualified as the AFC ' s second wild card . But the Patriots defied the odds , beating the New York Jets 26 - 14 , Los Angeles Raiders 27 - 20 , and the Dolphins 31 - 14 - all on the road - to make it to the Super Bowl . The win against Miami had been especially surprising , not only because Miami was the only team to beat Chicago in the season , but also because New England had not won in the Orange Bowl ( Miami ' s then - home field ) since 1966 , the Dolphins ' first season ( then in the AFL ) . The Patriots had lost to Miami there 18 consecutive times , including a 30 - 27 loss in their 15th game of the season . But New England dominated the Dolphins in the AFC Championship Game , recording two interceptions from quarterback Dan Marino and recovering 4 fumbles . New England remains the only team to finish third in their division and qualify for the Super Bowl in the same season . Meanwhile , the Bears became the first team in NFL history to shut out both of their opponents in the playoffs , beating the New York Giants 21 - 0 and the Los Angeles Rams 24 - 0 . Super Bowl pregame hype . Much of the Super Bowl pregame hype centered around Bears quarterback McMahon . First , he was fined by the NFL during the playoffs for a violation of the league ' s dress code , wearing a head band on which he had handwritten " Adidas " . He then started to wear a head band saying " Rozelle " , after then - league commissioner Pete Rozelle . McMahon suffered a strained glute as the result of a hit taken in the NFC Championship Game and flew his acupuncturist into New Orleans to get treatment . During practice four days before the Super Bowl , he wore a hand band reading " Acupuncture " . Another anecdote involving Jim McMahon during the Super Bowl anticipation was the New Orleans ’ press reporting quote attributed McMahon , which referred to the women of New Orleans as “ sluts ” . This caused wide controversy among the women of New Orleans and McMahon publicly apologized on sports radio , denouncing the claim as false , indicating that he couldn ’ t have said such things simply because he ’ s a late - sleeper , and wouldn ’ t have been up that early in the morning to publicly smear the women of New Orleans . Television and entertainment . The NBC telecast of the game , with play - by - play announcer Dick Enberg and color commentator s Merlin Olsen and Bob Griese ( who was not in the booth with Enberg and Olsen ) , garnered the third highest Nielsen rating of any Super Bowl to date , a 48 . 3 . While Dick Enberg , Merlin Olsen and Bob Griese called the game , Bob Costas and his " NFL ' 85 " castmates , Ahmad Rashad and Pete Axthelm anchored the pregame , halftime and postgame coverage . To celebrate the 20th Super Bowl game , the Most Valuable Players of the previous Super Bowls were featured during the pregame festivities . After trumpet er Wynton Marsalis performed the national anthem , Bart Starr , Super Bowl MVP of I and II , tossed the coin . The performance event group Up with People performed during the halftime show titled " Beat of the Future " . Up with People dancers portrayed various scenes into the future . This was the last Super Bowl to feature Up with People as a half - time show , though they later performed in the Super Bowl XXV pre - game show . " The Last Precinct " debuted on NBC after the game . Super Bowl XX was simulcast in Canada on CTV and also broadcast on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom . Super Bowl XX is featured on " NFL ' s Greatest Games " under the title " Super Bears " . Game summary . The Patriots took the second quickest lead in Super Bowl history after linebacker Larry McGrew recovered a fumble from Walter Payton at the Chicago 19 - yard line on the second play of the game ( the Bears themselves would break this record in Super Bowl XLI when Devin Hester ran back the opening kickoff for a touchdown ) . Jim McMahon took responsibility for this fumble after the game , saying he had called the wrong play . This set up Tony Franklin ' s 36 - yard field goal 1 : 19 into the first quarter after 3 incomplete passes by Tony Eason ( the first of which starting tight end Lin Dawson went down with torn ligaments in his knee ) . " I looked up at the message board , " said Chicago linebacker Mike Singletary , " and it said that 15 of the 19 teams that scored first won the game . I thought , yeah , but none of those 15 had ever played the Bears . " Chicago struck back with a 7 play , 59 - yard drive , featuring a 43 - yard pass completion from Jim McMahon to wide receiver Willie Gault , to set up a field goal from Kevin Butler , tying the score 3 - 3 . After both teams traded punts , Richard Dent and linebacker Wilber Marshall shared a sack on Eason , forcing a fumble that lineman Dan Hampton recovered on the Patriots 13 - yard line . Chicago then drove to the 3 - yard line , but had to settle for another field goal from Butler after rookie defensive lineman William " Refrigerator " Perry was tackled for a 1 - yard loss while trying to throw his first NFL pass on a halfback option play . On the Patriots ' ensuing drive , Dent forced running back Craig James to fumble , which was recovered by Singletary at the 13 - yard line . Two plays later , Bears fullback Matt Suhey scored on an 11 - yard touchdown run to increase the lead 13 - 3 . New England took the ensuing kickoff and ran one play before the first quarter ended , which resulted in positive yardage for the first time in the game ( a 3 - yard run by James ) . But after an incomplete pass and a 4 - yard loss , they had to send in punter Rich Camarillo again , and receiver Keith Ortego returned the ball 12 yards to the 41 - yard line . The Bears subsequently drove 59 yards in 10 plays , featuring a 24 - yard reception by Suhey , to score on McMahon ' s 2 - yard touchdown run to increase their lead , 20 - 3 . After the ensuing kickoff , New England lost 13 yards in 3 plays and had to punt again ( on this play Ortego apparently forgot there was a reverse on the punt return , waved for a fair catch , committed a penalty by running with it and giving it to Leslie Frazier ; who was tackled and suffered what turned out to be a career - ending knee injury ) , but got the ball back with great field position when defensive back Raymond Clayborn recovered a fumble from Suhey at their own 46 - yard line . Patriots coach Raymond Berry then replaced Eason with