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Super Bowl XXIV was an
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
game between the
National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference ...
(NFC) champion
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
and the
American Football Conference The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference ...
(AFC) champion
Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
to decide the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) champion for the 1989 season. The game was played on January 28, 1990, at the
Louisiana Superdome The Caesars Superdome, commonly known as the Superdome (formerly known as Mercedes-Benz Superdome), is a multi-purpose stadium located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the home stadium of the New Orleans Saints ...
in
New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
. The 49ers defeated the Broncos by the score of 55–10, winning their second consecutive Super Bowl, and then-tying the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
with four Super Bowl victories. San Francisco also became the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls with two different head coaches; rookie head coach
George Seifert George Gerald Seifert (born January 22, 1940) is an American former football coach and player. He served as the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers and the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Seifert owned the second-grea ...
took over after Bill Walsh retired following the previous season's Super Bowl. The 49ers finished the 1989 regular season with a league best 14–2 record. The Broncos, who posted an 11–5 regular season record, entered the Super Bowl looking to avoid tying the
Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
with four Super Bowl losses as well as the Vikings record of losing three Super Bowls in four years. This game remains the most lopsided in Super Bowl history. San Francisco's 55 points were the most ever scored by one team, and their 45-point margin of victory was the largest ever. Also this set the record and is still the game with the largest difference in total offense yardage with 294 (San Francisco with 461 and Denver 167). The 49ers are also the only team to score at least eight touchdowns in a Super Bowl and at least two touchdowns in each quarter (the only mistake was a missed extra point attempt that occurred at the end of the first quarter). San Francisco quarterback
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
was named the
Super Bowl MVP The Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, or Super Bowl MVP, is presented annually to the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, the National Football League's (NFL) championship game. The winner is chosen by a panel of 16 football writers a ...
, his third award in his fourth Super Bowl victory. He completed 22 of 29 passes for a total of 297 yards and a Super Bowl record 5 touchdowns, while also rushing for 15 yards. Montana's 75.9 completion percentage was the second highest in Super Bowl history, and he also set a record by completing 13 consecutive passes during the game and broke two Super Bowl records set by
Terry Bradshaw Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst an ...
; most touchdown passes in a single game: 5 (breaking Bradshaw's record of 4) and most touchdown passes in Super Bowl play: 11 (breaking Bradshaw's record of 9). Montana became the third player in league history to win both the Super Bowl MVP and the AP Most Valuable Player Award during the same season, after
Bart Starr Bryan Bartlett Starr (January 9, 1934 – May 26, 2019) was an American professional football quarterback and head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Alab ...
and
Terry Bradshaw Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst an ...
who did so in the 1966 and 1978 seasons, respectively.


Background

NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXIV to New Orleans, Louisiana on March 14, 1985, during their March 10–15, 1985 meetings held in Phoenix. This would be a record seventh time that New Orleans hosted the Super Bowl.
Tulane Stadium Tulane Stadium was an outdoor football stadium that stood in New Orleans from 1926 to 1980. It was officially the Third Tulane Stadium and replaced the "Second Tulane Stadium", which was located where the Telephone Exchange Building is now. Th ...
was the site of Super Bowls IV, VI, and IX; while the Louisiana Superdome previously hosted XII, XV, and XX. Originally, the selection was to be voted on during the May 23–25, 1984 meetings. However, after balloting for XXI took more than two hours, voting for XXIV was rescheduled to the following year. Twelve cities were part of the bidding process, which was scheduled to award two Super Bowls ( XXIII and XXIV). The bidding cities included:
Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...
,
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
,
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
,
Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
,
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
,
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
,
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
,
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
,
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
,
Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...
, and Tempe. New Orleans entered as the favorite.


