NFL playoffs, 1994-95

The NFL playoffs following the 1994 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XXIX.

NFC: Green Bay Packers 16, Detroit Lions 12
The Packers defense held Lions running back Barry Sanders to -1 rushing yards, while holding Detroit to 12 points and -4 yards on the ground. Green Bay scored first when running back Dorsey Levens capped the Packers opening 76-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown. The Packers later led 13-3 going into the fourth quarter after Packers kicker Chris Jacke made two field goals and Lions kicker Jason Hanson made one. In the final quarter, Detroit quarterback Dave Krieg threw a 3-yard pass to wide receiver Brett Perriman, cutting the deficit to 13–10. However, Jacke made a 28-yard field goal with 5:35 left to make it 16-10. The Lions reached the Green Bay 11-yard line with 2:00 to play, but Packers linebacker Bryce Paup sacked Krieg for a 6-yard loss. Then on fourth down and 14 from the 17-yard line, Detroit wide receiver Herman Moore caught Krieg's pass at the back of the end zone, but came out of bounds past the end line. Afterwards, Green Bay ran out the rest of the clock, giving up an intentional safety on the last play of the contest.

AFC: Miami Dolphins 27, Kansas City Chiefs 17
This game marked the second time in December 1994 that the Monday Night Football crew came to Miami to cover a game between these two teams - on December 12, the Dolphins beat the Chiefs 45-28

After a 17–17 tie at halftime, the Dolphins forced two turnovers in the second half to stop any Chiefs scoring threat. Both teams scored on each of their first three possessions of the game. Kansas City quarterback Joe Montana, playing in his last NFL game before retiring, threw two touchdowns in the first half: a 1-yard completion to tight end Derrick Walker and a 57-yarder to running back Kimble Anders. Meanwhile, Kansas City kicker Lin Elliot made a 21-yard field goal. For Miami in the first half, running back Bernie Parmalee scored a 1-yard touchdown, quarterback Dan Marino threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Ronnie Williams, and kicker Pete Stoyanovich made a 40-yard field goal.

The Dolphins then took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched 64 yards to score on wide receiver Irving Fryar's 7-yard touchdown reception. Stoyanovich then kicked a 40-yard field goal to give Miami a 27-17 lead. Early in the fourth quarter, Dolphins defensive back J.B. Brown intercepted a pass from Montana at the goal line. Then with 7:31 left in the game, Dolphins defensive back Michael Stewart wrestled the ball away from Chiefs running back Marcus Allen at the Miami 34-yard line with 7:31 left to stop a second Kansas City scoring threat.

Montana finished his final postseason game with 314 passing yards and two touchdowns.

AFC: Cleveland Browns 20, New England Patriots 13
The Browns intercepted three passes from New England quarterback Drew Bledsoe and halted attempted comeback in the final minutes of the game to clinch the victory. Cleveland scored first on kicker Matt Stover's 30-yard field goal, but New England responded with Bledsoe's 5-yard touchdown pass to running back Leroy Thompson. The Browns then scored on Mark Carrier's 5-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Vinny Testaverde, but Patriots kicker Matt Bahr made a 23-yard field goal before halftime to tie the game, 10-10. In the third quarter, Cleveland running back Leroy Hoard scored on a 10-yard rushing touchdown. Then, Stover made a 21-yard field goal, giving the Browns a 20-10 lead with 3:36 left in the game. However, New England put together a 63-yard drive to score on Bahr's 33-yard field goal with 1:33 remaining. New England then recovered the ensuing onside kick, but after gaining a first down, Bledsoe threw 4 straight incompletions and the ball was turned back to Cleveland on downs.