Steve Grogan , who had spent the previous week hoping he would have the opportunity to step on to NFL ' s biggest stage . " I probably won ' t get a chance . " he had told reporters a few days before the game . " I just hope I can figure out some way to get on the field . I could come in on the punt - block team and stand behind the line and wave my arms , or something . " But on his first drive , Grogan could only lead them to the 37 - yard line and they decided to punt rather than risk a 55 - yard field goal attempt . The Bears then marched 72 yards in 11 plays , moving the ball inside the Patriots 10 - yard line . New England kept them out of the end zone , but Butler kicked his third field goal on the last play of the half to give Chicago a 23 - 3 halftime lead . The end of the half was controversial . With 21 seconds left in the first half , McMahon scrambled to the Patriots ' three - yard line and was stopped in - bounds . With the clock ticking down , players from both teams were fighting , and the Bears were forced to snap the ball before the officials formally put it back into play , allowing McMahon to throw the ball out of bounds and stop the clock with three seconds left . The Bears were penalized five yards for delay of game , but according to NFL rules , ten seconds should have also been run off the clock during such a deliberate clock - stopping attempt in the final two minutes of a half . In addition , a flag should have also been thrown for fighting ( also according to NFL rules ) . This would have likely resulted in offsetting penalties , which would still allow for a field goal attempt . As far as the illegal snap is concerned , the non - call was promptly acknowledged by the officials and reported by NBC sportscasters during halftime , but the resulting three points were not taken away from the Bears ( Because of this instance , the NFL instructed officials to strictly enforce the 10 - second run - off rule at the start of the 1986 season ) . The Bears had dominated New England in the first half , holding them to 21 offensive plays ( only 4 of which resulted in positive yardage ) , - 19 total offensive yards , 2 pass completions , 1 first down , and 3 points . Meanwhile , Chicago gained 236 yards and scored 23 points themselves . After the Patriots received the second half opening kickoff , they managed to get one first down , but then had to punt after Grogan was sacked twice . Camarillo , who punted 4 times in the first half , managed to pin the Bears back at their own 4 - yard line with a then - Super Bowl record 62 - yard punt . But the Patriots defense still had no ability to stop Chicago ' s offense . On their very first play , McMahon faked a handoff to Payton , then threw a 60 - yard completion to Gault . Eight plays later , McMahon finished the Super Bowl record 96 - yard drive with a 1 - yard touchdown run to make the Bears lead 30 - 3 . On New England ' s second drive of the period , Chicago cornerback Reggie Phillips ( who replaced Frazier ) intercepted a pass from Grogan and returned it 28 yards for a touchdown to increase the lead 37 - 3 . On the second play of their ensuing possession , the Patriots turned the ball over again , when receiver Cedric Jones lost a fumble after catching a 19 - yard pass from Grogan , and Marshall returned the fumble 13 yards to New England ' s 37 - yard line . A few plays later , McMahon ' s 27 - yard completion to receiver Dennis Gentry moved the ball to the 1 - yard line , setting up perhaps the most memorable moment of the game . William " the Refrigerator " Perry was brought on to score on offense , as he had done twice in the regular season . His touchdown made the score 44 - 3 . The Bears ' 21 points in the third quarter is still a record for the most points scored in that period . The Patriots finally scored a touchdown early in the fourth quarter , advancing the ball 76 yards in 12 plays and scoring on an 8 - yard pass from Grogan to receiver Irving Fryar . But the Bears defense dominated New England for the rest of the game , forcing another fumble , another interception , and defensive lineman Henry Waechter ' s sack on Grogan in the end zone for a safety to make the final score 46 - 10 . One irony in the Bears victory was that Payton had a relatively poor performance running the ball and never scored a touchdown in Super Bowl XX , his first and only Super Bowl appearance during his Hall of Fame career ( Many people including Mike Ditka have claimed that the reason for this due to the fact that the Patriots defensive scheme was centered around stopping Walter Payton ) . Although Payton was ultimately the Bears ' leading rusher during the game , the Patriots defense held him to only 61 yards on 22 carries , with his longest run being only 7 yards . He was given several opportunities to score near the goal line , but New England stopped him every time before he reached the end zone ( such as his 2 - yard loss from the New England 3 - yard line a few plays before Butler ' s second field goal , and his 2 - yard run from the 4 - yard line right before McMahon ' s first rushing touchdown ) . Thus , Chicago head coach Mike Ditka opted to go for other plays to counter the Patriots defense . Perry ' s touchdown and McMahon ' s rushing touchdowns are scoring opportunities that were denied to Payton . Ditka has since gone on record stating that his biggest regret of his career was not creating a scoring opportunity for Payton during the game . McMahon , who completed 12 out of 20 passes for 256 yards , became the first quarterback in a Super Bowl to score 2 rushing touchdowns . Bears receiver Willie Gault finished the game with 129 receiving yards on just 4 receptions , an average of over 32 . 2 yards per catch . He also returned 4 kickoffs for 49 yards . Suhey had 11 carries for 52 yards and a touchdown , and caught a pass for 24 yards . Singletary tied a Super Bowl record with 2 fumble recoveries . Eason became the first Super Bowl starting quarterback to fail to complete a pass , going 0 for 6 attempts . Grogan completed 17 out of 30 passes for 177 yards and 1 touchdown , with 2 interceptions . Although Fullback Tony Collins was the Patriots leading rusher , he was limited to just 4 yards on 3 carries , and caught 2 passes for 19 yards . New England receiver Stephen Starring returned 7 kickoffs for 153 yards and caught 2 passes for 39 yards . Starting lineups . Source :