Teams


San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers entered the game seeking to win their second straight Super Bowl. Bill Walsh retired as head coach after San Francisco's 20–16 win over the
Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
in the previous year's
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
, but rookie head coach
George Seifert George Gerald Seifert (born January 22, 1940) is an American former football coach and player. He served as the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers and the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Seifert owned the second-grea ...
did not miss a beat, as he guided the 49ers to a league-best 14–2 regular season record. Their two losses were only by a combined margin of 5 points. The 49ers' offense was just as dominating as it was during the previous regular season. Quarterback
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
threw for 3,512 yards, 26 touchdowns, and only 8 interceptions, giving him what was then the highest single-season
quarterback rating Passer rating (also known as passing efficiency in college football) is a measure of the performance of passers, primarily quarterbacks, in gridiron football. There are two formulas currently in use: one used by both the National Football Leagu ...
in NFL history (112.4). Montana also rushed for 227 yards and 3 touchdowns, and earned both the
NFL Most Valuable Player Award The National Football League Most Valuable Player Award (NFL MVP) is an award given by various entities to the American football player who is considered the most valuable in the National Football League (NFL) during the regular season. Organizat ...
and the
NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award The National Football League Offensive Player of the Year Award is an annual American football award given by various organizations to the National Football League (NFL) player who is considered the top offensive player during the regular season. Or ...
. Wide receiver
Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championshi ...
had another outstanding season, catching 82 passes for 1,483 yards and 17 touchdowns. Running back Roger Craig was the team's leading rusher with 1,054 yards and 6 touchdowns, and he recorded 49 receptions for 473 yards and another touchdown. But other stars on the 49ers' offense began to emerge, enabling the team to spread the ball around. After being used primarily as a punt returner during his first two seasons, wide receiver John Taylor had a breakout season, catching 60 passes for 1,077 yards and 10 touchdowns, while also returning 36 punts for 417 yards. Tight end
Brent Jones Brent Michael Jones (born February 12, 1963) is an American former professional football player, business executive, businessman, coach, and sports analyst. As a player, he was a tight end for the San Francisco 49ers during his entire 11-year ca ...
recorded 40 receptions for 500 yards. Fullback
Tom Rathman Thomas Dean Rathman (born October 7, 1962) is a former professional football player, a fullback for the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Following his playing career, he became a coach in 1995 an ...
had the best season of his career, rushing for 305 yards and catching 73 passes for 616 yards. Kicker Mike Cofer scored 136 points while making a career-high 80.6% of his field goals. Even Montana's backup,
Steve Young Jon Steven Young (born October 11, 1961) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. He also played for the Tampa Bay Buccane ...
, had a great year, throwing for 1,001 yards and 8 touchdowns with only 3 interceptions, while also rushing for 126 yards and 2 touchdowns. With all of these weapons, San Francisco's offense led the league in total yards from scrimmage (6,268) and scoring (442 points). The 49ers' defense allowed the third-fewest points in the NFL (253). Defensive end
Pierce Holt Leslie Pierce Holt (born January 1, 1962) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a defensive lineman for the San Francisco 49ers and Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) from 1988 to 1995. H ...
recorded 10.5 sacks, as did linebacker
Charles Haley Charles Lewis Haley (born January 6, 1964) is a former American football outside linebacker and defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers (1986–1991, 1999) and the Dallas Cowboys (1992–1996). ...
. In addition to Haley, their linebacking corps was anchored by
Keena Turner Keena Turner (born October 22, 1958) is an American football executive and former player, coach, and broadcaster. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 1980 NFL draft. A 6'2" 237 pound linebacker from Purdue Univer ...
,
Matt Millen Matthew George Millen (born March 12, 1958) is a former American football linebacker and executive. Millen played 12 years in the National Football League for the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, and Washington Redskins, ...
, and
Bill Romanowski William Thomas Romanowski (born April 2, 1966) is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. Nicknamed "Romo" and "RomoCop", he spent the majority of his career with the San Francisco 4 ...
. Future
Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
safety
Ronnie Lott Ronald Mandel Lott (born May 8, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback and safety in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. Lott played college football for the Univ ...
led the team with 5 interceptions. Defensive backs Eric Wright and
Chet Brooks Terrance Donnell Brooks (born January 1, 1966 in Midland, Texas) is a former safety who played 3 seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League. He started in Super Bowl XXIV. During his college years, he coined the name " ...
also combined for 5 interceptions between them.


