Super Bowl XXIII

Lore & Background

This was the second meeting between these two teams in the Super Bowl; their first meeting was seven years earlier. The game was also the third rematch between Super Bowl teams after Super Bowl XIII and Super Bowl XVII. This was the Bengals' second Super Bowl appearance after finishing the regular season with a 12–4 record. The 49ers were making their third Super Bowl appearance after posting a 10–6 regular season record.

In Their Own Story

The fog rolled off the bay, swallowing the gridiron in a thick, gray shroud that seemed to mock the Rams' hopes. Jim Everett stood in the pocket, scanning for an opening that simply wasn't there, his eyes straining against the whiteout conditions. The roar of the crowd was muffled by the mist, replaced by the heavy thud of pads and the sharp whistle of referees. Every pass thrown felt like a gamble into the void, and every interception felt inevitable. It was a night where the weather itself seemed to conspire with the 49ers, turning the Rams' dream season into a cold, damp nightmare.

Reader's Guide

The game is best remembered for the 49ers' fourth-quarter game-winning drive. Down 16–13, San Francisco got the ball on their own 8-yard line with 3:10 on the clock and marched 92 yards down the field in under three minutes. They then scored the winning touchdown on a Joe Montana pass to John Taylor with just 34 seconds left in the game. The game was tight throughout. The teams combined for five field goals, and battled to a 3–3 score by the end of the second quarter, the first halftime tie in Super Bowl history. Cincinnati's only touchdown, a 93-yard kickoff return by Stanford Jennings in the third quarter, was quickly answered by a four-play, 85-yard drive that ended with San Francisco wide receiver Jerry Rice's 14-yard touchdown reception. The touchdown came one play after Cincinnati cornerback Lewis Billups dropped what would have been a drive-ending interception in the end zone. Rice, who was named the Super Bowl MVP, caught 11 passes for a Super Bowl record 215 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing once for five yards.

Did You Know?

• This was the first Super Bowl hosted in the Miami area in 10 years, and the first in Miami not held at the Orange Bowl.
• The game was played on January 22, 1989, at Joe Robbie Stadium.
• Jerry Rice set a Super Bowl record with 215 receiving yards.
• The 49ers' 92-yard game-winning drive in the fourth quarter is one of the most famous drives in Super Bowl history.