1998 New York Jets season

The 1998 New York Jets season was the 39th season for the team and the 29th in the National Football League. The team improved on its previous season by three games, finishing 12–4 in their second season under head coach Bill Parcells, winning their first division title since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970; the 12–4 record was also the best in Jets history. This success came just two years after the Jets’ 1–15 record in 1996.

1998 New York Jets season
OwnerLeon Hess
Head coachBill Parcells
Home fieldGiants Stadium
Results
Record12–4
Division place1st AFC East
Playoff finishWon Divisional Playoffs (Jaguars) 34–24
Lost AFC Championship (Broncos) 23–10
Pro BowlersQB Vinny Testaverde
RB Curtis Martin
WR Keyshawn Johnson
LB Mo Lewis Aaron Glenn
CB
Uniform

The Jets earned a first-round bye, given to the two division winners with the best records, for the first time. They defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional round of the playoffs. Their attempt to reach their first Super Bowl in thirty years was halted by losing in Denver when the 14–2 Broncos scored 23 unanswered points in the second half.

The 1998 Jets are one of only two teams in NFL history[note 1] to win seven games against teams that would go on to make the playoffs.[1]

Vinny Testaverde threw for 3,256 yards, 29 touchdowns, and only 7 interceptions in 421 pass attempts (1.7%).

The title game was the Jets’ last title game appearance until 2009, although they returned to the playoffs in 2001, and qualified for the postseason four more times that decade.

Offseason

In the offseason, the Jets signed New England Patriots running back Curtis Martin to an offer sheet. The Patriots had offered Martin, their star running back, a tender deal that would net them a first-round pick and a third-round pick if a team signed him. Jets coach and general manager Bill Parcells, who had left New England two years prior and still harbored some bad blood with the team, offered Martin a very large contract that the Patriots were unwilling to match, further fueling the rivalry between the teams.

In addition, the Jets parted ways with veteran quarterback Neil O'Donnell after two seasons and signed another veteran, Vinny Testaverde, to serve as backup to Glenn Foley. Testaverde eventually succeeded Foley as the starter and led the Jets to their division title. On defense, New York added former Miami Dolphins linebacker Bryan Cox.

The offseason also saw the first major overhaul of the Jets' uniforms and logos since 1978. The team changed its primary color from kelly green to hunter green, eliminated black which had been added in 1990 as a trim color, and abandoned the solid green helmets with the modern “JETS” wordmark in favor of white helmets with two green parallel stripes down the center, as worn from 1965-77, but with a green facemask. The new primary/helmet logo resembles the 1965-77 version but is oval rather than football-shaped and has a somewhat “cleaner” appearance, with starker lines defining the word “JETS” in thick sans-serif italics in front of the “NY” in serif outline lettering, and the miniature football at bottom center. This logo was also added to the jersey front, by the player’s left shoulder. The jerseys and pants also resemble the 1963-77 uniforms, with alternating shoulder stripes, opposite-colored sleeves and TV numerals, and two green parallel stripes from hip to knee on each side.

NFL Draft
Main article: 1998 NFL Draft
Round Pick Player Position School/Club Team
2 56 Dorian Boose Defensive End Washington State
3 67 Scott Frost Defensive Back Nebraska
3 87 Kevin Williams Free Safety Oklahoma State
4 111 Jason Fabini Offensive Tackle Cincinnati
5 134 Casey Dailey Linebacker Northwestern
5 141 Doug Karczewski Guard Virginia
5 146 Blake Spence Tight End Oregon
5 149 Eric Bateman Guard BYU
6 163 Eric Ogbogu Defensive End Maryland
6 174 Chris Brazzell Wide Receiver Angelo State
6 183 Dustin Johnson Running Back BYU
7 195 Lawrence Hart Tight End Southern