Denver Broncos

The Broncos were trying to avoid becoming the second team, after the Vikings, to lose a fourth Super Bowl. After appearing in
Super Bowl XXI Super Bowl XXI was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
and
Super Bowl XXII Super Bowl XXII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins and American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...
, the team missed the playoffs with an 8–8 record during the 1988 season. But they signed several new players in the offseason to help them win 10 of their first 12 games in 1989 and finish with an 11–5 record. One of Denver's new major additions was rookie running back
Bobby Humphrey Bobby Gene Humphrey (born October 11, 1966) is a former professional American football player who played for the Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins in the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Alabama. Colleg ...
, who rushed for 1,151 yards, caught 22 passes for 156 yards, and scored 8 touchdowns. Humphrey gave the Broncos a powerful running attack that they lacked in their previous Super Bowl seasons. Also new to the team was rookie kicker
David Treadwell David Mark Treadwell (born February 27, 1965 in Columbia, South Carolina) is a former American football placekicker in the National Football League for the Denver Broncos (1989-1992) and the New York Giants (1993-1994). He played college footbal ...
, who made the Pro Bowl with an 81.8% field goal percentage and ranked third in the NFL with 120 points. The defense, coordinated by
Wade Phillips Harold Wade Phillips (born June 21, 1947) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL. He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys. He has also ser ...
, had a new weapon as well: rookie free safety Steve Atwater. Together with veteran defensive backs Dennis Smith,
Wymon Henderson Wymon Henderson (born December 15, 1961) is a former cornerback who played eight seasons for the Minnesota Vikings, Denver Broncos, and Los Angeles Rams in the National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professiona ...
, and
Tyrone Braxton Tyrone Scott Braxton (born December 17, 1964) is a former American football safety who played for the Denver Broncos for most of his career from 1987 to 1999. Braxton played in four Super Bowls with the Broncos, and won 2 NFL championship rings i ...
, the Broncos' secondary combined for 14 interceptions. Braxton led the team with 6, which he returned for 103 yards and a touchdown, while also recovering 2 fumbles. Linebacker Simon Fletcher lead the team with 105 tackles and 12 sacks, while veteran linebacker Karl Mecklenburg gained 7.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and four fumble recoveries. Another new addition was defensive end
Ron Holmes Ronald Holmes (August 26, 1963 – October 27, 2011) was a professional American football defensive end who played eight seasons in the National Football League for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Denver Broncos. A standout defensive end at th ...
, who recorded 9 sacks. Defensive end
Alphonso Carreker Alphonso Carreker (born May 25, 1962) is a former American football defensive end who played seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Green Bay Packers and Denver Broncos. Biography Carreker was born in Columbus, Ohio; he ...
added 5.5 sacks. Veteran receiver
Vance Johnson Vance Edward Johnson (born March 13, 1963), is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft. Playing career A 5'11", 174 lb. wide receiver, Johnson playe ...
had the best season of his career, catching 76 passes for 1,095 yards and 7 touchdowns, while also returning 12 punts for 118 yards. However, quarterback
John Elway John Albert Elway Jr. (born June 28, 1960) is an American professional football executive and former quarterback who is the president of football operations for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). Elway played college f ...
played inconsistently during the regular season, throwing just as many interceptions as touchdowns (18) and recording only a 73.7 passer rating.


Playoffs

Despite his regular season problems, Elway ended up playing his best during the playoffs. First, he led the Broncos on a late touchdown drive to narrowly defeat the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
, 24–23. The Steelers held a 17–10 halftime lead before Elway's 37-yard touchdown pass to
Vance Johnson Vance Edward Johnson (born March 13, 1963), is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft. Playing career A 5'11", 174 lb. wide receiver, Johnson playe ...
tied the game in the third quarter. Then after Pittsburgh scored two field goals to take a 23–17 fourth-quarter lead, Elway led the Broncos on a 71-yard drive to score on Melvin Bratton's 1-yard, game-winning touchdown run. On the ensuing drive, Randy Robbins then recovered a Steelers fumble on third down with 2:02 left to clinch the victory. The Broncos then defeated the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
37–21 in the AFC Championship Game. This was the third time in the last four years that both teams faced each other for the AFC Championship, and the previous two resulted in two of the most famous games in NFL Lore:
The Drive The Drive was an offensive series in the fourth quarter of the 1986 AFC Championship Game played on January 11, 1987, at Cleveland Municipal Stadium between the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns. Broncos quarterback John Elway, in a span of 5 ...
and
The Fumble ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...
. In this game, the Broncos seemed to be in complete control at first, building up a 24–7 lead. But Browns quarterback
Bernie Kosar Bernard Joseph Kosar Jr. (born November 25, 1963) is a former American football quarterback who played collegiately at the University of Miami where he led the team to a national championship in 1983. He subsequently played professionally in ...
rallied his team back with two third-quarter touchdowns, cutting the lead to 24–21 going into the 4th quarter. Some observers began to wonder if this game would become known as "The Comeback". However, Elway destroyed any chance of a Browns comeback by leading the Broncos 80 yards and scoring with a 39-yard touchdown pass to
Sammy Winder Sammy Winder (born July 15, 1959) is a former professional American football running back who spent his entire professional career playing for the Denver Broncos, from 1982 to 1990. The son of a farmer, Winder played his high school football at M ...
on the first drive of the 4th quarter. Denver then scored field goals on each of their next two drives to put the game away. Elway finished the game with 385 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, and no interceptions, while also leading Denver in rushing with 5 carries for 39 yards. Meanwhile, the 49ers started out their postseason by blowing out the
Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
, 41–13. Minnesota started out the game by marching 70 yards on their opening drive and scoring a field goal to take a 3–0 lead. But the 49ers dominated the rest of the game. On their first play from scrimmage, Montana completed a short pass to Rice, who then took it all the way to the end zone for a 72-yard touchdown reception. The next time they had the ball, Montana led them on another touchdown drive, scoring on a short pass to tight end
Brent Jones Brent Michael Jones (born February 12, 1963) is an American former professional football player, business executive, businessman, coach, and sports analyst. As a player, he was a tight end for the San Francisco 49ers during his entire 11-year ca ...
. Then defensive back
Chet Brooks Terrance Donnell Brooks (born January 1, 1966 in Midland, Texas) is a former safety who played 3 seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League. He started in Super Bowl XXIV. During his college years, he coined the name " ...
intercepted a pass from Vikings quarterback Wade Wilson and returned it 28 yards, setting up Montana's third touchdown pass on an 8-yard toss to Taylor. Then just before halftime, Montana threw another touchdown pass to Rice, giving the 49ers a 28–3 halftime lead. Then in the fourth quarter, San Francisco scored two more touchdowns to put the game away: a 53-yard interception return by Lott and a 4-yard run by Craig. Montana finished the game with 241 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Wilson was held to just 9 completions for 74 yards, and was intercepted twice. The 49ers then entered the NFC Championship Game against the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
, who had defeated San Francisco in one of their two regular season games against them, and were coming off postseason wins against two of the NFC's toughest teams, the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
and the
Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
. The Rams scored first to take a 3–0 lead. However, the 49ers took over in the 2nd quarter, scoring 21 unanswered points on two touchdown passes by Montana and a touchdown run by Craig. By halftime, San Francisco had a commanding 21–3 lead and went on to a surprisingly easy 30–3 win and their second consecutive Super Bowl appearance. Montana had another superb performance, compiling 262 passing yards and 2 touchdowns, again without throwing an interception. Rams quarterback
Jim Everett James Samuel Everett III (born January 3, 1963) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Los Angeles Rams. He played college football for the Purdue Boilerm ...
was held to 163 yards and threw 3 interceptions.


