Super Bowl XVIII Super Bowl XVIII was an American football game played on January 22 , 1984 , at Tampa Stadium in Tampa , Florida , deciding the National Football League ( NFL ) champion following the 1983 regular season . The American Football Conference ( AFC ) champion Los Angeles Raiders ( 15 – 4 ) defeated the National Football Conference ( NFC ) champion Washington Redskins ( 16 – 3 ) , 38 – 9 . The Raiders ' 38 points and their 29 point margin of victory were both Super Bowl records until Super Bowl XX . They also outgained the Redskins in total yards 385 to 283 . The win gave the city of Los Angeles its first NFL championship since the 1951 Los Angeles Rams . As the favored team , the Redskins ' humiliating defeat at the hands of the black - jerseyed Raiders led Super Bowl XVIII to be known as " Black Sunday . " Raiders ' running back Marcus Allen was the Super Bowl MVP , carrying the ball 20 times for a then - record total of 191 yards and two touchdowns , including a 74 – yard run in the third quarter . His 74 – yard run was also a record ( now 2nd to Willie Parker ' s 75 - yard TD run in Super Bowl XL ) , and his 9 . 6 yards per carry average was the second highest in Super Bowl history . He also caught two passes for 18 yards , giving him 209 total yards from the line of scrimmage in the game . Allen became just the third Heisman Trophy winner to be named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player . Background . NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XVIII to Tampa on June 3 , 1981 . This was first time Tampa hosted the game , making it the first Super Bowl to be played in Florida in a city other than Miami . Washington Redskins . The Redskins entered the game appearing to be even better than the previous season when they defeated the Miami Dolphins 27 – 17 in Super Bowl XVII . The Redskins finished the regular season with a 14 – 2 record , the best in the NFL , and their two losses were only by one point each . In addition , the Redskins set new NFL records with 541 points ( since broken by the 1998 Minnesota Vikings and 2007 New England Patriots ) , a givaway / takaway ratio of + 43 , and had the top rated rush – defense . The Redskins had a number of efficient offensive weapons . Quarterback Joe Theismann won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award for being second rated passer in the league behind Steve Bartkowski , completing 276 out of 459 ( 60 . 1 percent ) of his passes for 3 , 714 yards , 29 touchdowns , and only 11 interceptions . He rushed for 234 yards and another touchdown . Washington ' s main deep threats were wide receivers Charlie Brown ( 78 receptions , 1 , 225 yards , and 8 touchdowns ) and Art Monk ( 47 receptions , 746 yards , and 5 touchdowns ) , with the latter fully healthy after the previous year ' s injury that caused him to miss the entire postseason . Wide receiver Alvin Garrett , who replaced Monk during that time , emerged as a significant contributor by catching 25 passes for 332 yards . Fullback John Riggins once again was the team ' s top rusher with 1 , 347 yards , and set a then - NFL record by scoring the most rushing touchdowns in a season ( 24 ) . Multi - talented running back Joe Washington recorded 772 rushing yards , while catching 47 passes for 454 yards and 6 touchdowns . Kicker Mark Moseley led the NFL in scoring with 161 points , while Riggins ranked second with 144 , making them the first teammates to finish a season as the NFL ' s top two scorers since 1951 . The Redskins defense led the league in the fewest rushing yards allowed ( 1 , 289 ) . Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dave Butz recorded 11 . 5 sacks and a fumble recovery . On the other side of the line , defensive end Dexter Manley recorded 11 sacks and an interception . Defensive back Mark Murphy led the NFL with 9 interceptions , while the other starters in the secondary , Vernon Dean , Anthony Washington and Ken Coffey , along with rookie cornerback Darrell Green , combined for 13 interceptions . Los Angeles Raiders . The Raiders , in their second season in Los Angeles since moving from Oakland , California , made it to their fourth Super Bowl in team history after posting a 12 – 4 regular season record . Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett completed 230 out of 379 ( 60 . 7 percent ) passes resulting in 2 , 935 yards and 20 touchdowns . His favorite target was tight end Todd Christensen , who led the NFL with 92 receptions for 1 , 247 yards and 12 touchdowns . Wide receivers Cliff Branch and Malcolm Barnwell combined for 74 receptions , 1 , 209 yards , and 6 touchdowns . But the largest impact on offense was runningback Marcus Allen . In just his second NFL season , Allen led the team in rushing yards ( 1 , 014 ) and total yards from scrimmage ( 1 , 604 ) , while ranking second on the team in receptions ( 68 ) and touchdowns ( 11 ) . But Allen was not the only key running back on the team . Kenny King and Frank Hawkins combined for 1 , 119 total rushing and receiving yards , and 10 touchdowns . On defense , their three - man front was led by Pro Bowl defensive linemen Howie Long and Lyle Alzado . The linebacking corps was led by Pro Bowlers Rod Martin and Matt Millen . Cornerbacks