NFC Championship, 1994: San Francisco 38 Dallas 28

Game information
This was the third straight season that the Cowboys and 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, plowing right through the intended target (receiver Kevin Williams) as he snagged the ball out of the air and returned it 44 yards for a touchdown. On the next Dallas possession, Davis stripped the ball away from receiver Michael Irvin and fellow defensive back Tim McDonald recovered it on the Dallas 39, 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. Williams then fumbled the ensuing kickoff when hit by 49ers running back Adam Walker. San Francisco kicker Doug Brien recovered the ball at the Cowboys 35-yard line, and then Young went back to work, converting a third and 1 with a 2-yard sneak and then throwing a 14-yard pass to receiver John Taylor. On the next play, Young ran the ball nine yards to the 1-yard line, and running back William Floyd took the ball into the end zone from there to give his team a 21–0 lead with 7:33 left in the first quarter.

This time Dallas was able to respond, driving 62 yards in eight plays and converting a third and 23 situation with a 44-yard touchdown pass from Aikman to Irvin, making the score 21–7 going into the second quarter. Then after forcing a punt, Dallas drove to a third and 10 situation on the 49ers 12-yard line. The Cowboys tried to fool San Francisco with a draw play by Emmitt Smith, but he was tackled after gaining two yards and Chris Boniol missed a 27-yard field goal on the next play. Aided by a 33-yard pass interference penalty on Larry Brown, the 49ers drove 64 yards in 11 plays, including a 10-yard catch by tight end Brent Jones on fourth and 3, to a 34-yard field goal by Brien, but Dallas countered with a 62-yard drive in which Aikman completed passes to Jay Novacek for gains of 15 and 19 yards on the way to a 4-yard rushing touchdown by Smith, closing the gap to 24–14. In the closing minutes of the first half, Aikman threw three straight incompletions, and a 23-yard punt by the Cowboys' John Jett gave San Francisco the ball on the Dallas 39 with 30 seconds left. Two carries by Floyd gained 11 yards, and then Young threw a 28-yard touchdown completion to All-Pro wide receiver Jerry Rice, who made a diving catch in the back-left corner of the end zone with eight seconds left in the first half to make the score 31–14.

In the third quarter, Walker muffed the opening kickoff and Dallas cornerback Dave Thomas recovered it on the 49ers 25. Aided by a personal foul penalty against linebacker Rickey Jackson, Dallas drove 25 yards in seven plays to score on Smith's 1-yard touchdown run. However, the 49ers stormed right back with a 10-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Young's 3-yard rushing touchdown. Then Deion Sanders ended the Cowboys next drive with an interception. San Francisco ended up punting, but Klaus Wilmsmeyer's kick pinned Dallas back at their 11. In the final quarter, Dallas finished an 89-yard, 14-play drive with Aikman's 10-yard touchdown pass to Irvin, cutting the score to 38–28, but they could not score again. Smith, who compiled 74 yards and two touchdowns, departed during that drive with an injured hamstring, which he had already injured before this game. The Cowboys had two more drives, both of which resulted in turnovers on downs. At one point, Dallas coach Barry Switzer, furious that Sanders was not called for pass interference, stormed onto the field and bumped an official while arguing, which resulted in a 15-yard penalty against the Cowboys, and Aikman was sacked by defensive end Tim Harris on fourth down on the next play. 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.

Young completed only 13 of 29 passes for 155 yards, but threw two touchdowns while also rushing for 47 yards and another score. Watters rushed for 72 yards and caught a 29-yard scoring reception. Williams returned six kickoffs for 130 yards, rushed for 12 yards, and caught six passes for 78 yards. Harris and defensive tackle Rhett Hall each had two sacks. Davis had two interceptions and a forced fumble.

This was the seventh postseason meeting between the Cowboys and 49ers. Dallas won five of the first six meetings. This is the most frequent matchup in the conference championship round since the merger.

Wikipedia