This was the first postseason meeting between the Bills and Bengals. Subscribe to Stathead Football: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Pro Football Reference Database. Then Benirschke missed a 50-yard field goal try on the next play. (Won 2 Rounds), Lost Conference Championship NCAAM. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. Dallas responded with Danny White's 20-yard pass to Butch Johnson setting up a 44-yard field goal by Rafael Septin. "He told us we couldn't let their offense on the field too long or eventually Anderson would burn us. The 49ers were a sorry sight when Walsh assembled them at Santa Clara for training camp in 1979. started the season with 7 losses. On the opening drive of the third quarter, Montana threw an interception to Bill Currier on the Giants 41-yard line. Passing, Rushing, & Receiving; Defense; Kick/Punt Returns; Kicking & Punting; 49ers Starters; Full Site Menu; NFC Championship - Dallas Cowboys at . The third worst starts to a 49ers ", "We had our backs to the wall and bad field position hurt us," added Montana. Dallas defensive back Everson Walls intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble, though he had the misfortune of being assigned to cover Clark on "the catch" play. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. The San Francisco 49ers were established in the All-American Football Conference (AAFC) in 1946. Please see our Contributors and Sources page for data source details. The 49ers then drove to the Dallas 16-yard line, but once again they failed to score when Montana threw a pass that bounced out of Elliott's hands and was intercepted by Randy White. the On the Dolphins next possession, Chargers safety Glen Edwards intercepted a pass from David Woodley and returned it 35 yards to set up Fouts' 8-yard touchdown pass to rookie running back James Brooks, which increased the score to 240. However, 1982 was strike-shortened, and only nine games were played. However, 1982 was strike-shortened, and only nine games were played. Todd then led the Jets 80 yards in eight plays and completed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Jones. On second and 8, Williams was sacked by Harvey Martin for a 9-yard loss, and then turned the ball over with consecutive incompletions. According to offensive coordinator Lindy Infante, "It was a staff decision to go for the touchdown. Dallas took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched 80-yards, including a 25-yard gain on a screen pass reception by Tony Dorsett, to score on running back Ron Springs' 1-yard rushing touchdown. After forcing Dallas to punt on the opening drive, San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana completed a 17-yard pass to Charle Young and a 24-yarder to Lenvil Elliott before throwing an 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Freddie Solomon. On each occasion they were eliminated by the Dallas Cowboys. After a Bengals punt, Chandler gave the Chargers good field position with a 7-yard return to the 45-yard line. (AP Photo/Al Golub), San Francisco 49ers Running Back Bill Ring (30) catches kick off during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. I kept asking myself, 'Who's missing?' (AP Photo/Al Golub), San Francisco 49ers vs.Dallas Cowboys at Candlestick Park Sunday, January 10. Things got even better for Dallas when Walls recorded his second interception from Montana on the next drive at the Cowboys 27. One minute into the fourth quarter, Septin kicked a 22-yard field goal that cut the deficit to 21-20. National Football League. I figured I could go underneath. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. (AP Photo/Al Golub), Dallas Cowboys Defensive Back Everson Walls (24) on sidelines during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. The worst running game in the league alongside a defense that went from second overall and points in 1981 to twenty-first and twenty-third respectively were the main culprits for the losing season. Solomon was the 49ers top receiver with 6 catches for 107 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 12 yards and returning a punt for 22. (AP Photo/Al Golub), Joe Montana (16) lines up on the ball during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. The Bills defense managed to force a punt with under a minute left, but Ferguson threw four consecutive incompletions as time expired in the game. In a play that would become known as The Catch, 49ers wide receiver Dwight Clark made a leaping grab at the back of the end zone to score the winning touchdown with 51 seconds left in the game. The worst start to a 49ers season While Bill Walsh regarded the fourth-down stop of Johnson as "the play that won the game for us," Chuck Studley considered Bunz' tackle of Alexander more significant. Join our linker program. The San Francisco 49ers have played a total of 73 (AP Photo/Al Golub), The 49ers with Joe Montana at start of game during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. "We didn't want to get stopped by those blitzes. While the 49ers were foundering with 2-14 records in 1978 and '79, the Bengals were posting 4-12 records and finishing at the bottom of the AFC Central Division. Their first season was in 1950, and their most recent season was in 2022. In the second quarter, New York had a chance to increase their lead with a drive into Eagles territory, but Philadelphia's defense dug in and stuffed Brunner for no gain on a 4th and 1 conversion attempt on the 35. I think the players started