Super Bowl pregame news

Although Elway's performance in the AFC Championship Game was widely considered his best ever, many sports writers and fans believed that the Broncos' best effort would not be good enough to beat the 49ers. After all, Denver had barely defeated the Steelers, who only had a 9–7 regular season record, while the 9–6–1 Cleveland Browns had almost overcome a 17-point second half deficit before Denver put them away in the fourth quarter. Furthermore, the Elway-led Broncos had already lost two Super Bowls. On the other hand, the Montana-led 49ers, with their powerful offense, had already won three Super Bowls. Montana came into this game with a 7–0 record as a starting quarterback at the Superdome due to the 49ers' dominance of their then-NFC West rival
New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
. The 49ers' only loss in the Superdome in the 1980s came in 1986, when
Mike Moroski Michael Henry Moroski (born September 4, 1957) is an American football coach and former player. He is the football head coach at College of Idaho. Moroski played eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Atlanta Falcons, the ...
started for an injured Montana. The Broncos, as the designated home team in the annual rotation between AFC and NFC teams, wore their home orange uniforms with white pants. At the time, the Broncos were winless (0–2) in Super Bowls while wearing orange. The 49ers would wear white road uniforms with gold pants, which was the same combination they wore in their Super Bowl XVI victory.


Broadcasting

The game was broadcast in the United States by
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
and featured the broadcast team of
play-by-play announcer In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...
Pat Summerall George Allen "Pat" Summerall (May 10, 1930 – April 16, 2013) was an American football player and television sportscaster who worked for CBS, Fox, and ESPN. In addition to football, he announced major golf and tennis events. Summerall announ ...
and
color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...
John Madden John Earl Madden (April 10, 1936 – December 28, 2021) was an American football coach and sports commentator in the National Football League (NFL). He served as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders from 1969 to 1978, who he led to eight pla ...
.
Brent Musburger Brent Woody Musburger (born May 26, 1939) is an American sportscaster, currently the lead broadcaster and managing editor at Vegas Stats and Information Network (VSiN). With CBS Sports from 1973 until 1990, he was one of the original members ...
hosted all of '' The Super Bowl Today'' pregame (2 hours), halftime, and postgame events with help from his ''NFL Today'' co-hosts
Irv Cross Irvin Acie Cross (July 27, 1939 – February 28, 2021) was an American professional football player and sportscaster. He played cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) and was a two-time Pro Bowl selection with the Philadelphia Eagle ...
,
Dick Butkus Richard Marvin Butkus (born December 9, 1942) is an American former professional football player, sports commentator, and actor. He played football as a middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) from 1965 to ...
, and
Will McDonough William McDonough (July 6, 1935 – January 9, 2003) was an American sportswriter for ''The Boston Globe'' who also worked as an on-air football reporter for CBS and NBC. Biography Newspaper career The youngest of nine children of Irish immigran ...
, along with game analysts
Terry Bradshaw Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst an ...
,
Ken Stabler Kenneth Michael Stabler (December 25, 1945 – July 8, 2015) was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. Nicknamed "Snake", he played col ...
, and
Dan Fouts Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is an American former football quarterback who played for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL) throughout his 15-season career (1973-87). After a relatively undistinguished firs ...
, and then-
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
head coach
Mike Ditka Michael Keller Ditka (born Michael Dyczko; October 18, 1939) is an American former football player, coach, and television commentator. A member of both the College (1986) and the Pro (1988) Football Halls of Fame, he was UPI NFL Rookie of Year i ...
.
CBS Sports CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 5 ...
reporter
Pat O'Brien Pat O'Brien may refer to: Politicians * Pat O'Brien (Canadian politician) (born 1948), member of the Canadian House of Commons *Pat O'Brien (Irish politician) (c. 1847–1917), Irish Nationalist MP in the United Kingdom Parliament Others *Pat O'Br ...
, meanwhile, was stationed in
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
quarterback
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
's hometown of
Monongahela, Pennsylvania Monongahela, referred to locally as Mon City, is a third class city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Pittsburgh, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is about south of Pittsburgh proper. The population was 4 ...
. This was the last NFL broadcast for the ''NFL Today'' team as it was constructed. Several weeks after the Super Bowl, a management change at CBS resulted in the firing of Brent Musburger; his last event for the network was the call of the 1990 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Game on April 2. Irv Cross was taken off the studio team and became an analyst instead, serving that role for two years with Tim Ryan. Dick Butkus returned to acting, while Will McDonough moved over to
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
’s pregame where, he would remain until retiring. CBS went to a two-man studio team for 1990 with
Greg Gumbel Greg Gumbel (born May 3, 1946) is an American television sportscaster. He is best known for his various assignments for CBS Sports (most notably, the National Football League and NCAA basketball). The older brother of news and sportscaster Bryan ...
, who joined CBS from
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
the prior year, replacing Musburger as host and Terry Bradshaw moving from his prior position as the No. 2 analyst alongside
