| 1998 New England Patriots season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Robert Kraft |
| Head coach | Pete Carroll |
| Home stadium | Foxboro Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–7 |
| Division place | 4thAFC East |
| Playoffs | LostWild Card Playoffs (atJaguars) 10–25 |
| All-Pros | CBTy Law(1st team) TEBen Coates(2nd team) SSLawyer Milloy(2nd team) |
| Pro Bowlers | TEBen Coates CBTy Law SSLawyer Milloy |
The1998 New England Patriots season was the franchise's 29th season in theNational Football League (NFL) and the 39th overall. They finished with a 9–7 record, losing in the first round of theplayoffs to theJacksonville Jaguars.
In the offseason, the Patriots tenderedrestricted free agent running backCurtis Martin with the highest possible tender, which would return the Patriots first- and third-round draft picks if any team were to sign him and the Patriots were to decide not to match the offer. Fueling therivalry between the two teams, theNew York Jets and head coachBill Parcells, who had resigned from the Patriots two years earlier, signed Martin, the 1995NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, and per restricted free agency rules ceded their first- and third-round picks in the1998 NFL draft to the Patriots.[1] With the first-round pick the Patriots selected another running backRobert Edwards, who rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign. Suffering a broken finger in November,[2] veteran quarterbackDrew Bledsoe was unable to start the team's final two regular season games and was replaced byScott Zolak.[3] With a 9–7 record the Patriots finished fourth in theAFC East but earned a sixth seed in theAFCplayoffs. With Zolak still at the helm, the Patriots were defeated on the road by theJacksonville Jaguars, the second straight playoff defeat for second-year head coachPete Carroll, and is one of only three games the Patriots have ever lost to the Jaguars, with the other two being in2018 and2024 respectively.[4]
As of the2024 NFL season, this remains the last time that a team with a fourth-place finish in its division made the playoffs.
| Round | Overall | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1[5] | 18 | Robert Edwards | Running back | Georgia |
| 1 | 22 | Tebucky Jones | Safety | Syracuse |
| 2[6] | 52 | Tony Simmons | Wide receiver | Wisconsin |
| 2 | 54 | Rod Rutledge | Tight end | Alabama |
| 3[7] | 81 | Chris Floyd | Fullback | Michigan |
| 3 | 83 | Greg Spires | Defensive end | Florida State |
| 4 | 115 | Leonta Rheams | Defensive tackle | Houston |
| 5 | 145 | Ron Merkerson | Linebacker | Colorado |
| 6 | 176 | Harold Shaw | Fullback | Southern Miss |
| 7 | 211 | Jason Andersen | Offensive guard | BYU |
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Scott Dragos | Fullback | Boston College |
| 1998 New England Patriots staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
| |||||
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 7 | atDenver Broncos | L 21–27 | 0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 74,745 | |
| 2 | September 13 | Indianapolis Colts | W 29–6 | 1–1 | Foxboro Stadium | 60,068 | |
| 3 | September 20 | Tennessee Oilers | W 27–16 | 2–1 | Foxboro Stadium | 59,973 | |
| 4 | Bye | ||||||
| 5 | October 4 | atNew Orleans Saints | W 30–27 | 3–1 | Louisiana Superdome | 56,172 | |
| 6 | October 11 | Kansas City Chiefs | W 40–10 | 4–1 | Foxboro Stadium | 59,749 | |
| 7 | October 19 | New York Jets | L 14–24 | 4–2 | Foxboro Stadium | 60,062 | |
| 8 | October 25 | atMiami Dolphins | L 9–12(OT) | 4–3 | Pro Player Stadium | 73,973 | |
| 9 | November 1 | atIndianapolis Colts | W 21–16 | 5–3 | RCA Dome | 58,056 | |
| 10 | November 8 | Atlanta Falcons | L 10–41 | 5–4 | Foxboro Stadium | 59,790 | |
| 11 | November 15 | atBuffalo Bills | L 10–13 | 5–5 | Ralph Wilson Stadium | 72,020 | |
| 12 | November 23 | Miami Dolphins | W 26–23 | 6–5 | Foxboro Stadium | 58,729 | |
| 13 | November 29 | Buffalo Bills | W 25–21 | 7–5 | Foxboro Stadium | 58,304 | |
| 14 | December 6 | atPittsburgh Steelers | W 23–9 | 8–5 | Three Rivers Stadium | 58,632 | |
| 15 | December 13 | atSt. Louis Rams | L 18–32 | 8–6 | TWA Dome | 48,946 | |
| 16 | December 20 | San Francisco 49ers | W 24–21 | 9–6 | Foxboro Stadium | 59,153 | |
| 17 | December 27 | atNew York Jets | L 10–31 | 9–7 | Giants Stadium | 74,302 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are inbold text. | |||||||
| 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 |
| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildcard | January 3, 1999 | atJacksonville Jaguars (3) | L 10–25 | 0–1 | Alltel Stadium |
ThePeyton Manning/New England Patriots rivalry kicked off with a 29–6 rout of Manning's Colts.Ty Law ran back a first-quarter interception 59 yards for the game's first touchdown, whileTerry Glenn's three-yard catch andRobert Edwards' one-yard run went with three field goals by future ColtAdam Vinatieri for the Pats.Torrance Small caught a touchdown from Manning in the final five minutes for the only score by the Colts. Manning ended the day with three picks returned for 71 yards.
