The Dallas Cowboys began the season determined to defend their Super Bowl XII title and earn the distinction of being the Team of the Decade by virtue of their three Super Bowl champ­ionships. In the AFC, Pittsburgh prevailed to set up the first rematch in Super Bowl, a repeat of Super Bowl IX.

Dallas won the toss and elected to receive. Four running plays put the Cowboys in Pitt ter­ritory at the 47. After L.C. Greenwood stuffed FB Robert Newhouse for no gain, HB Tony Dorsett sped for 13 around right end to the 34. Then Tom Landry got cute, and it backfired. Dorsett took a handoff and headed left. But when he tried to hand the ball on a reverse, Drew Pearson dropped the ball, and John Banaszak recovered for Pittsburgh on their 47. The play called for Pearson to give the ball back to Staubach, who would throw to TE Billy Joe DuPree, who faked a block, then ran free downfield.

Dallas RB Preston Pearson recalled: "If Tom hadn't gotten cute with that reverse. That turnover put a lot of doubt in our minds. We never really recovered from it."

Facing six secondary men, Terry Bradshaw flipped down the middle to WR John Stallworth just in front of S Cliff Harris to the Dallas 40. Facing his second straight third down, Bradshaw connected with TE Randy Grossman just beyond S Charlie Waters' reach for a first down at the 38. Then Terry faded back and lobbed the ball to the front left corner of the end zone to Stall­worth, who leapt and caught the ball just before being hit and knocked out of bounds by Harris and CB Aaron Kyle. Gerela added the PAT. Steelers 7 Cowboys 0.

Cliff Harris: "Bradshaw told me later that in Super Bowl XIII, he had keyed on me. He told me he'd throw where I wasn't because I was a strength. And that makes sense because I would always be helping out a cornerback on a receiver."

Later in the first quarter, Bradshaw led the Steelers to three straight first downs, the third one coming when Terry hit FB Franco Harris running free across the middle for 22y to the Dal­las 43. Staying hot, Terry connected with Swann on a down-and-out to the right for another 1st down at the 30. But just when it appeared the Steelers were heading to a two-score lead, the Cowboys blitzed, causing the backpedaling quarterback to throw short to the left toward Stall­worth into the hands of D.D. Lewis at the 15.

Late in the first quarter, Dallas DE Harvey Martin sacked Bradshaw, causing a fumble that Too Tall Jones recovered at the 41. This time Dallas capitalized on the turnover. After New­house struggled for 2 up the middle, S Donnie Shell broke up the pass down the middle to Drew Pearson in the end zone.

Then lightning struck the Steel Curtain. Just before being hit by blitzers from both sides, Staubach threw to Tony Hill running free ahead of Shell in the left flat. Mel Blount was between Hill and the goal line but had his back turned guarding Butch Johnson and didn't realize the ball had been caught. So Hill ran right by him down the sideline untouched into the end zone. Rafael Septien added the point. Steelers 7 Cowboys 7

Two minutes into the second quarter, the Steelers faced third-and-ten at their own 48. Bradshaw went back to pass but bumped into Harris and dropped the ball. Bradshaw picked it up but was sandwiched by two blitzing linebackers. Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson pinned Terry's arms, enabling fellow linebacker Mike Hegman to take the ball away and run 37y untouched to the end zone. Bradshaw was shaken up on the play and had his bruised left shoulder examined on the sideline. Cowboys 14 Steelers 7 (12:08)

Henderson on Bradshaw: "He was trying to cover up, to cradle the ball and go down, but I pinned both his elbows in the middle of his back and shook him, trying to make something happen."

It took more than a sore shoulder to keep Terry out of action. Any doubts about his effectiveness would be were removed three plays later.

On 3rd-and-5 from his 25, Bradshaw hit Stallworth on a quick turn-out to the right. John shrugged off the attempted tackle by Kyle at the 35 and started up field. Slanting to the middle behind Swann's timely block on Bennie Barnes, the long-striding Stallworth knifed through the Cowboys all the way to pay dirt. Steelers 14 Cowboys 14 (10:25)

The Steelers would play the rest of the game without Stallworth, who was suffering from a muscle cramp. His replacement was Theo Bell, who had only six catches in the regular season.

