Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, January 31, 1994 TAG: 9401310112
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: Long
The Dallas Cowboys have stamped themselves as the NFL's team of the '90s. The Buffalo Bills grabbed a loser's label that could last longer than that.
The Cowboys and the Bills made Super Bowl history Sunday, because of two unlikely stars: James Washington and Leon Lett.
Washington, a backup safety, had a hand in 17 of Dallas' points as the Cowboys beat the Bills 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII.
The Cowboys won their second consecutive NFL title and sent Buffalo to a record fourth consecutive Super Bowl defeat. No franchise in the history of American team sports has lost a championship game four years in a row.
"You have demonstrated you're the team of the '90s," NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said as he presented the Vince Lombardi Trophy to coach Jimmy Johnson and owner Jerry Jones of the Cowboys.
Dallas defensive end Charles Haley, who played for the San Francisco 49ers' "team of the '80s," was more hesitant to make the claim.
"It's too early," he said. "Let's see what we do next year."
Emmitt Smith, who was voted the game's MVP over Washington, ran for 132 yards and two touchdowns as Dallas became the 10th consecutive NFC team to win the NFL's title game, outscoring the Bills 24-0 in the second half.
It was Washington who turned the game around to help the Cowboys become the fifth team to win in consecutive years and tie them with San Francisco and the Pittsburgh Steelers as four-time Super Bowl winners.
Washington returned a fumble 46 yards for a touchdown, intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter that led to a touchdown and forced a first-half fumble that led to a field goal. Both fumbles were by Buffalo's star running back, Thurman Thomas, whose frustration seemed to symbolize the futility of his team.
"We've tried to get playmakers at every position," Johnson said. "We've got them at backups. We want to get the players that will do the things they must do to win the game."
Lett, who has had to endure two notorious gaffes, made the play that turned the game, stripping Thomas of the ball on the third play of the second half with Buffalo holding a 13-6 lead.
"We made some mistakes in the first half, we made some mistakes in the second half. They made more," Johnson said. "Then, once we got some points we began coming off the ball strong. When you put our big bodies of our offensive line on the other guys, Emmitt's going to move the ball."
Washington, whose interception led to Dallas' first touchdown in last year's 52-17 rout of Buffalo, picked up Thomas' fumble and rambled for the touchdown that tied the score, changed the momentum and guaranteed Buffalo its place in NFL history.
Smith and the Dallas defense took over.
Smith rushed for 61 of his yards on the next drive, scoring from 15 yards to give Dallas a 20-13 lead. Lett, Haley, Jim Jeffcoat and Darren Woodson, meanwhile, made big defensive plays to shut down a Buffalo offense that had rung up 216 yards in the first half.
It was not a great day for Troy Aikman, last year's MVP.
The Dallas quarterback was 19-of-27 for 207 yards but couldn't get the ball in the end zone in the first half, when Buffalo's Jim Kelly was moving the ball up and down the field with ease, passing for 176 yards before halftime. Kelly finished with 260 yards on 31-of-50 passing.
Smith, the league's MVP in the regular season, added the Super Bowl MVP award to his collection.
After being held to 41 yards on 10 carries in the first half, he took over after Lett and Washington had combined to tie the score and Jeffcoat and Haley had combined on a 13-yard sack of Kelly on Buffalo's next series.
Dallas then got the ball on its 36 and Smith made a 9-yard gain, then ran for 3 yards, then 9, 7, 14 and 4. After Aikman hit Daryl Johnston for 3 yards, Johnston dashed 15 yards up the middle on third and three for the touchdown that gave Dallas the lead for good.
Smith scored again from a yard out 5:10 into the fourth quarter after Washington had returned an interception 12 yards to the 34.
Eddie Murray, who kicked field goals of 41 and 34 yards in the first half, added a 20-yarder with 2:50 left.
The Buffalo offense controlled the first half, piling up 216 yards in taking a 13-6 lead.
