Super Bowl XXXVIII
Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Head Coach-Tony Dungy
447 Points Scored
336 Points Allowed
Starting Quarterback-Peyton Manning
Road to the Super Bowl:
Defeated Denver, 27-19: AFC Wild Card Playoffs
Defeated Kansas City, 23-10: AFC Divisional Playoffs
Defeated New England, 19-14: AFC Championship
Dallas Cowboys (10-6)
Head Coach-Bill Parcells
289 Points Scored
260 Points Allowed
Starting Quarterback-Quincy Carter
Road to the Super Bowl:
Defeated Carolina, 16-10: NFC Wild Card Playoffs
Defeated Philadelphia, 23-9: NFC Divisional Playoffs
Defeated Green Bay, 17-7: NFC Championship
The Game
On the field, the Indianapolis Colts and the Dallas Cowboys were mirror opposites of each other. While the Colts won their games with flash and offensive power, the Cowboys battered their opponents with a swarming defense that was at the top of the NFL. The Colts boasted one of the highest scoring offenses in the NFL, with co-MVP Peyton Manning leading the way, along with Edgerrin James, Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. In 19 games on their way to the Super Bowl, the Colts had been held below 17 points exactly one time, and that was back in the first week of the season against the Cleveland Browns. Meanwhile, the Cowboys had only allowed six teams in 19 games to score 20 or more points, and their defense had allowed the fewest yards in the NFL. Dexter Coakley, Greg Ellis, Roy Williams, La'Roi Glover and Terrence Newman formed the nucleus of a defense that had already shut down three of the most powerful offenses in the NFC in the playoffs. Now, with one win standing between the Cowboys and their record seventh Super Bowl title, all the defense had to do was stop Peyton Manning, and hope that Quincy Carter and the Dallas offense could do enough.
It was the Dallas offense that surprisingly put the first points of Super Bowl XXXVIII on the board. After the Colts were forced to punt on their first drive, Zuriel Smith returned the punt to the Dallas 42 yard line. It took Quincy Carter two passes to put the Cowboys into field goal range, first hitting Terry Glenn for 16 yards, then finding Joey Galloway for another 13. Three plays later, Billy Cundiff kicked a 38 yard field goal, putting Dallas on top. The Colts wasted little time in coming up with an answer for Dallas' field goal with one of their own. A good kickoff return by Indianapolis put the ball at midfield, and Peyton Manning guided the Colts down into the red zone for the first time. Manning's pass to Reggie Wayne put the Colts at the thee yard line, but the Dallas defense held strong, and Mike Vanderjagt was forced to come in and kick a 22 yard field goal that tied the score. For most of the second quarter, neither team could do anything right on offense, with each team struggling to make any sort of headway against the opposing defense. Finally, the Cowboys caught a break, as Greg Ellis stripped Ricky Williams at midfield, giving the ball back to the Cowboys with just a minute to play in the half. Quincy Carter hit Dan Campbell for 25 yards on the first play of the drive, then Troy Hambrick broke a 17 yard run on a surprise draw on the very next play, moving the ball inside the Indianapolis ten yard line for the first time. With 25 seconds left in the half, Carter hit Terry Glenn for an eight yard touchdown, and Dallas took a now 10-3 lead with them to the break.
The Cowboys started with the ball in the third quarter, but this time, the Indianapolis offense stepped up and made a play. Quincy Carter was intercepted by Nick Harper at the Dallas 35 yard line, giving the Colts great field position for their first drive of the second half. Once again, though, the Dallas defense locked down Peyton Manning and the Colts, not letting them gain a single yard. Tony Dungy decided to go for a fourth down conversion, and Dallas brought a blitz, forcing Manning to hurry his throw. The pass sailed over the head of Reggie Wayne, and the Colts had wasted a chance. Throughout the playoffs, the Cowboys had made a living out of breaking their opponent's backs with long scoring drives, and that's just what they did following the stop on fourth down.
Troy Hambrick, Adrian Murrell and Aveion Cason pounded the Colts on the ground, while Quincy Carter passed whenever he had to, putting the Cowboys inside the Indianapolis ten yard line once again. This time, the Cowboys couldn't find the end zone, and Billy Cundiff had to kick a 24 yard field goal that increased Dallas' lead to 13-3. Despite only getting a field goal out of the drive, Dallas held the ball for almost seven and a half minutes, keeping the Indianapolis offense on the sideline, where they could do nothing but watch what was happening. When the Colts did get the ball back on offense, they wasted little time in attacking the Cowboys' defense. Edgerrin James broke off runs of 20 and ten yards, while Peyton Manning was finally able to find holes in the Dallas secondary. Just like their first scoring drive, the Colts were unable to get into the end zone. Instead, they had to settle for a second Mike Vanderjagt field goal on the second play of the fourth quarter.
Rather than sit back and let the Colts back on the field on offense, the Dallas Cowboys went for the kill on their next drive. Quincy Carter completed three straight passes for 27 yards and rushed for another 11 yards before the trio of Dallas running backs took over. Troy Hambrick broke free for a 17 yard gain, then Aveion Cason carried the ball for seven yards before Adrian Murrell finished things off with a three yard touchdown run. With just under seven minutes to play, the Cowboys had a 20-6 lead, and they were well on their way to another Super Bowl title. Indianapolis failed to convert on fourth down on their next drive, and the Cowboys responded with a 68 yard drive that lasted three and a half minutes and ended with another Billy Cundiff field goal. The Colts didn't have enough time to attempt a comeback, and the Dallas defense made the last play of the game, intercepting Peyton Manning on a deep throw, finishing off one of the dominant team defensive performances in Super Bowl history.
Final Score: Dallas-23 Indianapolis-6
MVP: Quincy Carter: 13/16, 158 yards, 1 TD, 3 carries, 35 yards