When Pittsburgh got the ball again, Dallas accepted a holding penalty on G Gerry Mullins on the first play to make it 1st-and-20 rather than 2nd-and-12. Bradshaw called a wide receiver screen to the right to Swann, who used his blockers expertly, dodging tacklers to the Dallas 37. Next, Lynn made one of his patented leaping catches down the middle to the 16. The momentum should have continued, but Harris dropped a pass while in the clear over the middle. With all three timeouts in his pocket, Bradshaw ran Harris over left tackle for 9 to the 7 before stopping the clock. Needing 1y for a first down, Terry got all of it and more. Rolling right, he tossed to Bleier who made a leaping catch over Lewis in the end zone just inside the boundary. Steelers 21 Cowboys 14 (0:26)

Neither team came close to scoring until the final three minutes of the third quarter. Dallas got good field position when Butch Johnson returned Colquitt's low punt 12y to the Pitt 42.

On third and 6, Staubach fired to Pearson be­tween two linebackers for a first down at the 29. On the next third down, Dorsett started right, saw an opening, and cut to the 17 to move the chains again. After an incompletion, Dorsett took an inside handoff and zipped past a safety blitz to the 10. Then on 3rd-and-3 came the most talked-about play from Super Bowl XIII. Landry sent in personnel for a goal-line pass. Staubach called timeout to avoid a delay of game penalty.

Staubach: "It was a play that we put in for short yardage and goal line the Friday before the game. We put three tight ends in the game. Jackie (Smith) was the third tight end, and his job was to be a safety valve. ... I noticed we didn't have the right receivers in the game, so I had to call timeout. There was no time left on the (play) clock, so I went off to the side, and I said, 'Coach, that's a goal-line play.' He said, 'Well, you're right.' We had been practicing that from the 1- or 2y line. Jackie was to go to the back of the end zone and stand there and wait for the ball. But in this case we were on the 11. Landry said, 'Run it anyway, because they'll be in a goal-line type defense.' And he was right. It was not a bad play. Landry said, 'Look for your keys and make sure we get the first down.' In other words, he wanted me to hit the fullback out in the flat for a first down."

By rule, Dallas had to keep the same personnel on the field for one play. Yet it worked like a charm—or should have. Lambert blitzed up the middle, but FB Laidlaw took care of that problem by smashing his helmet into Jack's chest. Seeing his first option, DuPree, covered by Blount to the left, and Newhouse covered in the right flat, Roger spotted Smith wide open in the middle of the end zone. Staubach threw lower than he wanted, and the veteran tight end lost his footing as he turned to catch the ball. As he slid down, the pigskin went through his hands, bounced off his chest, and landed on the soggy turf. Some players on both sidelines started to run onto the field for the extra point before they realized Smith hadn't caught the ball. So Dallas had to settle for Septien's 27y field goal. Steelers 21 Cowboys 17 (2:36)

Verne Lundquist, the Cowboys radio announcer, said of Smith, "Bless his heart. He's got to be the sickest man in America." Staubach always took part of the blame for the incompletion. "On the play I was to look for Billy Joe, the tight end on the other side (from Smith), to go to the corner, and I was to come back looking for the fullback out of the flat. The fullback was there strictly as an outlet receiver. What Jackie was supposed to do was get into the back of the end zone. I'm saying, 'Oh my God, there is no one near Jackie Smith.' If he would have stopped at the goal line, I would have drilled the ball to him. But that's not what he was told. He was a safety valve. I released the ball and took something off it because Jackie was not totally turned. I think it surprised him a little that the ball got to him that fast. And I threw a little bit low, and he kind of slipped." Roger added, "It's the third quarter. It's not like it's the last play of the game. There's still plenty of time. I think it's one of the worst accusations that I've ever seen in football to ac­cuse a guy of costing us a game."