The defense kept the Bills in the game, allowing short plays but nothing long. Dallas, 1-for-9 on third-down conversion attempts, was held to two field goals in the first period after twice getting good field position. The first time came after Kevin Williams returned the opening kickoff 50 yards. The second came on Thomas' fumble at midfield.
Williams' return, to the Buffalo 48, was followed by a 20-yard pass from Aikman to Jay Novacek that put the Cowboys at the 28. Three plays netted 4 yards, and Murray's 41-yard field goal gave them a 3-0 lead 2:19 into the game. It was the third-fastest score in Super Bowl history.
The Bills tied it 2:22 later on Steve Christie's Super Bowl record 54-yard field goal, set up by a 23-yard pass that Thomas caught in the flat and took to the Dallas 39 by slipping past Larry Brown. The previous record kick was 48 yards, by Jan Stenerud of Kansas City and Rich Karlis of Denver.
On Buffalo's next possession, Thomas fumbled after taking a shovel pass from Kelly and Woodson recovered at midfield. Smith ran twice for 11 yards, then Aikman hit Harper for 24 to the 15.
Again the Buffalo defense stiffened, the key play coming when Marvcus Patton dumped Smith for a 1-yard loss on second-and-four from the Bills' 9, and Dallas got only Murray's 24-yard field goal that made it 6-3.
Then the Bills took advantage of a Dallas mistake - a running-into-the-kicker penalty on Dallas' Dave Thomas that allowed the Bills to continue a drive that had stalled at the Bills' 41. It ended with Thomas slashing in from 4 yards out at the end of an 80-yard, 17-play drive.
Late in the half, Dallas drove 62 yards from its own 1 to the Buffalo 37. But Bruce Smith hurried Aikman on a seam pass intended for Harper and Nate Odomes intercepted, returning the ball 41 yards to the Dallas 47, where Buffalo started with 1:03 left in the half.
The Bills reached the 9 and got Christie's second field goal, from 28 yards, to go into halftime with a 13-6 lead.
Dallas 601410-30 Buffalo 31000-13 First quarter
Dal-FG Murray 41, 2:19.
Buf-FG Christie 54, 4:41.
Dal-FG Murray 24, 11:05. Second quarter
Buf-T. Thomas 4 run (Christie kick), 2:34.
Buf-FG Christie 28, 15:00. Third quarter
Dal-J. Washington 46 fumble return (Murray kick), :55.
Dal-E. Smith 15 run (Murray kick), 6:18. Fourth quarter
Dal-E. Smith 1 run (Murray kick), 5:10.
Dal-FG Murray 20, 12:10.
A-72,817.
DalBuf First downs 20 22 Rushes-yards 35-137 27-87 Passing 204 227 Punt returns 1-5 1-5 Kickoff returns 2-72 6-144 Interceptions ret. 1-12 1-41 C-A-I 19-27-131-50-1 Sacked-yards lost 2-3 3-33 Punts 4-44 5-38 Fumbles-lost 0-0 3-2 Penalties-yards 6-50 1-10 Time of possession 34:29 25:31 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-Dallas, E. Smith 30-132, K. Williams 1-6, Aikman 1-3, Johnston 1-0, Kosar 1-(minus 1), Coleman 1-(minus 3). Buffalo, K. Davis 9-38, T. Thomas 16-37, Kelly 2-12.
PASSING-Dallas, Aikman 19-27-1-207. Buffalo, Kelly 31-50-1-260.
RECEIVING-Dallas, Irvin 5-66, Novacek 5-26, Smith 4-26, Harper 3-75, Johnston 2-14. Buffalo, Brooks 7-63, T. Thomas 7-52, Reed 6-75, Beebe 6-60, K. Davis 3-(minus 5), Metzelaars 1-8, McKellar 1-7.
MISSED FIELD GOALS-None.
Keywords:
FOOTBALL
by CNB