The old adage is that defense wins championships. But does anyone really tune in to the Super Bowl hoping for a defensive masterpiece?
Maybe a few, but most of us like points. Thankfully, there have been plenty of offensive fireworks in the Super Bowl through the years. Just think back a few seasons to when Nick Foles led the Eagles past the Patriots in a 41-33 thriller. That's plenty of points to go around, but that's not the highest-scoring Super Bowl ever (it's only one point off).
Below, you'll find all the high-scoring Super Bowl information you need, including a list of all the Super Bowls ranked by their combined point totals.
MOST SUPER BOWL WINS: By team | By player | MVPs
What is the highest-scoring Super Bowl in NFL history?
The highest-scoring Super Bowl in NFL history is Super Bowl 29 (XXIX) which took place on Jan. 29, 1995. The San Francisco 49ers beat the San Diego Chargers, 49-26, combining for a record 75 total points.
The 49ers' offense was consistent throughout the contest, scoring 14 points in each of the first three quarters and seven more in the fourth. Steve Young won game MVP as he threw for 325 yards and six touchdowns. Jerry Rice caught 10 passes for 149 yards and three TDs.
As the chart below shows, though, the losing team needs to do some scoring to get this record, too. The Chargers put up 26 points despite QB Stan Humphries being intercepted twice. He also threw a touchdown to Tony Martin, Natrone Means ran for one, Andre Coleman returned a kickoff for a touchdown and John Carney kicked a field goal.
San Francisco actually holds the highest single-game point total in a Super Bowl game, too putting up 55 points in Super Bowl 24. But the opposing Broncos only scored 10 that day.
San Diego needed every last point in defeatin 1995 to claim this record. Just one point off and in second place on this list is the Eagles' thrilling, 41-33 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl 52 when Nick Foles won Super Bowl MVP and caught a touchdown on the "Philly Special."
Highest-scoring Super Bowls in NFL history
These are all 56 Super Bowls prior to the 2023 game, ranked in order of combined points scored.
| Super Bowl (Year) | Winner (Score) | Loser (Score) | Combined points | Game MVP |
| 29 (1995) | San Francisco 49ers (49) | San Diego Chargers (26) | 75 | Steve Young |
| 52 (2018) | Philadelphia Eagles (41) | New England Patriots (33) | 74 | Nick Foles |
| 37 (2003) | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (48) | Oakland Raiders (21) | 69 | Dexter Jackson |
| 27 (1993) | Dallas Cowboys (52) | Buffalo Bills (17) | 69 | Troy Aikman |
| 13 (1979) | Pittsburgh Steelers (35) | Dallas Cowboys (31) | 66 | Terry Bradshaw |
| 47 (2013) | Baltimore Ravens (34) | San Francisco 49ers (31) | 65 | Joe Flacco |
| 24 (1990) | San Francisco 49ers (55) | Denver Broncos (10) | 65 | Joe Montana |
| 51 (2017) | New England Patriots (34) | Atlanta Falcons (28) | 62 | Tom Brady |
| 38 (2004) | New England Patriots (32) | Carolina Panthers (29) | 61 | Tom Brady |
| 26 (1992) | Washington (37) | Buffalo Bills (24) | 61 | Mark Rypien |
| 21 (1987) | New York Giants (39) | Denver Broncos (20) | 59 | Phil Simms |
| 45 (2011) | Green Bay Packers (31) | Pittsburgh Steelers (25) | 56 | Aaron Rodgers |
| 31 (1997) | Green Bay Packers (35) | New England Patriots (21) | 56 | Desmond Howard |
| 20 (1986) | Chicago Bears (46) | New England Patriots (10) | 56 | Richard Dent |