After receiving the kickoff, the Steelers finally made their initial first down of the second half. But they soon had to punt, and the quarter ended with Dallas playing second-and-8 from their 30. Steelers 21 Cowboys 17

After a dismal third period when they gained only 11y, the Steelers embarked on a drive that put them ahead by two scores for the first time. Terry converted a crucial 3rd-and-8, finding Grossman just past the first down marker before Cliff Harris smashed Randy from behind. Next, Bradshaw threw to Swann for 13y to move the chains again. As often happens, the com­pletions opened the running game as Harris swept left end for 5. That set up the most contro­versial play in the game. Just before a blitzing Cliff Harris got to him, Terry threw down the right side to Swann, who was running right behind CB Bennie Barnes. The defender tripped, and Swann fell over him as the ball fell incomplete beyond them. Pat Knight, the official closest to the play, kept his flag in his pocket and signaled incomplete pass. But the back judge coming over from the middle of the field, Fred Swearingen, flagged Barnes for interference, giving a tripping signal with his feet. Bennie argued vociferously, and the normally composed Landry came onto the field angrily disputing the flag as boos echoed through the stadium. After viewing the replay, TV commentator Merlin Olsen said, "That's an awfully tough call for an official." Play-by-play announcer Curt Gowdy agreed. "That is a difficult call. Who tripped whom?"

The Steelers soon faced third down. Henderson blitzed up the middle and sacked Bradshaw as whistles blew to signal delay of game. Upset that Hollywood didn't hold up when the whistles blew, Franco began jawing with Henderson.

Henderson: "He just touched me on the shoulder and said something. I called him a powder puff. I told him he should be playing with girls because he blocked like a bitch. He was just soft to me." TV commentator John Brodie suggested Henderson "should let sleeping dogs lie."

The mild-mannered Harris went into the huddle and demanded the ball. So Bradshaw called his number—"93 Tackle Trap," a play designed to gain a few more yards and set up a field goal. But Harris turned it into much more. Expecting a pass, the Cowboys' two Pro Bowl safeties set up in a blitz look hoping to lure Bradshaw into an interception. But Terry refused to audible and gave the ball to Harris. C Mike Webster and RG Mullins pancaked backup DT Dave Stalls to open a hole. In the meantime, Henderson was bumping TE Grossman in accord with the defen­sive play call. As a result, Franco stormed through left guard all the way to the end zone. He was helped by the umpire inadvertently delaying Waters as the safety moved toward the ball carrier. That allowed pulling RT Ray Pinney to knock Waters out of the way. Steelers 28 Cowboys 17 (7:10)

Pittsburgh got their third big break in the half and the second one caused by the damp Orange Bowl turf. Gerela slipped as he approached the ball and shanked the kick. It bounded to blocking wedge man Randy White at the 24. Playing with a cast on his left hand to protect a broken thumb, the DT never fully controlled the ball. Was he trying to lateral it back to a return man? When Dungy hit him a second later, the pigskin flew out of his mitts, and Dennis Winston jumped on it for Pittsburgh at the Cowboys 18.

Many second-guessers asked why White was on the kickoff receiving team with a cast on his hand. "In hindsight, he shouldn't have been there," admitted Gil Brandt. "We made a very bad error having Randy White on the kickoff return team. He was one of the up-backs in the four-man [wedge] ahead of the two deep backs."

Bradshaw immediately went for the jugular. He faked a handoff to Harris to draw in S Harris, then zipped the ball down the middle over Cliff to Swann, who reached as high off the ground as possible to snag the pigskin deep in the end zone. Some Steelers began celebrating victory on their sideline as Gerela booted the PAT. Steelers 35 Cowboys 17 (6:51)

Pittsburgh had scored 14 points in 19 seconds to blow the game open. Waters on Swann: "Man alive, we had him double-covered, with Cliff inside and Aaron outside. Bradshaw should not have thrown it in there. Cliff, in his mind, thought the ball was out of the end zone. In reality, Lynn bounced off a trampoline and went up there and got it on his fingertips right behind Cliff. It should have been in interception."

Dallas knew the game wasn't over, not with "Captain Comeback" leading the Cowboys. But they needed two touchdowns. Not impossible but very difficult against the Iron Curtain defense

The Cowboys got the first touchdown but it took almost four minutes off the clock. Staubach completed five passes, the final one traveling 7y to TE Billy Joe DuPree in the end zone. Steelers 35 Cowboys 24 (2:27)

Steeler fans had to collectively sigh, "You've got to be kidding!" when the Cowboys recovered the onside kick. Staubach connected on another five throws around a 11y sack by L.C. Greenwood. The final completion from the 4 went to Butch Johnson in the end zone. Steelers 35 Cowboys 31 (0:22)

Rocky Bleier snagged the next onside kick, and Steeler Nation could join in a collective sigh of relief.