1998 Indianapolis Colts season

Indianapolis Colts
1998 Indianapolis Colts season
Head coach	Jim Mora
General manager	Bill Polian
Home field	RCA Dome
Results
Record	3–13
Division place	5th AFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify

The 1998 Indianapolis Colts season was the 46th season for the team in the National Football League and 15th in Indianapolis. The Indianapolis Colts finished the National Football League's 1998 season with a record of 3 wins and 13 losses, and finished fifth in the AFC East division.

Coming off a 3–13 season the year before, the Colts drafted quarterback Peyton Manning with the first overall pick. Manning would mark the beginning of a new era for the Colts, as he would lead them to their 2nd Super Bowl title 9 years later.

This season was Marshall Faulk's last with the Colts as he was traded to the St. Louis Rams in the off-season. He had his best seasons in St. Louis, helping the Rams to two Super Bowls in 1999 and 2001 and winning the league's MVP in 2000.

On November 29, the Colts played their first game in Baltimore since the controversial relocation in 1984.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round	Player	Position	School/Club Team
1	Peyton Manning	Quarterback	Tennessee
2	Jerome Pathon	Wide Receiver	Washington
3	E.G. Green	Wide Receiver	Florida State
4	Steve McKinney	Center	Texas A&M
5	Antony Jordan	Linebacker	Vanderbilt
7	Aaron Taylor	Center	Nebraska
7	Corey Gaines	Safety	Tennessee
8	Mick Wright	Safety	Ball State

Undrafted free agents

1998 Undrafted Free Agents of note
Player	Position	College
Mike Vanderjagt	Kicker	West Virginia

Personnel

Staff

**1998 Indianapolis Colts staff**

	Front office Owner and Chief Executive Officer – Jim Irsay President – Bill Polian Director of Football Operations – Dom Anile Director of Pro Player Personnel – Clyde Powers Director of Pro Scouting – Chris Polian Graphic Media Engineer – Eric Winter Chief Intern – Melinda Stephens Head coaches Head Coach – Jim E. Mora Assistant Head Coach – George Catavolos Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Tom Moore Quarterbacks – Bruce Arians Running Backs – Gene Huey Receivers – Jay Norvell Tight Ends – Tony Marciano Offensive Line – Howard Mudd			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Rusty Tillman Defensive Line – Greg Blache Linebackers – Mike Murphy Defensive Backs – George Catavolos Defensive Assistant – John Pagano Special teams coaches Special Teams – Kevin Spencer Strength and conditioning Conditioning – Jon Torine Strength – Tom Zupancic

Roster

**1998 Indianapolis Colts final roster**

	Quarterbacks 18 Peyton Manning 10 Doug Nussmeier 13 Kelly Holcomb Running backs 23 Keith Elias 28 Marshall Faulk 43 Scott Greene FB 34 Craig Heyward 44 Chris Hetherington FB 21 Lamont Warren Wide receivers 80 Aaron Bailey 88 Marvin Harrison 86 Jerome Pathon 15 Freddie Scott 87 Torrance Small Tight ends 85 Ken Dilger 81 Marcus Pollard		Offensive linemen 78 Tarik Glenn T 74 Waverly Jackson G 60 Jason Johnson C 58 Jay Leeuwenburg C 79 Tony Mandarich T 76 Steve McKinney G 73 Adam Meadows T 72 Larry Moore G 67 Tom Myslinski G Defensive linemen 93 Jason Chorak DE 98 Dan Footman DE 62 Ellis Johnson DT 61 Tony McCoy DT 75 Mark Thomas DE 96 Van Tuinei DT 95 Bernard Whittington DE 90 Jeff Zgonina DT		Linebackers 50 Elijah Alexander 53 Mike Barber 94 Steve Conley 57 Quentin Coryatt OLB 54 Jeff Herrod ILB 52 Steve Morrison OLB 56 Andre Royal Defensive backs 47 Billy Austin S 29 Jason Belser FS 25 Robert Blackmon SS 20 Jeff Burris CB 45 Tim Hauck FS 34 Monty Montgomery CB 38 Tyrone Poole CB Special teams 83 Bradford Banta LS 17 Chris Gardocki P 12 Mike Vanderjagt K		Reserve lists 53 Sammie Burroughs LB (IR) 36 Charles Kirby RB (IR) 41 Nakia Reddick DB (IR) 43 Steve Rosga DB (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game Site	Attendance
1	September 6	Miami Dophins	L 15–24	0–1	RCA Dome	60,587
2	September 13	at New England Patriots	L 6–29	0–2	Foxboro Stadium	60,068
3	September 20, 1998	at New York Jets	L 6–44	0–3	Giants Stadium	66,321
4	September 27	New Orleans Saints	L 13–19	0–4	RCA Dome	48,480
5	October 4	San Diego Chargers	W 17–12	1–4	RCA Dome	51,988
6	October 11	Buffalo Bills	L 24–31	1–5	RCA Dome	52,938
7	October 18	at San Francisco 49ers	L 31–34	1–6	3Com Park	68,486
8	Bye
9	November 1, 1998	New England Patriots	L 16–21	1–7	RCA Dome	58,056
10	November 8	at Miami Dolphins	L 14–27	1–8	Pro Player Stadium	73,400
11	November 15	New York Jets	W 24–23	2–8	RCA Dome	55,520
12	November 22	at Buffalo Bills	L 11–34	2–9	Rich Stadium	49,032
13	November 29	at Baltimore Ravens	L 31–38	2–10	Ravens Stadium	68,898
14	December 6	at Atlanta Falcons	L 21–28	2–11	Georgia Dome	61,141
15	December 13	Cincinnati Bengals	W 39–26	3–11	RCA Dome	55,179
16	December 20	at Seattle Seahawks	L 23–27	3–12	Kingdome	58,703
17	December 27	Carolina Panthers	L 19–27	3–13	RCA Dome	58,182

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
⁽²⁾ New York Jets	12	4	0	.750	416	266	W6
⁽⁴⁾ Miami Dolphins	10	6	0	.625	321	265	L1
⁽⁵⁾ Buffalo Bills	10	6	0	.625	400	333	W1
⁽⁶⁾ New England Patriots	9	7	0	.563	337	329	L1
Indianapolis Colts	3	13	0	.188	310	444	L2

Indianapolis Colts
Founded in 1953 Played in Baltimore (1953–1983) Based and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana
Franchise	History in Baltimore relocation to Indianapolis Players Quarterbacks Coaches Seasons Draft First-round draft picks Ring of Honor
Stadiums	Memorial Stadium RCA Dome Lucas Oil Stadium
Culture	Carroll Rosenbloom Robert Irsay Jim Irsay 12th Man AAFC Colts Baltimore Colts Marching Band The Band That Wouldn't Die Blue Cheerleaders Parks and Recreation
Lore	The Greatest Game Ever Played Ghost to the Post 1995 AFC Championship Game Immaculate Redemption/The Tackle Deflategate Colts Catastrophe Snow Bowl
Rivalries	Houston Texans New England Patriots Brady–Manning rivalry
Division championships (16)	1968 1970 1975 1976 1977 1987 1999 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2009 2010 2013 2014
Conference championships (7)	1958 1959 1964 1968 1970 2006 2009
League championships (5)	1958 1959 1968 1970 (V) 2006 (XLI)
Retired numbers	18 19 22 24 70 77 82 89
Media	Broadcasters WFNI-AM Bob Lamey Jim Sorgi
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: American Football Conference Division: South Division
Seasons (67)	1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Championship seasons in bold Category

Indianapolis Colts seasons
Played in Baltimore (1953–1983)
1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Bold indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) victory Italics indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–present) appearance