In their final season using the team nickname "Oilers", the futureTennessee Titans put on a hard challenge for the Patriots, asEddie George rushed for 100 yards and caught a 22-yard touchdown fromSteve McNair.Al Del Greco andAdam Vinatieri exchanged field goals in the first half and the game lead tied or changed seven times beforeLawyer Milloy picked off McNair for a 30-yard fourth-quarter touchdown sealing a 27–16 Patriots win.
Two seasons since losingSuper Bowl XXXI in New Orleans the Patriots made their first trip to theLouisiana Superdome; coincidentally, the coach they were facing was the one who'd crushed them inSuper Bowl XX in that same building –Mike Ditka.Drew Bledsoe overcame three interceptions and led the Patriots to a 27–24 lead in the game's final four minutes. On a Patriots puntTebucky Jones of the Patriots tried to down the ball before it went into the endzone;Earl Little of the Saints grabbed it in the endzone but as he went to his knees his teammateAndre Hastings yanked it out of his hands and returned the kick 76 yards, setting up the tying field goal with 1:29 left in regulation. Bledsoe then led the Patriots downfield and Adam Vinatieri kicked the game-winning field goal with three seconds left in a 30–27 Patriots win.
Several days before thisMonday Night Football matchup came word that team ownerRobert Kraft had secured a stadium deal inHartford, Connecticut for 2001 (a deal subsequently aborted when a deal to buildGillette Stadium was completed). Though the fanbase was displeased, their support for the team didn't waver even as the Patriots fell behind 23–19 with 3:22 left in the fourth after aKarim Abdul-Jabbar rushing touchdown. On the ensuing Patriots possession, Bledsoe completed a first-down pass on fourth and ten, but later broke the index finger on his throwing hand after strikingTodd Rucci's helmet; on another fourth-and-ten on the Dolphins 35-yard-line coachPete Carroll tried to call timeout, but the Patriots didn't see him and Bledsoe completed the first-down throw toBen Coates. He then foundShawn Jefferson for the game-winning touchdown with 29 seconds remaining, in a 26–23 Patriots final score.
Local heroDoug Flutie made his first visit toFoxboro Stadium since his days as Patriots quarterback, where he'd won all five starts there. Directing the Bills he threw for 339 yards and rushed for 30 more, leading the Bills to a 21–17 lead in the game's final minute. From there, and despite still nursing a broken finger on his throwing hand,Drew Bledsoe led the Patriots downfield and completed a fourth-down throw to the Bills 26 toShawn Jefferson with six seconds remaining. There was a referee conference after the play regarding the spot of the ball, at which point one of the referees was heard to say "just give it to them", in reference to the first down.[8] Bledsoe threw for the endzone on the next play but the ball fell incomplete; the Bills were flagged for pass interference, extending the game by one untimed down, and from the one-yard line Bledsoe lofted a play-action pass toBen Coates for the winning touchdown. The disgusted Bills (who felt Jefferson was out of bounds on the catch at the 26) went to the locker room even though the extra point still had to be kicked;Adam Vinatieri thus ran in an unopposed two-point conversion for a 25–21 Patriots win, the first career loss in Foxboro for Flutie. The NFL later stated that the game-extending pass interference call was an erroneous decision by the referees.
Drew Bledsoe's season ended in a 32–18 loss at St. Louis. Bledsoe played the entire game other than several series to get the splint on his broken finger replaced; he completed only 11 of 35 passes; a pass in the first quarter bounced offLovett Purnell and was intercepted byTodd Lyght.Scott Zolak was sacked and fumbled to former PatriotRay Agnew. The game was costly for both teams asTerry Glenn and Rams quarterbackTony Banks were lost to injuries.
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Reserve lists
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