NFC: Chicago Bears 35, Minnesota Vikings 18
Bears quarterback Steve Walsh passed for 221 yards and two touchdowns as he led Chicago to a win. However, the Bears committed two turnovers on their first two possession, leading to Vikings kicker Fuad Reveiz's 29-yard field goal to open the scoring. But Chicago scored two unanswered touchdowns in the second quarter: running back Lewis Tillman's 1-yard run and Walsh's 9-yard completion to tight end Keith Jennings. Minnesota wide receiver Cris Carter caught a 4-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Warren Moon with 19 seconds left in the first half, cutting the score to 14-9 (the two-point conversion failed). In the third quarter, Bears running back Raymont Harris scored a 29-yard touchdown before Reveiz made a 48-yard field goal. Then in the fourth quarter, Walsh threw a 21-yard touchdown completion to wide receiver Jeff Graham. Moon later threw an 11-yard touchdown to running back Amp Lee, but Chicago defensive back Kevin Minniefield returned a fumble 48 yards for a touchdown to close out the scoring.

Byes

 * AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers, San Diego Chargers
 * NFC: San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys

AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 29, Cleveland Browns 9
Aided by running back Barry Foster's 133 rushing yards, the Steelers controlled the game by scoring on their first three possessions and holding the ball for 42:27. Pittsburgh jumped to a 17-0 lead by the second quarter with a 39-field goal by kicker Gary Anderson, quarterback Neil O'Donnell's 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Eric Green, and running back John L. Williams' 26-yard touchdown run. Browns kicker Matt Stover made a 22-yard field goal to cut the lead, 17-3, but in the closing seconds of the quarter, Steelers defensive back Tim McKyer intercepted a pass from Cleveland quarterback Vinny Testaverde and returned it to the Browns 6-yard line. O'Donnell then completed a 9-yard touchdown to wide receiver Yancey Thigpen with 16 seconds left in the first half. In the final quarter, Testaverde completed a 20-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Keenan McCardell, but the Cleveland quarterback was then sacked in the end zone by Pittsburgh defensive back Carnell Lake for a safety.

NFC: San Francisco 49ers 44, Chicago Bears 15
The 49ers scored on six consecutive possessions to crush the Bears, 44–15. Chicago scored first after a fumble by San Francisco tight end Brent Jones set up kicker Kevin Butler's 39-yard field goal. However, the 49ers then scored 37 unanswered points, including 23 in the second quarter. They led 30–3 at halftime. San Francisco rookie running back William Floyd scored three touchdowns from 2, 4, and 1 yard out. 49ers quarterback Steve Young threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Jones, and ran for a 6-yard score. San Francisco kicker Doug Brien also added a 36-yard field goal. The Bears eventually scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, but the game was already out of reach and the 49ers had already replaced their starters with their backups.

NFC: Dallas Cowboys 35, Green Bay Packers 9
Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman led his team to victory by completing 23 out of 30 passes for 337 yards and 2 touchdowns. Wide receiver Alvin Harper caught 2 passes for 108 yards, including a 94-yard touchdown reception that broke the NFL playoff record for the longest play from scrimmage. Wide receiver Michael Irvin recorded 6 receptions for 111 yards. Tight end Scott Galbraith scored on a 1-yard catch and tight end Jay Novacek added 11 catches for 104 yards. Dallas running back Emmitt Smith recorded a 5-yard touchdown before leaving the game with a hamstring injury, while backup running back Blair Thomas rushed for 70 yards and scored from 1 yard and 2 yards out. For the Packers, kicker Chris Jacke made a 50-yard field goal while running back Edgar Bennett scored on a 1-yard touchdown. Receiver Robert Brooks caught 8 passes for 138 yards.

AFC: San Diego Chargers 22, Miami Dolphins 21
The Chargers overcame a 21-6 halftime deficit by limiting the Dolphins offense to only 16 plays in the second half. Miami quarterback Dan Marino threw three touchdowns in the first half: two to tight end Keith Jackson for 8 and 9 yards, and a 16-yarder to wide receiver Mike Williams. San Diego could only counter with two field goals by kicker John Carney. But in the third quarter, Chargers defensive lineman Reuben Davis tackled Dolphins running back Bernie Parmalee in the end zone for a safety. San Diego then took the ensuing free kick and marched 54 yards to score on running back Natrone Means' 24-yard touchdown. The Chargers later took the lead, 22–21, with 35 seconds left with quarterback Stan Humphries's 8-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mark Seay. Miami kicker Pete Stoyanovich then attempted a game-winning 48-yard field goal on the final play of the game, but his kick was wide right.

