Super Bowl XXXVIII

The New England Patriots defeated the Carolina Panthers 32-29 in Super Bowl XXXVIII on February 1, 2004. The game was played in Houston for just the second time, this time at Reliant Stadium. 30 years earlier, Super Bowl VIII was played at Rice Stadium. This Super Bowl also included the infamous halftime show in which entertainer Janet Jackson had her breast exposed.

The NFC Champion Carolina Panthers finished the season with a 12-4 record. They defeated the Dallas Cowboys, St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs to reach the Super Bowl.

The AFC Champion New England Patriots finished the regular season in first place, with a 14-2 record. They also earned a bye in the first round of the the post season, letting them skip the first round and advance directly to the second round. They defeated the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts before heading to the championship game.

The first 26 minutes and 55 seconds of the game were scoreless, setting a new record for a Super Bowl. In the second quarter, New England scored two touchdowns and Carolina scored one touchdown and a field goal, finishing the first half 14-10 Patriots.

Halftime entertainment featured performances by singers Jessica Simpson, Diddy, Nelly, and Kid Rock. For the final song, Janet Jackson joined Justin Timberlake on stage for a performance of his song "Rock Your Body". In the final moments of the song, Timberlake kept true to his lyric "I'm gonna have you naked by the end of this song," by pulling down Jackson's top, exposing her breast. The incident was televised live and talked about for weeks after the game.

The third quarter was scoreless, and the teams continued into the final quarter still 14-10 New England. The Patriots scored two additional touchdowns, with the Panthers answering back with three of their own, leaving the teams in a 29-29 tie. With four seconds left in the game, New England kicker Adam Vinatieri scored a 41 yard field goal to win the championship. For the second time in his career, Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady was selected as the Super Bowl MVP.

• FIRST QUARTER

• No Scoring

• SECOND QUARTER

• NE - Deion Branch 5-yard PASS from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• CAR - Steve Smith 39-yard PASS from Jake Delhomme (John Kasay kick)

• NE - David Givens 5-yard PASS from Tom Brady (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• CAR - John Kasay 50-yard FG

• THIRD QUARTER

• No Scoring

• FOURTH QUARTER

• NE - Antowain Smith 2-yard RUN (Adam Vinatieri kick)

• CAR - DeShaun Foster 33-yard RUN (conversion failed)

• CAR - Mushin Muhammad 85-yard PASS from Jake Delhomme (conversion failed)

• NE - Mike Vrabel 1-yard PASS from Tom Brady (Kevin Faulk run)

• CAR - Ricky Proehl 12-yard PASS from Jake Delhomme (John Kasay kick)

• NE - Adam Vinatieri 41-yard FG

• NFL.com: Super Bowl XXXVIII Box Score & Statistics