Verne Lundquist Merton Laverne Lundquist Jr. (born July 17, 1940) is an American sportscaster. Biography Early life and career Lundquist was born in Duluth, Minnesota. He graduated from Austin High School in Austin, Texas, before attending Texas Lutheran U ...
to the studio analyst position vacated by Cross. CBS would not return to using a four-man studio team until
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
, coinciding with their return to broadcasting NFL games for the first time since
1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
. CBS also debuted a new graphical package and theme song for their telecasts. The graphics became part of ''The NFL Today'' open while the theme continued to be used on game broadcasts for the next two seasons and replaced the original ''NFL Today'' theme ("Horizontal Hold" by
Jack Trombey Jan Stoeckart (3 November 1927 – 13 January 2017) was a Dutch composer, conductor, trombonist and former radio producer, who often worked under various pseudonyms such as Willy Faust, Peter Milray, Julius Steffaro and Jack Trombey. In the UK ...
), which had been used in remixed form for the 1989 season. The last use of the actual theme was for the
1991 season File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, 1991 Russian presidential election, elected as Russia's first President of Russia, president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated ...
's
NFC Championship Game The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semi-final playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional American football league in the world. ...
, while a remixed version was used for
Super Bowl XXVI Super Bowl XXVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
's pregame show. The game drew a national
Nielsen rating Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...
of 39.0 for CBS, the lowest rating for a Super Bowl game since
Super Bowl III Super Bowl III was an American football game played on January 12, 1969 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. It was the third AFL–NFL Championship Game in professional American football, and the first to officially bear the trademark name "Su ...
in January 1969. This game was featured on ''
NFL's Greatest Games ''NFL's Greatest Games'' is a series of television programs that air on NFL Network, ESPN and related networks. They are condensed versions of some of the most famous games in the history of the National Football League, using footage and sound ca ...
'' under the title ''Coronation''. This Super Bowl was simulcast in Canada on CTV and in Mexico on
Imevisión The Instituto Mexicano de la Televisión (''Mexican Television Institute''), known commercially as Imevisión after 1985, was a state broadcaster and federal government agency of Mexico. At its height, Imevisión programmed two national networks ...
's Canal 13, and later aired in the United Kingdom on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
. This was the last Super Bowl to feature a kickoff time earlier than 6 p.m. ET.
Nissan , trade name, trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells ...
aired a commercial during Super Bowl XXIV advertising the new
Nissan 300ZX The Nissan 300ZX is a sports car that was produced across two different generations. As with all other versions of the Z, the 300ZX was sold within the Japanese domestic market under the name Fairlady Z. It was sold in Japan from 1983 to 2000 a ...
Twin Turbo. Executives at Nissan pulled the commercial after the initial airing when they became concerned the commercial would promote street racing since the commercial features the 300ZX being faster than a sport bike, a formula one car and a fighter jet. ''
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
'' was broadcast after the game on CBS. On radio, the game was broadcast in the United States by
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
and featured the broadcast team of
play-by-play announcer In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present tense. Radio was ...
Jack Buck John Francis "Jack" Buck (August 21, 1924 – June 18, 2002) was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. His play-by-play work earned him recognition from numerous hall ...
and
color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...
s
Hank Stram Henry Louis Stram (; January 3, 1923 – July 4, 2005) was an American football coach. He is best known for his 15-year tenure with the Dallas Texans / Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (N ...
and
Randy Cross Randall Laureat Cross (born April 25, 1954) is an American football analyst and former player. He was a right guard and center in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was inducted into the Colle ...
. Cross filled in for Stram when the latter was stricken with laryngitis and had to leave the broadcast in the third quarter of the game.
Dick Stockton Richard Edward Stokvis (born November 22, 1942), known professionally as Dick Stockton, is an American retired sportscaster. Stockton began his career in Philadelphia, then moved to Pittsburgh, where he worked as the sports director for KDKA-TV ...
hosted all of the events. Locally, Super Bowl XXIV was broadcast by
KGO-AM KGO (810 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to San Francisco, California, and owned by Cumulus Media. KGO operates with 50,000 watts, the highest power permitted AM radio stations by the Federal Communications Commission, but uses ...
in San Francisco with
Joe Starkey Joseph K. Starkey (born 1941) is an American sportscaster who has served as the radio play-by-play announcer of California Golden Bears football from 1975 to 2022. He previously worked as the sports director of KGO radio in San Francisco, Califor ...
and Wayne Walker and by KOA-AM in
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
with Larry Zimmer and Jim Turner (placekicker), Jim Turner (Zimmer was moved from his normal position as a color commentator when the Broncos' regular play-by-play voice, Bob Martin, became seriously ill the day before the game; eventually losing his battle with cancer just under a month after the game).


