The Dolphins vanquished the Redskins by the score of 14–7, winning their first Super Bowl, and became the first and still the only team in modern NFL history to complete a perfect undefeated season.

The Redskins were making what would be the first of five Super Bowl appearances in a 20-year period, after posting an 11–3 regular season record and playoff victories over the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys.

[6] Despite being undefeated, the Dolphins were actually one-point underdogs,[7] largely based on the weakness of their regular season schedule (and losing the previous Super Bowl).

Instead of falling on the loose ball, the Dolphins kicker picked it up, attempted a forward pass, but batted it in the air, and Redskins cornerback Mike Bass (who was Yepremian's former teammate on the Detroit Lions years earlier) caught it and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown.

[note 1] Because of the turnover and score, what was a Miami-dominated game became close, and the Dolphins had to stop Washington's final drive for the tying touchdown as time expired.

Five cities, Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, Dallas, and New Orleans, prepared serious bids, while San Francisco (Stanford Stadium) withdrew from the running a week prior to the vote.

In his place, 38-year-old Earl Morrall, a 17-year veteran, led Miami to victory in their nine remaining regular season games, and was the 1972 NFL Comeback Player of the Year.

But Miami also had the same core group of young players who had helped the team advance to the previous year's Super Bowl VI.

Miami's "No-Name Defense" (a nickname inspired by Dallas Cowboys head coach Tom Landry when he could not recall the names of any Dolphins defenders just before Super Bowl VI), led by future Hall of Fame linebacker Nick Buoniconti, allowed the fewest points in the league during the regular season (171), and ranked second in the NFL with 26 interceptions.

[16] Shortly after the conclusion of the 1970 season, the Redskins hired George Allen as their head coach, hoping he could turn the team's fortunes around.

Washington was led by 33-year-old quarterback Billy Kilmer, who completed 120 out of 225 passes for 1,648 yards and a league-leading 19 touchdowns during the regular season, with only 11 interceptions, giving him an NFL-best 84.8 passer rating.

[18] However, Griese started the second half of the AFC Championship Game to help rally the Dolphins to a 21–17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

[27] The American flag in the east end of the Coliseum flew at half-mast in memory of former President Harry S. Truman, who died December 26, 1972.

The game was broadcast in the United States by NBC with play-by-play announcer Curt Gowdy, color commentator Al DeRogatis and sideline reporter Bill Enis; who also covered the Trophy presentation, with other contributors including Kyle Rote.

This was the first Super Bowl to be televised live in the city in which it was being played, via NBC's flagship station in Los Angeles, KNBC (Channel 4).

[28][29] The league then changed its blackout rules the following season to allow any game sold out at least 72 hours in advance to be televised in the host market.

[30] No subsequent Super Bowl has ever been blacked out under this rule, as all have been sold out (owing to its status as the marquee event on the NFL schedule, meaning that tickets sell out quickly).

The show featured the Michigan Marching Band and the crew of Apollo 17 who exactly one month earlier had been the final humans to date to leave the Moon.

The halftime show, featured Woody Herman and the Michigan Marching Band along with The Citrus College Singers and Andy Williams, was titled "Happiness Is".

[36] Partial setlist: According to Shula, the Dolphins' priority on defense was to stop Larry Brown and force Billy Kilmer to pass.

Miami's defenders had also drilled in maintaining precise pursuit angles on sweeps to prevent the cut-back running that Duane Thomas had used to destroy the Dolphins in Super Bowl VI.

Two plays later, Kiick scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with a block by Csonka, guard Larry Little, and offensive tackle Norm Evans with just 18 seconds left in the half, giving the Dolphins a lead of 14–0 before halftime (once again, Yepremian noticed his extra point kick was too low).

After a second-down screen pass to fullback Charley Harraway fell incomplete, Dolphins defensive tackle Manny Fernandez sacked Kilmer on third down for a loss of 8 yards, and Washington's drive ended with no points after kicker Curt Knight's ensuing 32-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right.

On second down at the Miami 10-yard line, Kilmer threw to Smith, who was wide open in the end zone, but the ball hit the crossbar of the goalpost and fell incomplete.

Leading 14–0 on 4th-and-4, Shula could have tried for a conversion, but thought "What a hell of a way to remember this game" if they could end a perfect 17–0 season with a 17–0 Super Bowl final score.

[41] Garo Yepremian was a longtime Republican supporter and friend of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush but made the trip anyway and had an amusing exchange with President Obama over his long-ago bumble in the game.

[50] When Garo Yepremian went back to the Dolphins' sideline after his botched field goal attempt, Nick Buoniconti told him that if they lost he would "Hang you up by one of your ties.

Depressed, he spent two weeks in seclusion until he was cheered up by a letter, apparently from Shula, praising him for his contributions to the team and urging him to ignore criticism.

Two starters from Miami's undefeated team, guard Bob Kuechenberg and defensive end Vern Den Herder, were still active during the strike-shortened 1982 season.

Pardee was fired following a 6–10 campaign in 1980 and was replaced by Joe Gibbs, who led the Redskins to three Super Bowl championships (XVII, XXII, XXVI) and 171 victories to earn induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.