January 20, 1991: New York Giants 15, San Francisco 49ers 13
The 1990 49ers were as stacked as any team in NFL history. They’d beaten the daylights out of the Broncos, 55-10 in Super Bowl XXIV, and matched their 14-2 record from the year before. They finished first in points scored and third in points allowed, and it seemed that the 12-4 Giants were just another minor obstacle to be shooed away. Vegas agreed, making San Francisco eight-point favorites. But the Giants denied the 49ers the opportunity to become the only team to win three straight Super Bowls in a bruising game that perfectly fit the temperament of head coach Bill Parcells. Big Blue kept the ball for nearly 39 minutes, Matt Bahr kicked five field goals, and Joe Montana suffered a broken finger and bruised sternum late in the game that would have prevented him from playing in Super Bowl had the 49ers made it. As it turned out, Parcells’ Giants handed the Bills their first of four straight Super Bowl losses with a 20-19 heartbreaker when Scott Norwood’s potentially game-winning field goal went wide right.