Entertainment


Pregame ceremonies

The pregame show was a salute to Mardi Gras and featured musician and singer David Clayton-Thomas. Soul music, Soul and Rhythm and blues, R&B singer (and New Orleans native) Aaron Neville later sang the national anthem. The coin flipping, coin toss ceremony featured the recent inductees to the Pro Football Hall of Fame: defensive back Mel Blount, quarterback
Terry Bradshaw Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). Since 1994, he has been a television sports analyst an ...
, offensive lineman Art Shell, and safety Willie Wood (American football), Willie Wood. Shell, who was then the head coach of the Los Angeles Raiders, became the first active head coach or player to join the coin toss ceremonies. Bradshaw, not to be outdone, joined the ceremonies on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of Super Bowl IX, which had been played at
Tulane Stadium Tulane Stadium was an outdoor football stadium that stood in New Orleans from 1926 to 1980. It was officially the Third Tulane Stadium and replaced the "Second Tulane Stadium", which was located where the Telephone Exchange Building is now. Th ...
and saw the
Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
win their first world championship.


Halftime show

The halftime show was a salute to both New Orleans and the 40th anniversary of the comic strip Peanuts. The show featured performances by clarinetist Pete Fountain, Musical styles (violin)#Fiddle, fiddle player Doug Kershaw, and singer Irma Thomas – all Louisiana natives. Three local college bands, Southern University, ULL, and Nicholls State, joined in the performance. The finale featured a Float (parade), float that was dressed up as a riverboat that rose several stories high. The float was so huge that one of the goal posts had to be moved so it could be put on the field.


Game summary

The 49ers blew out the Broncos by gaining 461 yards of total offense, holding the ball for 39:31, and scoring on eight of their first 11 drives. The San Francisco defense also limited the Broncos to 167 yards, 12 first downs, and 20:29 time of possession, while recording six sacks and forcing four turnovers. The 49ers converted all of the turnovers into touchdowns, needing only four plays total to score on the last three.