AFC Championship: San Diego Chargers 17, Pittsburgh Steelers 13
The Chargers scored 14 unanswered points in the second half to upset the heavily favored Steelers. Although Pittsburgh held advantages in total plays (80–47), total offensive yards (415–226), and time of possession (37:13–22:47), it was San Diego who made the big plays. The Steelers scored first on quarterback Neil O'Donnell's 16-yard touchdown pass to fullback John L. Williams. Then after the two teams exchanged field goals in the second quarter, Pittsburgh kicker Gary Anderson made a 23-yard field goal to give his team a 13-3 advantage.

Midway through the third quarter, Chargers quarterback Stan Humphries faked a handoff, fooling the Steelers defensive backs long enough to find tight end Alfred Pupunu wide open to complete a 43-yard touchdown. With 5:13 left in the game, Humphries threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tony Martin, who out-jumped defensive back Tim McKyer to make the catch and give the Chargers a 17–13 lead. Pittsburgh then marched from their own 17-yard line to the San Diego 3 to put themselves in position for a potential winning touchdown. However on fourth down, Chargers linebacker Dennis Gibson sealed the victory by tipping away O'Donnell's pass intended for running back Barry Foster. The Steelers lost for the first time during the season in which they held a lead at halftime. (In 1994, the Steelers were 9–0 when leading at halftime prior to this game.)

NFC Championship: San Francisco 49ers 38, Dallas Cowboys 28
This was the third consecutive season that the Cowboys and the 49ers met in the NFC Championship Game, with Dallas winning the first two conference title games. San Francisco quarterback Steve Young still faced the pressure of "never being able to win the big ones", while Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman entered the game with a 7–0 win-loss record as a starter in the playoffs.

Although the Cowboys eventually held a 451–294 advantage in total offensive yards, the 49ers converted three turnovers into three touchdowns in the first quarter en route to the 38–28 victory. On the third play of the game, San Francisco cornerback Eric Davis intercepted Aikman's pass and returned it 44 yards for a touchdown. Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin lost a fumble on the next Dallas possession, setting up a 29-yard touchdown pass from Young to running back Ricky Watters, who eluded several Cowboys defenders high-stepping his way down the sideline en route to the goal line in spectacular showboating fashion. Dallas returner Kevin Williams then fumbled the ensuing kickoff, San Francisco kicker Doug Brien recovered the ball at the Cowboys 35-yard line, and running back William Floyd scored on a 1-yard touchdown to give his team a 21–0 lead with 7:33 left in the first quarter.

A 44-yard touchdown pass from Aikman to Irvin cut the lead 21-7 going into the second quarter. Brien then kicked a 34-yard field goal, but Dallas countered with a 4-yard rushing touchdown by running back Emmitt Smith. In the closing minutes of the first half, Aikman threw three straight incompletions, and a short punt by the Cowboys set up Young's 28-yard touchdown completion to All-Pro wide receiver Jerry Rice (which during the halftime show, Terry Bradshaw said was one of the best passes he had ever seen), who made a diving catch in the back-left corner of the end zone with 8 seconds remaining in the first half.

In the third quarter, Smith scored on a 1-yard touchdown, but was countered with Young's 3-yard rushing touchdown. In the final quarter, Smith, who compiled 74 yards and two touchdowns, departed with an injured hamstring, which he had already injured before this game, it got enough wear and tear to the point he couldn't play anymore. Aikman then completed a 10-yard touchdown to Irvin in the final quarter, but Dallas could not score again. The refs threw a flag but it was on Cowboys coach Barry Switzer for being on the field. Although Aikman broke an NFC Championship Game record with 380 yards passing, and Irvin also broke an NFC Championship Game record with 192 receiving yards, ultimately the first-quarter turnovers were too much to overcome.