SUPER BOWL XXVIII

Cowboys hand Bills 30-13 defeat as Bills lose fourth straight Super Bowl

January 30, 1994 - Atlanta - This time it was going to be different. The Buffalo Bills were playing the same team as the year before. The Dallas Cowboys had handed the Bills their heads on a platter in that one, 52-17, and there was this thing called revenge that could be a definite factor.

Things looked bleak right at the get-go, however. The Bills kicked off to Kevin Williams, and he galloped with the ball 50 yards into Bills territory. The Bills defense stiffened and forced Eddie Murray to kick a 41-yard field goal. Buffalo came right back and Bills kicker Steve Christie set a Super Bowl record by kicking a 54-yard field goal to tie the game up at 3.

The Bills forced Dallas to kick, but on the first play from scrimmage after getting the ball back, Jim Kelly hit Thurman Thomas with a shovel pass, but he fumbled the ball and Dallas recovered. The Bills defense was extra sharp in the early going and forced Dallas to attempt another field goal. Murray was on the mark again as he kicked a 24-yarder to break the tie at 6-3.

But then the Bills offense came alive and drove down the field 80 yards on 17 plays that was capped by a touchdown run of four yards by Thomas. Things really started to look up for the Bills as cornerback Nate Odomes picked off a pass by Troy Aikman and the Bills had the ball again with over a minute remaining in the first half. But they couldn't find pay dirt and had to settle for a 28-yard field goal by Steve Christie. As they went off the field, the Bills had the lead 13-6 and had the momentum to carry them to what they hoped to be their first Super Bowl victory.

However, Jimmy Johnson and his Cowboys made halftime adjustments and came out of the locker room storming. The Bills had the ball and Thurman Thomas was a victim of another fumble that turned the tide. Dallas defensive end Leon Lett stripped the ball from Thomas' hands and safety James Washington seized the opportunity and the ball and broke down the field 46 yards for the tying touchdown.

The Bills offensive was stymied the rest of the Super afternoon. Their next possession, they were forced to punt. From then on, it was the Emmett Smith Show. Starting on the Dallas 36, Emmett carried 7 times during an 8 play drive. He ran 61 yards of the 64-yard Cowboy touchdown drive. The final play of the drive was a 15-yard touchdown sprint to give the Cowboys the lead.

In the fourth quarter, James Washington turned in another sparkling play when he intercepted a Jim Kelly pass and returned it to the Bills 34. Smith ran 10 yards on a couple of carries, caught a 9-yard screen pass before Aikman hitched up with Alvin Harper for 16 yards to give the ‘Boys the ball at the Buffalo 6 yard line. The Cowboys pushed it to the Bills one and went for it on fourth down. Emmett Smith blasted in for the score and put Dallas up 27-13.

There were still almost ten minutes to play, plenty of time for the Bills no-huddle offense to get going. But the Cowboys had the Bills number and Buffalo couldn't muster up anything.

Then with 2:50 left in the contest, Murray kicked his third field goal of the day, a 20-yarder to put the game out of reach for Jim Kelly, Marv Levy and the rest of the beleaguered Bills.

Emmett Smith won the MVP award, gaining 132 yards on 30 carries (92 yards came in the second half). Troy Aikman had a workman-like game, completing 19-of-27 passes for 207 yards, no Tds and one interception. Steve Christie wasn't the only Bills to set a Super Bowl record, as Kelly completed a record 31 passes in 50 attempts for 260 yards and one pick.

The Bills became the first team ever to lose four straight Super Bowls, while Dallas became the first team in NFL history to come back from a 0-2 start in the season and win the Super Bowl.

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