First quarter

On their opening possession, the Broncos were forced to punt after three plays, and the 49ers scored on their ensuing drive, marching 66 yards in 10 plays and scoring on a 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback
Joe Montana Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
to wide receiver
Jerry Rice Jerry Lee Rice (born October 13, 1962) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons. Known primarily as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, winning three championshi ...
. The Broncos responded with a 49-yard scoring drive, mainly on plays by running back
Bobby Humphrey Bobby Gene Humphrey (born October 11, 1966) is a former professional American football player who played for the Denver Broncos and Miami Dolphins in the National Football League. He played college football at the University of Alabama. Colleg ...
, who rushed 4 times for 22 yards and caught a 27-yard shovel pass, quarterback
John Elway John Albert Elway Jr. (born June 28, 1960) is an American professional football executive and former quarterback who is the president of football operations for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). Elway played college f ...
's longest completion of the game. Kicker
David Treadwell David Mark Treadwell (born February 27, 1965 in Columbia, South Carolina) is a former American football placekicker in the National Football League for the Denver Broncos (1989-1992) and the New York Giants (1993-1994). He played college footbal ...
finished the drive with a 42-yard field goal to cut the Broncos' deficit to 7–3. Denver's defense forced San Francisco to punt on their next drive after three plays, and wide receiver
Vance Johnson Vance Edward Johnson (born March 13, 1963), is a former professional American football player who was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft. Playing career A 5'11", 174 lb. wide receiver, Johnson playe ...
gave his team good field position with a 7-yard return to the Broncos' 49-yard line. But then Humphrey lost a fumble at midfield while being tackled by defensive end Kevin Fagan (football player), Kevin Fagan, and safety
Chet Brooks Terrance Donnell Brooks (born January 1, 1966 in Midland, Texas) is a former safety who played 3 seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League. He started in Super Bowl XXIV. During his college years, he coined the name " ...
recovered the loose ball for San Francisco at the 49ers' 46-yard line. At this point, the 49ers completely took over the game. Ten plays after the fumble recovery, the 49ers scored on a 7-yard pass from Montana to tight end
Brent Jones Brent Michael Jones (born February 12, 1963) is an American former professional football player, business executive, businessman, coach, and sports analyst. As a player, he was a tight end for the San Francisco 49ers during his entire 11-year ca ...
. Kicker Mike Cofer missed the extra point attempt wide right, keeping the score at 13–3, but it turned out to be the only miscue the 49ers would make for the rest of the game.


Second quarter

Once again, the Broncos were forced to punt three plays after the ensuing kickoff, and the 49ers advanced 69 yards in 14 plays to score another touchdown. The key player on that drive was fullback
Tom Rathman Thomas Dean Rathman (born October 7, 1962) is a former professional football player, a fullback for the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Following his playing career, he became a coach in 1995 an ...
, who caught 3 passes for 39 yards, kept the drive alive with a successful run on a fourth down, and capped it off with a 1-yard touchdown run to make the score 20–3. With under two minutes left in the first half, wide receiver John Taylor's 17-yard punt return gave the 49ers the ball near midfield. Just over a minute later, San Francisco scored another touchdown with a 38-yard completion from Montana to Rice, increasing their lead to 27–3 at the end of the half.


Third quarter

When the second half started, the 49ers picked up right where they left off. Linebacker Michael Walter intercepted Elway's first pass of the third quarter, and Montana threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Rice on the next play. It was Montana's 10th Super Bowl touchdown pass breaking the previous record of 9 set by Terry Bradshaw. Then Elway was intercepted again on the Broncos' ensuing drive, this time by Brooks, who returned the ball 38 yards to the Denver 37-yard line. Two plays later, Montana fooled defensive back Steve Atwater with a pump fake in Rice's direction, and then threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to Taylor (his 5th and final touchdown of the game and his 11th and final touchdown pass of his Super Bowl career), making the score 41–3 before the quarter was 6 minutes old. San Francisco had scored 3 touchdowns in less than 6 minutes to blow open the game. Denver's lone touchdown came on their next possession, a 61-yard, 5-play drive. First, Broncos defensive back Darren Carrington returned the ensuing kickoff 39 yards to the 39-yard line. Elway's 13-yard completion to Johnson, a 34-yard run from Humphrey, and a pass interference penalty on 49ers linebacker
Bill Romanowski William Thomas Romanowski (born April 2, 1966) is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. Nicknamed "Romo" and "RomoCop", he spent the majority of his career with the San Francisco 4 ...
moved the ball to the San Francisco 1-yard line. Elway then capped off the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run on third down, cutting their deficit to 41–10.


Fourth quarter

However, the 49ers continued to dominate the Broncos. San Francisco responded to Denver's score with an 11-play, 75-yard drive that took 6:56 off the clock, and ended with Rathman's 3-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter. Then after the ensuing kickoff, Elway was sacked for a 6-yard loss by defensive end Danny Stubbs. Then after an offsides penalty on the 49ers, cornerback Don Griffin sacked Elway, forcing a fumble. Stubbs recovered the loose ball and returned it 15 yards to Denver's 1-yard line. 49ers running back Roger Craig then closed out the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play to make the final score of the game 55–10. The 49ers had two scores in this quarter before two minutes had elapsed. Steve Young relieved Montana for the remainder of the game. Rice finished the game with 7 receptions for 148 yards and a Super Bowl record 3 receiving touchdowns. He joined teammate Roger Craig as the only players to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl (Craig did it in Super Bowl XIX – 2 receiving and 1 rushing). Craig was the leading rusher of the game with 69 rushing yards and a touchdown, while also catching 5 passes for 34 yards. Rathman rushed for 38 yards and 2 touchdowns while also catching 4 passes for 43 yards. Taylor caught 3 passes for 49 yards and a touchdown and added another 38 yards on 3 punt returns. Elway was held to a passer rating of 19.4 on just 10 completions out of 26 attempts for 108 yards with no touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He managed to run for a touchdown, but fumbled twice (although he recovered one of them). Humphrey was Denver's leading rusher and receiver, with 61 rushing yards and 3 receptions for 38 yards. Carrington returned 6 kickoffs for 146 yards. A photo essay titled "Ranking the Super Bowls", written by media analyst Elliot Harrison and featuring Dallas personnel man Gil Brandt, ranked Super Bowl XXIV the lowest of the first 50 played. The article was published on the NFL's website.