Roster
New York Jets 1998 final roster
Quarterbacks

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

 Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive Backs

Special Teams

 Reserve Lists

Practice Squad

Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule
WeekDateOpponentResultTV Time(ET)TV AnnouncersGame siteNotesAttendance
1September 6, 1998at San Francisco 49ersL 36–30 (OT)CBS 4:15pmGreg Gumbel, Phil Simms, and Armen Keteyian3Com ParkGame decided in overtime on Garrison Hearst's 96-yard touchdown run
64,419
2September 13, 1998Baltimore RavensL 24–10CBS 1:00pmVerne Lundquist, Randy Cross, and Michele TafoyaGiants StadiumGlenn Foley threw three interceptions
70,063
3September 20, 1998Indianapolis ColtsW 44–6CBS 1:00pmIan Eagle & Mark MayGiants StadiumVinny Testaverde replaced Foley and threw four touchdowns
79,469
4Bye
5October 4, 1998Miami DolphinsW 20–9CBS 1:00pmGreg Gumbel, Phil Simms, and Armen KeteyianGiants StadiumJets intercepted Dan Marino twice
75,257
6October 11, 1998at St. Louis RamsL 30–10CBS 4:15pmKevin Harlan & Sam WycheTrans World DomeFoley started but benched for Testaverde
65,437
7October 19, 1998at New England PatriotsW 24–14ABC 8:20 pmAl Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, Boomer Esiason, and Lesley VisserFoxboro StadiumFormer Patriot Curtis Martin rushed for 107 yards
60,062
8October 25, 1998Atlanta FalconsW 28–3FOX 1:00pmDick Stockton & Matt MillenGiants StadiumFalcons played backup quarterbacks Tony Graziani and Steve DeBerg; Jets intercepted passes from both
71,573
9November 1, 1998at Kansas City ChiefsW 20–17CBS 4:05pmVerne Lundquist, Randy Cross, and Michele TafoyaArrowhead StadiumJets erased 17–10 gap in fourth quarter
65,104
10November 8, 1998Buffalo BillsW 34–12CBS 4:15pmGreg Gumbel, Phil Simms, and Armen KeteyianGiants StadiumBills quarterback Doug Flutie intercepted twice
75,403
11November 15, 1998at Indianapolis ColtsL 24–23CBS 1:00pmIan Eagle & Mark MayRCA DomeLast loss of the regular season
55,520
12November 22, 1998at Tennessee OilersW 24–3CBS 4:15pmIan Eagle & Mark MayVanderbilt StadiumSteve McNair limited to 163 yards total offense
37,084
13November 29, 1998Carolina PanthersW 48–21FOX 1:00pmRay Bentley & Ron PittsGiants StadiumKeyshawn Johnson ran in a 35-yard score
71,501
14December 6, 1998Seattle SeahawksW 32–31CBS 1:00pmKevin Harlan & Sam WycheGiants StadiumPhil Luckett criticized for a late Testaverde rushing touchdown where replays showed him down short of the goal. Announcers on CBS were Kevin Harlan and Sam Wyche.
72,200
15December 13, 1998at Miami DolphinsW 21–16ESPN 8:15pmMike Patrick, Joe Theismann, Paul Maguire, and Solomon WilcotsPro Player StadiumDan Marino sacked five times
74,369
16December 19, 1998at Buffalo BillsW 17–10CBS 12:35pmGreg Gumbel, Phil Simms, and Armen KeteyianRich StadiumJets complete first season sweep of Bills since 1994
79,056
17December 27, 1998New England PatriotsW 31–10CBS 1:00pmGreg Gumbel, Phil Simms, and Armen KeteyianGiants StadiumJets win AFC East for first time
74,302

Standings
AFC East
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(2) New York Jets 1240.750416266W6
(4) Miami Dolphins 1060.625321265L1
(5) Buffalo Bills 1060.625400333W1
(6) New England Patriots 970.563337329L1
Indianapolis Colts 3130.188310444L2

Season summary

Week 1 at 49ers
See also: 1998 San Francisco 49ers season
Week One: New York Jets (0–0) at San Francisco 49ers (0–0)
1 2 34OTTotal
Jets 3 14 76030
49ers 7 7 97636

at 3Com Park, San Francisco, California


Playoffs

AFC Divisional Playoffs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
AFC Divisional Game: Jacksonville Jaguars at New York Jets – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Jaguars 0 7 71024
Jets 7 10 14334

at The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, New Jersey

  • Date: January 10, 1999
  • Game time: 12:40 p.m. PDT
  • Game weather: 28 °F (−2.2 °C) relative humidity 53%, wind 17 miles per hour (27 km/h; 15 kn), wind chill 16 °F (−8.9 °C)
  • TV announcers (CBS): Verne Lundquist, Randy Cross, and Michele Tafoya
Game information

AFC Championship Game vs. Denver Broncos
AFC Championship Game: New York Jets at Denver Broncos – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Jets 0 3 7010
Broncos 0 0 20323

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

Game information

Notes
  1. The 1997 Packers are the other

References
  1. Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1940 to 2011, in the regular season, team won game, in games against playoff teams only, only in games against teams with winning record for season, sorted by most games in season matching criteria.
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