Super Bowl XXVIII — 1993 Season

Result

Super Bowl MVP

Emmitt Smith (RB, Dallas Cowboys)

Starting lineups

Starting offense

Starting defense

Note: Dallas's defensive lineup as archived lists only 2 linebackers (Norton, Smith) and 3 safeties (Woodson, Everett, Washington) among its 11 starters, rather than a textbook 3-linebacker/2-safety 4-3 - reported as sourced, possibly reflecting a nickel-heavy package logged as that game's starting defense rather than a sourcing error.

Box score

Passing

Rushing

Receiving

Game context

Super Bowl XXVIII was a rematch of the prior year's rout, and while it started far more competitively, it ended with the same result: Dallas over Buffalo, this time 30-13, as the Bills became the first franchise in Super Bowl history to lose four consecutive championship games. Buffalo actually led 13-6 at halftime behind a strong opening effort, but the game turned decisively early in the third quarter when Dallas safety James Washington scooped up a Thurman Thomas fumble, forced by Leon Lett, and returned it 46 yards for a touchdown, flipping momentum entirely. From that point, Dallas outscored Buffalo 24-0 in the second half, turning a competitive game into a comfortable win. Emmitt Smith was named MVP after carrying 30 times for 132 yards and two touchdowns, playing through a first-half shoulder injury that briefly limited him before he returned to power Dallas's second-half surge, adding four catches for 26 receiving yards as well. Troy Aikman completed 19 of 27 passes for 207 yards with no touchdowns but no turnovers, managing the game efficiently as Dallas leaned on Smith and its defense down the stretch. Buffalo's Jim Kelly set a then-Super Bowl record with 31 completions on 50 attempts for 260 yards, and Thurman Thomas rushed for just 37 yards on the ground but caught seven passes for 52 yards, unable to overcome the fumble that swung the game's momentum. This was head coach Jimmy Johnson's final game with the Cowboys; a long-simmering feud with owner Jerry Jones over credit for the team's success led to Johnson's departure within weeks of the victory, with Jones controversially declaring that "500 coaches" could have won a Super Bowl with that roster, a remark that permanently soured their relationship. Barry Switzer would take over as head coach the following season and lead Dallas to a third championship in four years in 1995, meaning the Cowboys won titles under two different head coaches during this stretch, a rare achievement for a true dynasty. Natalie Cole performed the national anthem, and Joe Namath, the Super Bowl III-winning quarterback, participated in the ceremonial coin toss, tying the two eras of the game together. For Buffalo, this fourth consecutive Super Bowl loss cemented a legacy of championship-game futility unmatched in NFL history; despite a Hall of Fame core in Kelly, Thomas, Bruce Smith, and Andre Reed, and a coach in Marv Levy who guided the franchise to unprecedented sustained success, the Bills never returned to the Super Bowl again, and as of the mid-2020s their four consecutive losses in the early 1990s remained their most recent Super Bowl appearances of any kind, an enduring symbol of one of the most talented teams to never win it all. Dallas, meanwhile, tied Pittsburgh and San Francisco for the most Super Bowl titles at four, firmly establishing itself as the NFL's marquee franchise of the era.

Sources

• Pro-Football-Reference: Super Bowl Index
• Wikipedia: Super Bowl XXVIII