thinking about what could have been instead of what was. Then linebacker Rick Razzano forced a fumble from Chargers' rookie kick returner James Brooks, and Don Bass recovered for the Bengals on the San Diego 12-yard line. San Francisco 49ers Philadelphia Eagles The stage is set for a thrilling NFC championship game on Sunday, as the Eagles host the 49ers, on their home turf at Lincoln Financial Field.. The Cowboys fared no better as White was sacked twice on their next drive, once by Jim Stuckey and once by Lawrence Pillers, and the half ended soon after. Now down 17-0, New York had a good chance to get back in the game when Mark Gastineau forced a fumble from Ferguson on the Bills next drive. In the third quarter, Miami drove 74 yards and tied it at 24, with Strock's 15-yard touchdown completion to Rose. Jan. 24, 1982: 49ers Win Their First Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl XVI. (AP Photo/Al Golub), San Francisco 49er Wide Receiver Dwight Clark (87) and Guard Dan Audick (61). (AP Photo/Al Golub), List of Players: (87) Dwight Clark, (68) John Ayers, (56) Fred Quillan during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. This season was the only one in an 18-season span in which the 49ers did not win at least ten games. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. (AP Photo/Paul Spinelli), Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Dorsett (33) scores a touchdown while San Francisco 49ers safety Dwight Hicks (22) gives chase during the NFL football game NFC Championship between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers in San Francisco, California on January 10, 1982. Much of the post-game talk centered on the 49ers' goal line stand and the general belief that they had only 10 men on the field for two of the plays. "The Catch" Cowboys vs. 49ers 1981 NFC Championship | NFL Full Game NFL 10.9M subscribers Subscribe 6.4K Share 808K views 6 years ago In honor of Free Game Friday relive one of the greatest. San Francisco Defensive End Jim Stuckey (79) blocks Dallas Cowboy Quarterback Danny White (11) from passing. . started the season going 8-0. Do you have a blog? Then on third down and 9, Fouts' 21-yard completion to Wes Chandler moved the ball to the Bengals 33. The Bills jumped to a 240 lead by the second quarter against a Jets defense that had only given up 37 first quarter points all season. Elliott rushed four times for 30 yards on the drive, while Solomon also made a big impact, catching two passes for 18 yards and rushing for 15 on a wide receiver reverse. In January of 1979, owner Edward DeBartolo, Jr., reached across the backyard fence to Palo Alto and secured the coaching services of Bill Walsh, who had compiled a 17-7 record in two seasons at Stanford University. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? have appeared in the Super Bowl 7 times, in 1981, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1994, 2012 and 2019. Then rookie free safety Michael Downs picked off a pass from Williams and returned it 21 yards to the Tampa Bay 33, leading to Dorsett's 5-yard score that put the team up 24-0. The Chargers defense quickly gave the offense another scoring opportunity, forcing a punt from Pat McInally that went just 32 yards to the Bengals 45. Then Ferguson threw his third consecutive interception on the next drive, which Donald Dykes picked off and returned 22 yards, giving New York a first down on the Buffalo 35. Later on, Benirschke missed a 55-yard field goal attempt, giving Miami the ball with good field position. Then with just over 10 minutes left in the game, Cribbs ran for a 45-yard touchdown, increasing the Bills lead to 3113. In the club's 1981 media guide, Walsh was quoted as saying: "We have been able to add slowly potentially better athletes to our squad, especially with this year's draft, and that's working to make us potentially better overall. Then 49ers running back Bill Ring lost a fumble on his own 29, leading to White's 26-yard touchdown pass to Tony Hill that put the Cowboys up 10-7. San Francisco 49ers Football 1982 Vintage Sports Ticket Stubs, San Francisco 49ers NFL Tickets, [2], at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, California. The location of the game also set a precedent. ", In Cincinnati lineman Dave Lapham's opinion, "We just didn't move anybody off the ball. "The coaches upstairs spotted it. (AP Photo/Al Golub), Dallas Cowboys Running Back Tony Dorsett (33) finds hole in 49ers line to make yardage during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. But Cincinnati's defense halted the drive at the 18-yard line and it ended with no points when Rolf Benirschke missed a 37-yard field goal attempt. The improvement was noticeable immediately after Wersching's second-half kickoff. For that, San Francisco has an amazing run in the 1980s, plus an extra. The second round, the divisional playoffs, had a restriction where two teams from the same division cannot meet: the surviving wild card team visited the division champion outside its own division that had the higher seed, and the remaining two teams from that conference played each other. Both conference champions had losing records the previous season, the only time this has happened. Chargers placekicker Rolf Benirschke kicked the winning 29-yard field goal after 13:52 of overtime, ending a game that became known in National Football League lore as the Epic in Miami. Anderson was injured early in the drive and replaced for two plays by Jack Thompson. On third-and-11, Anderson fired a pass intended for Isaac Curtis, but Dwight Hicks intercepted and returned the football 27 yards to the San Francisco 32. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. The Bengals, admitted to the American Football League in 1968, won a Central Division title in the realigned NFL in 1970, but succumbed to Baltimore in the playoffs. I told them what to expect. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. This game marked a disappointing end to a promising season for the Eagles, who had started out 9-2, but then lost all but one of their remaining games. Seasons: 78 (1946 to 2023) Record (W-L-T): 612-510-16 Playoff Record: 37-24 Super Bowls Won: 5 (7 Appearances) Championships Won *: 5 . This was the first postseason meeting between the Chargers and Bengals.[2]. started the season with 6 ", Studley explained further: "The Bengals tried to shield Danny off and make him run around, but he hit Alexander quick in the flat. The team was coming off a Super Bowl victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. Super Bowl XVI - San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinnati Bengals - January 24th, 1982 NFL Scores Playoffs Cincinnati Bengals 21 14-5 Prev Game Coach: Forrest Gregg San Francisco 49ers 26 16-3 Prev Game Coach: Bill Walsh Sunday Jan 24, 1982 Start Time: 4:00pm Stadium: Pontiac Silverdome Logos via Sports Logos.net / About logos Team Stats Offense Free shipping for many products! "It was the first time all season we were stopped on that play," asserted Forrest Gregg. Wersching's kickoff was another squibber. With 10:39 left in the game, Anderson threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Cris Collinsworth, giving the Bengals a 2821 lead at the end of a 9-play, 79-yard drive that saw him burn the Bills with a 42-yard completion on a short pass to Steve Kreider on third and 1 from the Bengals 42-yard line. The creative direction of Super Bowl LVII was inspired by the beauty of Arizona's natural landscapes - from its grand rock formations to its vast rainbow skies. While surrounding areas shivered in below zero chill factors, 81,270 enjoyed 72-degree comfort in the huge, 5-year-old stadium. Then after forcing a punt, the Giants drove 74 yards, including an 11-yard scramble by Brunner on 3rd and 11, to score on his 10-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver John Mistler. The AFC champions advanced to a second-and-goal on the 5-yard line before Anderson was sacked for a six-yard loss by Jim Stuckey. The 49ers won the game 28-27. [2], This was the first Super Bowl meeting between the 49ers and Bengals.[2]. This was the first postseason meeting between the Chargers and Dolphins.[2]. The 49ers won the game 28-27. Cincinnati eventually drove inside the 10, but the Bills made a key defensive stand, as defensive end Ken Johnson sacked Anderson at the 15 on third down and then Robb Riddick leaped high in the air to block Jim Breech's 33-yard field goal attempt. The San Francisco 49ers last missed the playoffs in 2020. 1982 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS PENNANT | Sports Mem, Cards & Fan Shop, Vintage Sports Memorabilia, Pennants, Flags | eBay! Harris caught six passes for 106 yards. (AP Photo/Paul Spinelli), Dallas Cowboys quarterback Danny White (11) looks for a receiver while being pursued by the 49ers Dwaine Board (76) during the NFL football game NFC Championship between the Dallas Cowboys and the San Francisco 49ers in San Francisco, California on January 10, 1982. The team had . The wide receiver on the left clears out so I can come underneath the zone coverage.". However, the Cowboys needed only a field goal to win, and still had enough time left in the game for one last drive. Brunner completed a 59-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Johnny Perkins on the next play to make it 2417. [4], After the first quarter was scoreless, Dennis Thurman's 19-yard interception return to the Bucs 47-yard line set up Danny White's 9-yard touchdown pass to receiver Tony Hill. The rivalry stems from the proximity of Oakland and San . The influx of new talent helped transform the Niners from a 6-10 team in 1980 into a 13-3 team in 1981, when they compiled the best record in the NFL. Cribbs rushed for 83 yards and a touchdown, while also catching 4 passes for 64 yards. "The Bengals were throwing every conceivable blitz at us," said Walsh. Following a 4-yard run by Charles Alexander, the Bengals scored a touchdown on an 8-yard pass from Anderson to tight end M. L. Harris, increasing their lead to 100. Clark added 5 receptions for 104 yards. (AP Photo/Al Golub), San Francisco 49ers Running Back Bill Ring (30) makes good yardage during kick off runback during the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park in San Fransisco on January 10, 1982. 25-year-old San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana led the 49ers to victory in his first playoff game, completing 20 of 31 passes for a career-high 304 yards and two touchdowns and an interception. the The Bengals' next-to-last possession of the game endured for just one play, on which an Anderson pass, intended for Collinsworth, was intercepted by Wright on the Cincinnati 47 and returned to the 22, where he fumbled when trying to lateral the ball to a teammate. ", Then, turning to Gregg, he said: "Congratulations, you had a fine, fine season. Reagan, a Californian, had portrayed legendary George Gipp, a Notre Dame star of more than six decades earlier, in a 1940 movie version of the life of Knute Rockne.