Box score


Aftermath

Montana and the 49ers looked to win a third consecutive Super Bowl in 1990 San Francisco 49ers season, 1990 and once again finished with the league's best record at 14–2. However, in the 1990–91 NFL playoffs#NFC: New York Giants 15, San Francisco 49ers 13, NFC Championship Game that season, the 49ers were defeated by the 1990 New York Giants season, New York Giants on a field goal as time expired. During the game, Montana was sacked from his blind side by Leonard Marshall and was forced to leave the game with a series of injuries including a broken finger, a bruised back, and a concussion. Later, it was discovered that Montana suffered an injury to his throwing elbow in the game and it was severe enough to cost him the entire 1991 San Francisco 49ers season, 1991 season. Montana's injuries, which kept him out of fifteen games in 1992 San Francisco 49ers season, 1992 as well, paved the way for Steve Young to become the 49ers' starting quarterback full-time and Montana was eventually traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in 1993. Young would win the 49ers another Super Bowl title in 1995 in Super Bowl XXIX. After Super Bowl XXIV, Elway and the Broncos entered a period of decline. 1990 Denver Broncos season, 1990 saw them fall to 5–11, which put them last in the AFC West. While they returned to the playoffs in 1991 Denver Broncos season, 1991, the Broncos failed to make the Super Bowl after losing the 1991–92 NFL playoffs#AFC: Buffalo Bills 10, Denver Broncos 7, AFC Championship Game to the 1991 Buffalo Bills season, Buffalo Bills. That marked the first time in their existence that Denver lost a conference championship game. They eventually returned to success as Elway led the team to an NFL-best 13–3 record in 1996 Denver Broncos season, 1996, only to lose 1996–97 NFL playoffs#AFC: Jacksonville Jaguars 30, Denver Broncos 27, their first playoff game, against the 1996 Jacksonville Jaguars season, Jacksonville Jaguars. Incidentally, that was the final time in Elway's career that he would lose a playoff game. After his three previous attempts had gone unsuccessfully, Elway led the Broncos to Super Bowl XXXII where they finally broke through and won the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history, over the 1997 Green Bay Packers season, Green Bay Packers. A year later, in what later proved to be the final game of his career, Elway led the Broncos to another victory in the Super Bowl as Denver won Super Bowl XXXIII 34–19 over the 1998 Atlanta Falcons season, Atlanta Falcons.


Final statistics

Sources
NFL.com Super Bowl XXIVSuper Bowl XXIV Play Finder SFSuper Bowl XXIV Play Finder Den


Statistical comparison


Individual statistics

1Completions/attempts 2Carries 3Long gain 4Receptions 5Times targeted


Records set

The following records were set in Super Bowl XXIV, according to the official NFL.com boxscore, the 2020 NFL Record & Fact Book and the ProFootball reference.com game summary.
Some records have to meet NFL minimum number of attempts to be recognized. The minimums are shown (in parenthesis). Turnovers are defined as the number of times losing the ball on interceptions and fumbles.


Starting lineups

Source:Neft, David S., Cohen, Richard M., and Korch, Rick. ''The Complete History of Professional Football from 1892 to the Present''. 1994


Officials

* Referee: Dick Jorgensen #60 first Super Bowl; alternate for XV * Umpire: Hendi Ancich #115 alternate for XXI * Head Linesman: Earnie Frantz #111 first Super Bowl * Line Judge: Ron Blum #83 first Super Bowl * Back Judge: Al Jury #106 third Super Bowl (XX, XXII) * Side Judge: Gerald Austin #34 first Super Bowl * Field Judge: Don Orr #77 second Super Bowl (XVII) * Alternate Referee: Dick Hantak #105 worked Super Bowl XVII as back judge * Alternate Umpire: Rex Stuart #103 * This would be the final game for Jorgensen, who died from cancer on October 10, 1990. Austin was promoted to fill his vacant referee position.


References


External links


Super Bowl official website
* * *

at Pro-Football Reference

from USA Today (Last accessed September 28, 2005) {{DEFAULTSORT:Super Bowl 024 1989 National Football League season San Francisco 49ers postseason Denver Broncos postseason Super Bowl 1990 in American football American football in New Orleans Events in New Orleans Sports competitions in New Orleans, Football, American 1990 in sports in Louisiana Caesars Superdome January 1990 sports events in the United States 1990s in New Orleans