Super Bowl XXIII
San Francisco 49ers 20
Cincinnati Bengals 16
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NFC champion San Francisco captured its third Super Bowl of the 1980s by defeating AFC champion Cincinnati 20-16.
The 49ers, who also won Super Bowls XVI and XIX, became the first NFC team to win three Super Bowls. Pittsburgh, with four Super Bowl titles (IX, X, XIII, and XIV), and the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, with three (XI, XV, and XVIII), lead AFC franchises.
Even though San Francisco held an advantage in total net yards (453 to 229), the 49ers found themselves trailing the Bengals late in the game. With the score 13-13, Cincinnati took a 16-13 lead on Jim Breech's 40-yard field goal with 3:20 remaining. It was Breech's third field goal of the day, following earlier successes from 34 and 43 yards.
The 49ers started their winning drive at their 8-yard line. Over the next 11 plays, San Francisco covered 92 yards with the decisive score coming on a 10-yard pass from quarterback Joe Montana to wide receiver John Taylor with 34 seconds remaining.
At halftime, the score was 3-3, the first time in Super Bowl history the game was tied at intermission.
After the teams traded third-period field goals, the Bengals jumped ahead 13-6 on Stanford Jennings's 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown with 34 seconds remaining in the quarter.
The 49ers didn't waste any time coming back as they covered 85 yards in four plays, concluding with Montana's 14-yard scoring pass to Jerry Rice 57 seconds into the final stanza.
Rice was named the game's most valuable player after compiling 11 catches for a Super Bowl-record 215 yards. Montana completed 23 of 36 passes for a Super Bowl-record 357 yards and two touchdowns.
Super Bowl XXIII: MVP Jerry Rice, WR, San Francisco 49ers
Jerry Rice holds almost every career receiving record. It is only right that he also holds an important Super Bowl record. His 215 receiving yards, on 11 catches, were a single-game best. Using Rice's talents and the most famous drive in Super Bowl history, the 49ers became the first NFC team to win three Super Bowls with their 20-16 victory over Cincinnati.
Following Stanford Jennings' kickoff-return touchdown that gave the Bengals the lead, Rice's 14-yard touchdown catch from Joe Montana tied the score at 13-13. A Jim Breech field goal with less than four minutes remaining gave Cincinnati the lead, but the 49ers one more shot. Moving 92 yards in 11 plays, including several key catches by Rice, the 49ers drove to the winning touchdown, a 10-yard pass from Montana to John Taylor.
SUPER BOWL XXIII SCORING
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
|
Cincinnati Bengals | 0 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 16 |
|
San Francisco 49ers | 3 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 20 |
1st Quarter
SF FG Cofer 41, 11:46
2nd Quarter
CIN FG Breech 34, 13:41
3rd Quarter
CIN FG Breech 43, 9:15
SF FG Cofer 32, 14:10
CIN Jennings 93 kick return (Breech kick), 14:26
4th Quarter
SF Rice 14 pass from Montana (Cofer kick), 0:57
CIN FG Breech 40, 11:40
SF Taylor 10 pass from Montana (Cofer kick), 14:26
CINCINNATI BENGALS - Team Statistics
Total First Downs |
13 |
Rushing |
7 |
Passing |
6 |
Penalty |
0 |
Total Net Yardage |
229 |
Total Offensive Plays |
58 |
Avg. Gain per Offensive Play |
3.9 |
Rushes |
28 |
Yards Gained Rushing (Net) |
106 |
Average Yards per Rush |
3.8 |
Passes Attempted |
25 |
Passes Completed |
11 |
Had Intercepted |
1 |
Tackled Attempting to Pass |
5 |
Yards Lost Attempting to Pass |
21 |
Yards Gained Passing (Net) |
123 |
