Kordell Stewart Revisits The Super Bowl Decision That Still Haunts Pittsburgh Steelers Fans

Kordell Stewart says Steelers would have beaten Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX with him at quarterback.© Image via: X/@Pittsburgh Steelers

Thirty years have passed, yet Kordell Stewart has not let go of one cold, stubborn thought. The former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback now says his team would have beaten the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX if coach Bill Cowher had handed him the offense. He made the claim this week on the Kay Adams Show while promoting his HBO documentary, Slash & Burn. His answer came fast and without a blink. It also reopens one of the NFL's oldest and loudest debates about a 27-17 loss in Tempe, Arizona, and the quarterback who started it.

Kordell Stewart Makes His Case For The Pittsburgh Steelers

When Adams pressed him, Stewart leaned on his numbers. He went 48 and 29 as a starter, and he treats that record as proof.

"Yes. Yes. Absolutely. I mean, if I can go 48 and 29 being a quarterback, right?" shared Stewart. "Overall, arguably, what is that? 63% probably. I mean, that's a hell of a percentage. Just continue to do what we did throughout the season and do that kind of stuff we're looking at here on the screen. I think we would have had a chance to win it. But then I don't want to sound as if we screwed it up either, but damn it. … We would have won the Super Bowl when I got in. Hell yeah."

“I don't think [the Steelers are] gonna go very far.” @kurt13warner is skeptical about Pittsburgh despite their 5-2 start  (via @RichEisenShow) https://t.co/6DDWXHjric

— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) October 28, 2026

It is a fair point with one catch. Those wins came after 1995, against different defenses, so the record backs his belief but cannot settle it.

Neil O'Donnell, Bill Cowher And The Dallas Cowboys Game That Got Away

Pittsburgh's quarterback that night was Neil O'Donnell, and two second-half interceptions ended the comeback. Stewart was a rookie "Slash" then, lining up at receiver, running back and quarterback. He still admires Cowher's boldest call.

"And Coach Cowher, you know, just think about it coming out at half. We do that onside kick and Deion [Sanders], it figures, end up recovering it. How gutsy was that by coach Cowher to call that? I think with Bobby April at that time who's our special teams coach and, I mean, we came up short."

Stewart did get his shot later. He became the full-time starter in 1997 and became the first NFL player with 20 passing and 10 rushing touchdowns in a single season. The Dallas Cowboys, meanwhile, have not returned to a Super Bowl since that win over the Steelers.

No one can replay the 1995 title game. Still, Stewart's confidence has not aged a day, and Steelers fans will happily argue the what-if for another thirty years.