Mike Haynes ( acquired in a trade from New England ) and Lester Hayes were widely considered to be the best tandem in the NFL . The Raiders ' head coach was Tom Flores . Playoffs . The Raiders only allowed a combined total of 24 points in their playoff victories over the Pittsburgh Steelers , 38 – 10 , and the Seattle Seahawks ( who had beaten the Raiders twice during the regular season ) , 30 – 14 . Allen had been particularly effective in the playoffs , gaining a total of 375 combined yards and scoring three touchdowns . The Raiders defense limited Seahawks running back Curt Warner , who had led the AFC in rushing yards ( 1 , 449 yards ) , to just 26 yards on 11 carries . Meanwhile , the Redskins crushed the Los Angeles Rams 51 – 7 , and then narrowly defeated the San Francisco 49ers , 24 – 21 , with Mark Moseley kicking the game winning field goal with just 40 seconds left . Mirroring the previous postseason , Riggins was a key contributor , rushing for a combined playoff total of 242 yards and five touchdowns in the two games . In doing so , Riggins extended his NFL record of consecutive playoff games with at least 100 rushing yards to six . Brown also was a key contributor in both playoff wins , recording a combined total of 11 receptions for 308 yards and a touchdown . Washington ' s defense was just as effective at stopping their postseason opponent ' s rushing attack as they had been during the regular season , limiting running backs Eric Dickerson and Wendell Tyler to a combined total of 60 rushing yards . Dickerson was the NFL ' s leading rusher with 1 , 808 yards and 18 touchdowns during the season , but could only gain 16 yards on 10 carries against the Redskins defense . Super Bowl pregame news . Coming into Super Bowl XVIII , the Redskins were favored to win because of their offense , their number one - rated rush – defense , their league best 14 – 2 regular season record , and their Super Bowl win from last season . Also , the Redskins had defeated the Raiders during an October 2 regular season game , 37 – 35 , by scoring 17 points in the final six minutes of the game . Television and entertainment . The game was broadcast in the United States by CBS and featured the broadcast team of play - by - play announcer Pat Summerall and color commentator John Madden . It was simulcast in Canada on CTV and in the United Kingdom on Channel 4 . The pregame festivities , which paid tribute to George Halas , featured the University of Florida Fightin ' Gator Marching Band and the Florida State University Marching Chiefs . After a moment of silence for Halas , Singer Barry Manilow performed the national anthem . The coin toss ceremony featured Pro Football Hall of Fame fullback and defensive tackle Bronko Nagurski . The halftime show was a " Salute to Superstars of Silver Screen " featuring the University of Florida and Florida State University Bands . Apple ' s famous " 1984 " television commercial , introducing the Apple Macintosh computer and directed by Ridley Scott , ran during a timeout in the third quarter . The advertisement changed how the Super Bowl would be used as a media advertising platform . The highlight package to Super Bowl XVIII was voice - over artist John Facenda ' s final project for NFL Films . Facenda died eight months after the game . An expanded version of " Black Sunday " ( the highight film ' s title ) has appeared on " NFL ' s Greatest Games " and contains an additional hour of game footage plus audio play - by - play from Bill King and Rich Marotta while retaining Facenda ' s narration . Following the game , CBS aired the pilot episode of " Airwolf " . Game summary . During the first half the Raiders scored on offense , defense and special teams , becoming the first team to score two non - offensive touchdowns in a Super Bowl . Less than five minutes into the game , Los Angeles ' Derrick Jensen blocked Jeff Hayes ' punt deep in Washington territory and recovered the ball in the end zone to give the Raiders a 7 - 0 lead . On their ensuing drive , Washington was forced to punt , but Los Angeles punt returner Ted Watts muffed the catch and Washington safety Greg Williams recovered the ball at the Raiders 42 - yard line . However , the Redskins could only advance to the Raider ' s 27 - yard line and came away with no points after kicker Mark Moseley missed a 44 - yard field goal attempt . Early in the second quarter , Raiders quarterback Jim Plunkett completed a 50 - yard pass to wide receiver Cliff Branch , advancing the ball to the Redskins ' 15 - yard line . Two plays later , Plunkett threw a 12 - yard touchdown pass to Branch , increasing the lead to 14 - 0 . Cliff Branch became just the fourth player to catch a touchdown in two different Super Bowls . On their next drive , the Redskins moved the ball 73 yards in 12 plays to the Raiders 7 - yard line , with Joe Theismann completing a 17 - yard pass to receiver Alvin Garrett and three passes to tight end Clint Didier for 50 yards . However , linebacker Rod Martin broke up Theismann ' s third down pass attempt , forcing Washington to settle for a 24 - yard field goal by Moseley . Los Angeles took the ensuing kickoff and drove 41 yards to the Redskins 39 - yard line . The drive stalled when Plunkett ' s third