1998 NFL season

The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League.

The Tennessee Oilers moved their home games from Liberty Bowl in Memphis to Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, still awaiting construction on a new stadium (Adelphia Coliseum) in Nashville.

This was the first season that CBS held the rights to televise American Football Conference games, taking over the package from NBC. Meanwhile, this was the first time that ESPN broadcast all of the Sunday night games throughout the season (this was also the first season in which ESPN's coverage used the Monday Night Football themes, before reverting to using an original theme in 2001).

Football Outsiders noted "1998 was the last hurrah for the great quarterbacks who came into the league in the eighties. The top four QBs [statistically] were all over 35: Vinny Testaverde, Randall Cunningham, Steve Young, and John Elway. Troy Aikman, age 32, was fifth. Dan Marino was 11th in his last good year."

The season ended with Super Bowl XXXIII when the Denver Broncos defeated the Atlanta Falcons.

Major rule changes

 * Tinted visors on players' facemasks are banned except for medical need.
 * A defensive player can no longer flinch before the snap in an attempt to draw movement from an offensive linemen.
 * A team will be penalized immediately for having 12 players in a huddle even if the 12th player goes straight to the sideline as the huddle breaks.
 * The coin toss will be called before the coin itself is tossed, not while the coin is in the air.
 * This is a mid-season change resulting from a controversy during the Detroit Lions–Pittsburgh Steelers game on Thanksgiving Day, where conflicting calls were heard during the toss. The toss was made prior to a Sudden Death overtime period. The official making the call judged Detroit the winner while Pittsburgh argued they made the right call. If the Steelers were to be believed, the game could have had a different outcome. Pittsburgh's next trip to Detroit would also not be without significant controversy.

Stadium changes

 * Tennessee Oilers – Moved to Vanderbilt Stadium on the campus of Vanderbilt University.
 * Baltimore Ravens – Departed from Memorial Stadium to PSINet Stadium.
 * Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Departed from Houlahan's Stadium to Raymond James Stadium.

Uniform changes

 * Baltimore Ravens – Removed black pants from road uniforms.
 * New York Jets – New logo and uniforms. Return to their old 1960s uniforms in a newer version.
 * Jacksonville Jaguars – Removed black side panels on uniforms.
 * San Diego Chargers – Returned Navy Pants on road uniforms.
 * San Francisco 49ers – New gold pants.
 * Detroit Lions – New Honolulu Blue numbers on road uniforms and Honolulu blue road pants with gray socks.

1998 Coaching Changes

 * Oakland Raiders – Jon Gruden; replaced Joe Bugel who was fired after the '97 season.
 * Indianapolis Colts – Jim Mora; replaced Lindy Infante who was fired after the '97 season.
 * Dallas Cowboys – Chan Gailey; replaced Barry Switzer who resigned after the '97 season.
 * Buffalo Bills – Wade Phillips; replaced Marv Levy who retired after the '97 season.

Final regular season standings
W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

Clinched playoff seeds are marked in parentheses and shaded in green

Tiebreakers

 * Miami finished ahead of Buffalo in the AFC East based on better net division points (6 to Bills' 0).
 * Oakland finished ahead of Seattle in the AFC West based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
 * Carolina finished ahead of St. Louis in the NFC West based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).

Playoffs

 * Home team in capitals

AFC

 * Wild-Card playoffs: MIAMI 24, Buffalo 17; JACKSONVILLE 25, New England 10
 * Divisional playoffs: DENVER 38, Miami 3; N.Y. JETS 34, Jacksonville 24
 * AFC Championship: DENVER 23, N.Y. Jets 10 at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado, January 17, 1999

NFC

 * Wild-Card playoffs: Arizona 20, DALLAS 7; SAN FRANCISCO 30, Green Bay 27
 * Divisional playoffs: ATLANTA 20, San Francisco 18; MINNESOTA 41, Arizona 21
 * NFC Championship: Atlanta 30, MINNESOTA 27 (OT) at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 17, 1999

Super Bowl

 * Super Bowl XXXIII: Denver (AFC) 34, Atlanta (NFC) 19, at Pro Player Stadium, Miami, Florida, January 31, 1999