Punts |
5 |
Average Distance |
44.2 |
Punt Returns |
2 |
Punt Return Yardage |
5 |
Kickoff Returns |
3 |
Kickoff Return Yardage |
132 |
Interception Return Yardage |
0 |
Fumbles |
1 |
Own Fumbles Recovered |
1 |
Opponent Fumbles Recovered |
1 |
Penalties |
7 |
Yards Penalized |
65 |
Total Points Scored |
16 |
Touchdowns |
1 |
Rushing |
0 |
Passing |
0 |
Returns |
1 |
Extra Points |
1 |
Field Goals |
3 |
Fields Goals Attempted |
3 |
Safeties |
0 |
Third-Down Efficiency |
4/13 |
Fourth-Down Efficiency |
0/1 |
Time of Possession |
32:36 |
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS - Team Statistics
Total First Downs |
23 |
Rushing |
6 |
Passing |
16 |
Penalty |
1 |
Total Net Yardage |
453 |
Total Offensive Plays |
67 |
Avg. Gain per Offensive Play |
6.8 |
Rushes |
27 |
Yards Gained Rushing (Net) |
112 |
Average Yards per Rush |
4.1 |
Passes Attempted |
36 |
Passes Completed |
23 |
Had Intercepted |
0 |
Tackled Attempting to Pass |
4 |
Yards Lost Attempting to Pass |
16 |
Yards Gained Passing (Net) |
341 |
Punts |
4 |
Average Distance |
37 |
Punt Returns |
3 |
Punt Return Yardage |
56 |
Kickoff Returns |
5 |
Kickoff Return Yardage |
77 |
Interception Return Yardage |
0 |
Fumbles |
4 |
Own Fumbles Recovered |
3 |
Opponent Fumbles Recovered |
0 |
Penalties |
4 |
Yards Penalized |
32 |
Total Points Scored |
20 |
Touchdowns |
2 |
Rushing |
0 |
Passing |
2 |
Returns |
0 |
Extra Points |
2 |
Field Goals |
2 |
Fields Goals Attempted |
4 |
Safeties |
0 |
Third-Down Efficiency |
4/13 |
Fourth-Down Efficiency |
0/0 |
Time of Possession |
27:24 |
CINCINNATI BENGALS - Player Statistics
Passing |
CP/AT |
YDS |
TD |
INT |
Esiason |
11/25 |
144 |
0 |
1 |
| |
Rushing |
CAR |
YDS |
TD |
LG |
Woods |
20 |
79 |
0 |
10 |
Brooks |
6 |
24 |
0 |
11 |
Jennings |
1 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
Esiason |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| |
Receiving |
REC |
YDS |
TD |
LG |
Collinsworth |
3 |
40 |
0 |
23 |
Brown |
3 |
32 |
0 |
17 |
Brooks |
2 |
32 |
0 |
20 |
McGee |
2 |
23 |
0 |
18 |
Hillary |
1 |
17 |
0 |
17 |
| |
Interceptions |
INT |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
None |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
| |
Punting |
NO |
AVG |
LG |
BLK |
Johnson |
5 |
44.2 |
63 |
0 |
| |
Punt Returns |
NO/FC |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
Horton |
1/0 |
5 |
5 |
0 |
Hillary |
1/0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| |
Kickoff Returns |
NO |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
Jennings |
2 |
117 |
93t |
1 |
Brooks |
1 |
15 |
15 |
0 |
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS - Player Statistics
Passing |
CP/AT |
YDS |
TD |
INT |
Montana |
23/36 |
357 |
2 |
0 |
| |
Rushing |
CAR |
YDS |
TD |
LG |
Craig |
17 |
71 |
0 |
13 |
Rathman |
5 |
23 |
0 |
11 |
Montana |
4 |
13 |
0 |
11 |
Rice |
1 |
5 |
0 |
5 |
| |
Receiving |
REC |
YDS |
TD |
LG |
Rice |
11 |
215 |
1 |
44 |
Craig |
8 |
101 |
0 |
40 |
Frank |
2 |
15 |
0 |
8 |
Rathman |
1 |
16 |
0 |
16 |
Taylor |
1 |
10 |
1 |
10t |
| |
Interceptions |
INT |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
Romanowski |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| |
Punting |
NO |
AVG |
LG |
BLK |
Helton |
4 |
37 |
55 |
0 |
| |
Punt Returns |
NO/FC |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
Taylor |
3/1 |
56 |
45 |
0 |
| |
Kickoff Returns |
NO |
YDS |
LG |
TD |
Rodgers |
3 |
53 |
22 |
0 |
Taylor |
1 |
13 |
13 |
0 |
Sydney |
1 |
11 |
11 |
0 |
January 22, 1989
Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami, Florida)
Attendance: 75,129
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