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1994 NFL playoffs

The 1994 San Diego Chargers Finally Give Their Fans A Super Bowl Taste

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The San Diego Chargers’ postseason history is not exactly filled with glorious moments. From the consecutive AFC Championship Game losses with Dan Fouts at quarterback in 1980-81, to the disappointments of the Marty Schottenheimer years in the ‘00s, to the flop of 2009 under Norv Turner, the Charger fans know about hopes being dashed. But the 1994 San Diego Chargers were just the opposite—it was the year San Diego finally came up clutch.

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The Bolts were the #2 seed, and led by their defense. Linebacker Junior Seau was one of the best in the game, and head coach Bobby Ross infused the team with discipline.

Ross had excellent coordinators. Bill Arnsparger on defense had a past that was marked by coordinating the same unit for the 1972 Miami Dolphins team that went undefeated, and as a head coach he had taken LSU to a pair of Sugar Bowl appearances in three years. The offensive coordinator was Ralph Friedgen, a creative mind, who had a bright future ahead of him where he would revive the Maryland Terrapins program and take them to the Orange Bowl in 2001.

San Diego started the season 6-0, and after a brief hiccup in the middle where they lost three of five, the Chargers closed the season with a pair of wins to get to 11-5. The last game of the regular season was a 37-34 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. It didn’t affect playoff seeding—Pittsburgh was still the favorite—but it got the Chargers the 2-seed and first-round bye, and proved to be a foreshadowing of what would go down in January.

Even with San Diego sitting on the 2-seed, they were still overlooked when the playoffs began. The AFC side was focused on the favored Steelers, Dan Marino’s Miami Dolphins and the swan song for Joe Montana with the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Dolphins were the survivor of a Marino-Montana game in the first round and it was Miami who came west for the divisional round. When Marino led the Dolphins to a 21-6 lead, it looked like another playoff disappointment for the Bolts.

Then quarterback Stan Humphries led a second half rally that concluded with a short touchdown pass with 35 seconds to play, putting San Diego up 22-21. Marino led the Dolphins back down the field, but kicker Pete Stoyanovich missed a 48-yard field goal and the Chargers were moving on.

The AFC Championship Game at Pittsburgh was a taut affair. The Steelers led 13-3 in the second half, but Humphries threw two long touchdown passes and gave Seau’s defense as four-point lead.  Pittsburgh quarterback Neil O’Donnell led his team down the field.

Once again, San Diego was just holding on. It was fourth-and-goal on the 3-yard line in the closing moments. O’Donnell threw the ball into the end zone. It was batted away.

San Diego had survived two consecutive last-possession attacks from two franchises with much more of a winning history. The Super Bowl was a mismatch—the San Francisco 49ers of Steve Young were simply too good and they overwhelmed the Chargers 49-26 in a result that surprised no one. What was more important for San Diego fans is that their team had finally made it to the Super Bowl.

Steve Young’s Crowning Moment In The 1994 NFL Playoffs

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young had known a lot of success since taking over the reins from the legendary Joe Montana, including winning the MVP award in 1992. But Young had not gotten the 49ers to the Super Bowl, with two consecutive conference championship games losses to the Dallas Cowboys. In a town where Montana had made big-game victories a part of life, that wasn’t going to cut it. The 1994 NFL playoffs had to be different.

GREAT 1980s SPORTS MOMENTS
Start reading today. 


Young had a big year in 1994 and again won the MVP award. The 49ers and the Cowboys were seen as far and above not just the NFC, but the league in general. The biggest game of the regular season was their November 13 meeting in San Francisco.

On a late Sunday afternoon, Young wasn’t spectacular, but he was efficient, going 12/21 for 183 yards and no interceptions. By contrast, Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman broke the 300-yard barrier, but threw three interceptions. The mistakes were the difference in a 21-14 San Francisco win that settled the #1 seed in the NFC.

San Francisco met the Chicago Bears in the divisional round of the playoffs. After spotting the Bears a field goal, the 49ers’ balanced attack completely took over. It was 30-3 by halftime and ended 44-15. Dallas was no less impressive in dispatching the Green Bay Packers the following afternoon.

Now the 49ers and Cowboys readied themselves for their third straight meeting in the NFC Championship Game.  It was the first time since the Pittsburgh Steelers and Oakland Raiders rivalry of 1974-76 that the same teams had played for a Super Bowl berth in three consecutive seasons and the Cowboys were gunning for a historic third straight Vince Lombardi Trophy.

The game couldn’t have started better for San Francisco. The Niners got three turnovers in the first quarter and turned it into a 21-0 lead. But the Cowboys came chipping back, and trailed 38-28 and were driving midway through the fourth quarter.

Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman looked for receiver Michael Irvin deep. San Francisco corner Deion Sanders, whose free-agent signing had been seen as crucial in improving the Niner defense and its general moxie was in coverage. The pass fell incomplete. Dallas coach Barry Switzer felt there was interference, failed to control himself and drew a 15-yard penalty. The drive, and the game were effectively ended.

For all practical purposes, Steve Young was over the hump. All that remained was an anti-climactic Super Bowl against a San Diego Chargers team that was a nice story, but absolutely no match for the 49ers. Las Vegas made San Francisco a hefty 19-point favorite.

With Young this close to the prize, there was no letdown. He opened the Super Bowl with a quick touchdown strike to Jerry Rice, the first of a Super Bowl record six scoring passes the Niner quarterback would throw on this day. The final score was 49-26 and Young got his crowning moment with game MVP honors. But he, his team, the league and the entire nation, knew that the biggest moment had come in the win over Dallas.