| 32 (1998) | Denver Broncos (31) | Green Bay Packers (24) | 55 | Terrell Davis |
| 19 (1985) | San Francisco 49ers (38) | Miami Dolphins (16) | 54 | Joe Montana |
| 33 (1999) | Denver Broncos (34) | Atlanta Falcons (19) | 53 | John Elway |
| 49 (2015) | New England Patriots (28) | Seattle Seahawks (24) | 52 | Tom Brady |
| 22 (1988) | Washington (42) | Denver Broncos (10) | 52 | Doug Williams |
| 54 (2020) | Kansas City Chiefs (31) | San Francisco 49ers (20) | 51 | Patrick Mahomes |
| 48 (2014) | Seattle Seahawks (43) | Denver Broncos (8) | 51 | Malcolm Smith |
| 43 (2009) | Pittsburgh Steelers (27) | Arizona Cardinals (23) | 50 | Santonio Holmes |
| 14 (1980) | Pittsburgh Steelers (31) | Los Angeles Rams (19) | 50 | Terry Bradshaw |
| 44 (2010) | New Orleans Saints (31) | Indianapolis Colts (17) | 48 | Drew Brees |
| 18 (1984) | Los Angeles Raiders (38) | Washington (9) | 47 | Marcus Allen |
| 16 (1982) | San Francisco 49ers (26) | Cincinnati Bengals (21) | 47 | Joe Montana |
| 2 (1968) | Green Bay Packers (33) | Oakland Raiders (14) | 47 | Bart Starr |
| 41 (2007) | Indianapolis Colts (29) | Chicago Bears (17) | 46 | Peyton Manning |
| 11 (1977) | Oakland Raiders (32) | Minnesota Vikings (14) | 46 | Fred Biletnikoff |
| 39 (2005) | New England Patriots (24) | Philadelphia Eagles (21) | 45 | Deion Branch |
| 1 (1967) | Green Bay Packers (35) | Kansas City Chiefs (10) | 45 | Bart Starr |
| 30 (1996) | Dallas Cowboys (27) | Pittsburgh Steelers (17) | 44 | Larry Brown |
| 17 (1983) | Washington (27) | Miami Dolphins (17) | 44 | John Riggins |
| 28 (1994) | Dallas Cowboys (30) | Buffalo Bills (13) | 43 | Emmitt Smith |
| 56 (2022) | Los Angeles Rams (23) | Cincinnati Bengals (20) | 43 | Cooper Kupp |
| 35 (2001) | Baltimore Ravens (34) | New York Giants (7) | 41 | Ray Lewis |
| 55 (2000) | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (31) | Kansas City Chiefs (9) | 40 | Tom Brady |
| 34 (2000) | St. Louis Rams (23) | Tennessee Titans (16) | 39 | Kurt Warner |
| 25 (1991) | New York Giants (20) | Buffalo Bills (19) | 39 | Otis Anderson |
| 46 (2012) | New York Giants (21) | New England Patriots (17) | 38 | Eli Manning |
| 10 (1976) | Pittsburgh Steelers (21) | Dallas Cowboys (17) | 38 | Lynn Swann |
| 36 (2002) | New England Patriots (20) | St. Louis Rams (17) | 37 | Tom Brady |
| 15 (1981) | Oakland Raiders (27) | Philadelphia Eagles (10) | 37 | Jim Plunkett |
| 12 (1978) | Dallas Cowboys (27) | Denver Broncos (10) | 37 | Harvy Martin and Randy White |
| 23 (1989) | San Francisco 49ers (20) | Cincinnati Bengals (16) | 36 | Jerry Rice |
| 50 (2016) | Denver Broncos (24) | Carolina Panthers (10) | 34 | Von Miller |
| 42 (2008) | New York Giants (17) | New England Patriots (14) | 31 | Eli Manning |
| 40 (2006) | Pittsburgh Steelers (21) | Seattle Seahawks (10) | 31 | Hines Ward |
| 8 (1974) | Miami Dolphins (24) | Minnesota Vikings (7) | 31 | Larry Csonka |
| 4 (1970) | Kansas City Chiefs (23) | Minnesota Vikings (7) | 30 | Len Dawson |
| 5 (1971) | Baltimore Colts (16) | Dallas Cowboys (13) | 29 | Chuck Howley |
| 6 (1972) | Dallas Cowboys (24) | Miami Dolphins (3) | 27 | Roger Staubach |
| 3 (1969) | New York Jets (16) | Baltimore Colts (7) | 23 | Joe Namath |
| 9 (1975) | Pittsburgh Steelers (16) | Minnesota Vikings (6) | 22 | Franco Harris |
| 7 (1973) | Miami Dolphins (14) | Washington (7) | 21 | Jake Scott |
| 53 (2019) | New England Patriots (13) | Los Angeles Rams | 16 | Julian Edelman |