down pass fell incomplete , but Ray Guy ' s 27 - yard punt pinned Washington back at their own 12 - yard line with 12 seconds left in the half . On the first play of their drive , Coach Joe Gibbs had Theismann run a screen play called " Rocket Screen " , but Raiders linebacker Jack Squirek intercepted the pass and returned it for a touchdown to give the Raiders a 21 - 3 halftime lead . The defense was prepared for the play , as Theismann had successfully completed an identical screen pass to Joe Washington for a 67 - yard gain in their 37 - 35 victory over the Raiders on October 2 . In fact , Los Angeles linebackers coach Charlie Sumner had sent Squirek onto the field as a last second substitution specifically to cover Washington . " I was mad , " said linebacker Matt Millen , who had to run off the field to avoid a penalty . " I ' d called a blitz , and I was cranked up for it , but he told Jack to play the screen and sent him in . I guess Charlie knows what he ' s doing , huh ? " The Redskins regrouped in the second half and scored on their opening drive by marching 70 yards in nine plays . First , Garrett returned the opening kickoff 35 yards from 5 yards deep in the end zone to the Washington 30 - yard line . Then , Theismann completed a 23 - yard pass to receiver Charlie Brown to the Raiders ' 47 - yard line . Eight plays later , fullback John Riggins finished the drive with a 1 - yard touchdown run . ( Riggins became the second player to run for touchdowns in back - to - back Super Bowls . He had one in Super Bowl XVII en route to winning that game ' s Super Bowl MVP ) . Moseley ' s extra point attempt was blocked by reserve tight end Don Hasselbeck , but the Redskins had cut the score to 21 - 9 and were just two touchdowns away from taking the lead . However , the Raiders completely took over the rest of the game , preventing any chance of a Washington comeback . On the ensuing drive , Washington defensive back Darrell Green was called for a 38 - yard pass interference penalty while trying to cover Raiders receiver Malcolm Barnwell , setting up running back Marcus Allen ' s 5 - yard touchdown run 7 plays later to make the score 28 - 9 . Late in the third quarter , the Redskins had an opportunity to score after defensive back Anthony Washington forced and recovered a fumble from Branch at the Raiders 35 - yard line . They moved the ball nine yards in their next three plays , and then faced fourth down and one . Washington attempted to convert the fourth down with a run by Riggins , just like their successful fourth down conversion against the Miami Dolphins in the previous Super Bowl . But this time , Riggins was tackled by Martin for no gain . On the next play , the last play of the third quarter , Plunkett handed the ball off to Allen , who started to run left as the play was designed . But after taking an unusually wide turn in that direction , Allen saw a lot of defenders in front of him and cut back to the middle before taking off for a then - Super Bowl record 74 - yard touchdown run , increasing Los Angeles ' lead to 35 - 9 . This play would later be immortalized by one of the last great lines from John Facenda who said , " Here comes Marcus Allen , running with the night . " In the final period , the Raiders sacked Theismann three times , forcing him to fumble once , and intercepted a pass . Meanwhile , a 39 - yard run from Allen set up a 21 - yard field goal from kicker Chris Bahr to make the final score of the game 38 - 9 . Plunkett finished the game with 16 out of 25 pass completions for 172 yards and a touchdown . Theismann threw for more yards then Plunkett ( 243 ) , but was just 16 out of 35 and was intercepted twice . He was also sacked six times . Branch was the top receiver of the game with six receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown . Guy punted seven times for 299 yards ( 42 . 7 average ) , with 244 net yards ( 34 . 8 average ) and planted five of his seven punts in the 20 . Martin recorded a sack , a pass deflection , and a fumble recovery . Riggins was the leading rusher for the Redskins with 64 yards and a touchdown . Brown was their top receiver with three receptions for 93 yards . Tight end Clint Didier caught five passes for 65 yards . Garrett recorded 100 yards on kickoff returns , and one reception for 17 yards . After the game , Redskins general manager Bobby Beathard said that Hayes and Haynes were the difference in the game . Haynes was still a Patriot during the teams ' regular season matchup , and his addition gave the Raiders two shutdown corners . According to Beathard , Hayes and Haynes " changed our whole game plan . " Hayes had only one tackle , but had the left side of the field covered so effectively that Theismann hardly bothered to throw there . Haynes had two tackles , one interception , and two pass breakups . The Raiders were the first team to appear in , and win , the Super Bowl representing two different cities . They were also the first team to score an offensive , defensive and special teams touchdown in the same Super Bowl . The Redskins became the second defending champion to lose a Super Bowl ( their divisional rivals , the Dallas Cowboys , were the first , losing Super Bowl XIII after winning Super Bowl XII ) .