TBT: 49ers, Bengals played two epic Super Bowls in 1980s

By James Parziale
Published

Having played twice for the Lombardi Trophy in the 1980s, the San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals square off this Sunday with Blaine Gabbert and AJ McCarron, respectively.

How the mighty have fallen, in a sense.

The Bengals (10-3) and 49ers (4-9) each enter the game with quarterbacks who started the season on the bench, and while Cincy is trying to stay alive for homefield in the AFC playoff race, San Francisco is in the middle of a painful rebuilding process.

It wasn't always that way. Back in January 1989, the Bengals and 49ers played one of the most thrilling Super Bowls ever.

Super Bowl XXIII was a defensive struggle for most of three quarters, and things didn't heat up until the fourth when the Bengals took a 16-13 lead over the 49ers with 3:10 to play. With the 49ers feeling tense, QB Joe Montana's "Joe Cool" moniker kicked in, and he calmed his teammates by pointing out in the huddle that actor John Candy was in the opposite end zone.

Montana's poise sparked an 11-play, 92-yard drive that culminated in a 10-yard touchdown pass to John Taylor with just over half a minute to play to cap the 20-16 win. Here are highlights from that game. 

It was a crushing loss for the Boomer Esiason-led Bengals. It was Montana's third ring, and the 49ers' third title of the decade.

Wide receiver John Taylor's 10-yard touchdown helped the San Francisco beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII.

But it wasn't the 49ers' first title against the Bengals. Seven years earlier, the Niners' defense held up in a series of plays that ended up being simply known as "The Stand" in Super Bowl XVI.  Check that out here. 

The 49ers built up a 20-0 lead helped by three Bengals turnovers, and despite a Cincinnati rally San Fran held on for the 26-21 win.

The San Francisco 49ers goal line defense keeps the Cincinnati Bengals out of the end zone ine Super Bowl XVI on a critical series. The Niners won the Super Bowl 26 -21.

Needless to say, the 49ers will have their hands full with the Bengals this Sunday, and Joe Cool won't be coming out of the tunnel to bail them out.