Coming into Super Bowl LX, there were questions about how Drake Maye and a young New England Patriots offense would hold up against a Seattle Seahawks defense that was among the best the NFL had seen in recent memory. Those questions got answered early and often on Sunday night, as Maye and Co. had a hard time getting anything going — so much so that they didn't even reach the end zone until the fourth quarter.
If you thought that felt like an outlier, well, you're not wrong. Befitting a game pitting best on best, it's pretty rare to see Super Bowls played in the single digits, especially in the pass-happy game we have today. But just which Super Bowl holds the record for the fewest points scored?
Fewest points scored in the Super Bowl
By an individual team
The Cowboys and the Rams are tied for the record here at a field goal apiece ... at least for now.
Super Bowl (Year) | Team | Points scored |
|---|---|---|
VI (1971) | Dallas Cowboys | 3 |
LIII (2018) | Los Angeles Rams | 3 |
IX (1974) | Minnesota Vikings | 6 |
III (1968) | Baltimore Colts | 7 |
IV (1969) | Minnesota Vikings | 7 |
VII (1972) | Washington | 7 |
VIII (1973) | Minnesota Vikings | 7 |
XXXV (2000) | New York Giants | 7 |
XLVIII (2013) | Denver Broncos | 8 |
XVIII (1983) | Washington | 9 |
LV (2020) | Kansas City Chiefs | 9 |
Six of the 11 lowest single-team point totals in Super Bowl history came in the late 1960s and early 1970s. We then went without a single-digit performance for quite a while, only to see four different instances happen in the 21st century. Not surprisingly, some of the best defenses in NFL history are involved, from the Legion of Boom Seahawks to the 2000 Ravens.
But while one offense getting dominated can happen from time to time (great defenses do make the Super Bowl every now and then, after all), what about two? What does the record book say about the lowest combined score in the Super Bowl?
Combined score
Super Bowl (Year) | Teams | Total points scored |
|---|---|---|
LIII (2018) | New England Patriots, Los Angeles Rams | 16 |
VII (1972) | Miami Dolphins, Washington | 21 |
IX (1974) | Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings | 22 |
III (1969) | New York Jets, Baltimore Colts | 23 |
VI (1971) | Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins | 27 |
V (1970) | Baltimore Colts, Dallas Cowboys | 29 |
VIII (1973) | Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings | 31 |
XL (2005) | Pittsburgh Steelers, Seattle Seahawks | 31 |
XLII (2007) | New York Giants, New England Patriots | 31 |
XXIII (1988) | San Francisco 49ers, Cincinnati Bengals | 36 |
Ironically enough, the Patriots are also involved in the record-holder here. Back in 2018, though, they were on the winning end, as Bill Belichick's crew embarrassed Jared Goff and the Rams en route to a sixth and final Super Bowl ring.
Super Bowl LIII doesn't just hold the record as the lowest-scoring Super Bowl, it cleared it by a full five points. Previously, the mark belonged to Super Bowl VII, in which the 1972 Dolphins and their No-Name Defense dominated Washington to finish off a perfect season — still the only one in NFL history.
Has there ever been a shutout in the Super Bowl?
No, there has never been a shutout in the Super Bowl before, a record that will reach a 60th year thanks to the Pats finally finding the end zone in the fourth quarter on Sunday night. In fact, there hasn't even been a shutout in a playoff game in a decade: To find the most recent one, you have to go all the way back to 2016, when the Kansas City Chiefs blanked the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round.
We have come close to a team being held scoreless in the big game. Two different teams, the 1971 Cowboys and the 2018 Rams, were held to only a field goal. And nine different teams mustered only one score on the Super Bowl stage.