NFL game summary for 01/17/1971:
This was the Super Bowl no one wanted to win. At least, that's how it seemed. Between them, the Baltimore Colts and Dallas Cowboys had 14 penalties and 10 turnovers. Fans all over the country kept asking themselves: "Can these be the two best teams in pro football?" The offenses were so offensive that the MVP award went to a defensive player on the LOSING side! Cowboy linebacker Chuck Howley intercepted two Baltimore passes, caused a Colts fumble, and made more than his share of tackles. But if the game was less than artistic, it made up for it by hanging in doubt right up to the last few seconds.
The merger between the NFL and the American Football League had been completed in 1970 with Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Baltimore moving from their old haunts to the AFC. The Colts promptly took to their new surroundings by winning the conference. Even though the old AFL had two Super Bowl victories in a row, NFL partisans could take consolation in the fact that one of their old teams was bound to win the rubber game.
Defense and mistakes dominated the first quarter, but Dallas managed to put three points on the board with a 14-yard Mike Clark field goal. Early in the second quarter, Clark added a 30-yarder to bring the score to 6-0 Cowboys.
A few moments later came the play that most typified the afternoon. Colts quarterback John Unitas launched a long pass down the center meant for receiver Eddie Hinton. Hinton reached for it and then showed the crowd what could happen if his hands were made of cast iron. Dallas defender Mel Renfro took a turn at the deflected football but only succeeded in changing its direction slightly. Like a fat pigeon coming to roost, the ball fell tenderly into the hands of Colts tight end John Mackey who suppressed his surprise in time to run the remaining distance into the end zone and complete a 75-yard comedy act. The coda came when Jim O'Brien's placekick was blocked to leave the score knotted at six.
The next time Baltimore got the ball, Unitas received a sound thwacking to the ribs from Cowboy George Andrie. The blow was sufficient to separate Johnny U. from the football at the 29-yard line and to send him to the sideline for the remainder of the day. Craig Morton, suffering through a 12-for26, three interception passing day, moved his team to the seven where, despite a sore arm, he was able to lay a touchdown pass into the hands of Duane Thomas. After the reliable Clark did his duty, the score stood 13-6 at the half.
Those hoping for more stylish play in the second half were abashed to see Baltimore's Jim Duncan fumble away the kickoff. Dallas then drove to the shadow of the goal line where Thomas fumbled the ball back at the one. After that, things settled into a pattern of futility, with neither Morton nor Earl Morrall, subbing for Unitas, able to move his team. But with about eight minutes to go, Morton passed to Walt Garrison who batted the ball to Baltimore's Rich Volk at the Dallas twenty. Volk ran it back to the three, from where Tom Nowatzke bulled his way over for a touchdown. O'Brien's kick tied the game, making the prospect of overtime ineptitude a frightening possibility.
But Morton was up to the challenge. With only 1:09 left he threw a pass to Mike Curtis at the Dallas 41, perhaps not suspecting that Curtis played for the Colts. Curtis waltzed to the 28. Two running plays did nothing but collect seconds from the clock. Then, with five precious ticks remaining, O'Brien kicked a 32-yard field goal to settle the game in favor of the Colts, 16-13.
Team stats coming into this game (NFL ranks in parentheses):
| Team | Rush Yds/Gm | Pass Yds/Gm | Tot Yds/Gm | Turnovers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Dallas Cowboys | OFFENSE | 164.3 (1) | 153.5 (16) | 317.8 (4) | 28 |
| DEFENSE | 118.3 (10) | 136.6 (3) | 254.9 (4) | 39 | |
 Baltimore Colts | OFFENSE | 95.4 (23) | 199.9 (3) | 295.3 (8) | 36 |
| DEFENSE | 102.8 (6) | 171.9 (21) | 274.6 (9) | 34 |
Line: Colts by 2½
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys (12-5-0) | 3 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Baltimore Colts (14-2-1) | 0 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 16 |
( 3- 0) DAL Mike Clark 14 yard field goal ( 6- 0) DAL Mike Clark 30 yard field goal ( 6- 6) BAL John Mackey 75 yard pass from Johnny Unitas (kick failed) (13- 6) DAL Duane Thomas 7 yard pass from Craig Morton (Mike Clark kick) (13-13) BAL Tom Nowatzke 2 yard rush (Jim O'Brien kick) (13-16) BAL Jim O'Brien 32 yard field goal
DAL BAL
First Downs: 10 14
Rushes-yards: 31-102 13-69
Yards/rush: 3.3 5.3
Comp-Att-Yd-INT: 12-26-127-3 11-25-260-3
Sacked-yards: 2-14 0-0
Net pass yards: 113 260
Net yards/pass: 4.0 10.4
Total net yards: 215 329
Total plays: 59 (52% run) 38 (34% run)
Yards/play: 3.6 8.7
Fumbles-lost: 1-1 5-3
Turnovers: 4 6
Penalties-yards: 10-133 4-31
Attendance: 79,204
Passing:DAL: Craig Morton, 12 of 26 for 127 yards and 1 TD (3 int)
BAL: Earl Morrall, 7 of 15 for 147 yards (1 int); Johnny Unitas, 3 of 9 for 88 yards and 1 TD (2 int); Sam Havrilak, 1 of 1 for 25 yards
Rushing:
DAL: Duane Thomas, 18 for 35 yards; Walt Garrison, 12 for 65 yards; Craig Morton, 1 for 2 yards
BAL: Norm Bulaich, 18 for 28 yards; Tom Nowatzke, 10 for 33 yards and 1 TD; Johnny Unitas, 1 for 4 yards; Sam Havrilak, 1 for 3 yards; Earl Morrall, 1 for 1 yard
Receiving:
DAL: Dan Reeves, 5 for 46 yards; Duane Thomas, 4 for 21 yards and 1 TD; Walt Garrison, 2 for 19 yards; Bob Hayes, 1 for 41 yards
BAL: Roy Jefferson, 3 for 52 yards; John Mackey, 2 for 80 yards and 1 TD; Eddie Hinton, 2 for 51 yards; Sam Havrilak, 2 for 27 yards; Tom Nowatzke, 1 for 45 yards; Norm Bulaich, 1 for 5 yards
Kick returns:
DAL: Cliff Harris, 1 for 18 yards; Calvin Hill, 1 for 14 yards; D.D. Lewis, 1 for 2 yards
BAL: Jim Duncan, 4 for 90 yards
Punt returns:
DAL: Bob Hayes, 3 for 9 yards
BAL: Ron Gardin, 4 for 4 yards; Jerry Logan, 1 for 8 yards
Interceptions:
DAL: Chuck Howley, 2 for 22 yards; Mel Renfro, 1 for 0 yards
BAL: Rick Volk, 1 for 30 yards; Jerry Logan, 1 for 14 yards; Mike Curtis, 1 for 13 yards
Punting:
DAL: Ron Widby, 9 for 377 yards
BAL: David Lee, 4 for 166 yards
Field Goals:
DAL: Mike Clark, 2/2
BAL: Jim O'Brien, 1/2