The1997 New York Jets season was the franchise's 28th season in theNational Football League (NFL) and the 38th overall. Sparked by the arrival of head coachBill Parcells, who replacedRich Kotite, and was coming off aSuper Bowl berth the previous season, they improved upon its league-worst and franchise-worst 1–15 record from1996 finishing at 9–7, but narrowly missed the playoffs after losing their final game of the season. It was their first winning season since 1988 when they finished with an 8–7–1 record.

For most of the end of the1996 season, the Jets were courting Parcells to take over their football operations. This drew criticism from the team that employed Parcells at the time, theNew England Patriots, who were in the middle of a push that eventually led to a loss inSuper Bowl XXXI. Parcells made a now-famous statement regarding the Patriots’ unwillingness to give him more of a say in football matters:"If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries."

Parcells eventually announced his resignation but was bound by the terms of his contract with the Patriots, which forbade him from coaching anywhere else until the contract expired. To temporarily resolve the situation the Jets hiredBill Belichick, Parcells’ top assistant, to be the coach and hired Parcells for an advisory role. The Patriots were unamused, and complained to the league. Eventually commissionerPaul Tagliabue brokered a deal with the two teams where Parcells would be able to coach the Jets and the Patriots would receive the Jets' first round draft pick the next year. This allowed the Jets to avoid sending the number-one overall pick in the1997 NFL draft, which they had earned from their 1–15 finish, to the Patriots. New England had initially demanded that first pick in order to permit Parcells to move to the Jets.

In regards to that pick, two players were on the Jets’ radar. One wasOhio State offensive tackleOrlando Pace, who was coming out of school a year early. The other wasTennessee quarterbackPeyton Manning, who had graduated from school in three years but still had a year of eligibility left, yet was expected by many to come out for the draft.^[1] Manning announced he would return to Tennessee for his senior season.^[2] Because the Jets already possessed two established free agent offensive tackles inDavid Williams andJumbo Elliott and had much greater needs elsewhere,^[3] their #1 pick destined for Pace was traded tothe St. Louis Rams. The Jets instead draftedVirginia linebackerJames Farrior.

• August 31 @Seattle Seahawks

The new-look Jets erupted in their first game underBill Parcells.Neil O'Donnell threw three first-half touchdowns while rookieJohn Hall booted a 55-yard field goal and later a 28-yarder. Despite leading 27–3 at the half, Parcells forcefully reminded them, “They say you can't hold a lead. They say you blew six games last year where you were leading at the half. Let’s see what you’re made of.” The Jets responded with two more O'Donnell touchdowns in the third quarter while shutting out the Seahawks.Warren Moon, making his Seattle debut, was limited to seven completions and a pick while backupJohn Friesz was only slightly better with ten completions. The Jets posted only their fifth win (41–3 final) in their previous 40 games.

• September 14 @New England Patriots

OnSunday Night Football former Patriots coach Parcells met former Jets coachPete Carroll atFoxboro Stadium with the Jets 1–1 following a 28–22 loss toBuffalo and the Patriots 2–0. The pregame buildup was huge and the ensuing game turned into a grinder.Drew Bledsoe's touchdown toBen Coates and aCurtis Martin score were answered by a two-yard O'Donnell rushing score and aJohn Hall field goal. Bledsoe was picked off byMo Lewis for a 43-yard Jets touchdown. AfterAdam Vinatieri tied the game in the third Bledsoe foundLovett Purnell and a 24–17 Patriots lead. Despite being sacked seven times O'Donnell tied the game on a 24-yard score toKeyshawn Johnson, and after forcing a Patriots fumble the Jets were in position to win in the final seconds, but Hall's field goal try was blocked byMike Jones and the game went to overtime. The Patriots clawed down field and Vinatieri finished it on a 34-yard field goal and a 27–24 Patriots win.

• September 21 vs.Oakland Raiders

The 1–2 Jets rebounded from the loss when they faced the 1–2 Raiders.Jeff George threw three first-half touchdowns (marred by a missed PAT and missed two-point try) and the Raiders led 22–10 at the half. But from there the Jets special teams surged to the fore;John Hall booted two field goals and in the fourthCole Ford's 28-yard field goal try was blocked byCorwin Brown;Ray Mickens ran the ball 72 yards for the winning touchdown and a 23–22 final; Ford missed four field goal attempts in all. The win snapped a string of 13 consecutive home losses for the Jets.

• October 19 vs.New England Patriots

Entering Week Eight the AFC East race in 1997 had become a four-way fight with the Patriots entering at 5–1, the Jets 5–2,the Dolphins 4–2, andthe Bills 3–3; Miami (vs.Baltimore) and Buffalo (vs. winlessIndianapolis) would win their games this weekend to stay in the division hunt. InThe Meadowlands the Jets scored first on aJohn Hall field goal, then the Patriots outscored the Jets 19–7 after sackingNeil O'Donnell in the endzone and then getting aVinatieri field goal and an eight-yardBen Coates touchdown beforeTroy Brown caught a 23-yarder. But from there the Patriots fell;Neil O'Donnell was benched andGlenn Foley led the Jets back;Adrian Murrell ran in a five-yard score and later Foley hitLorenzo Neal. The Jets snuffed out New England's long passes and finished up 24–19 entering their bye week.

• November 9 @Miami Dolphins

Glenn Foley threw for 322 yards and a touchdown toKyle Brady but was intercepted once.Dan Marino had a touchdown toBrett Perriman whileKarim Abdul-Jabbar had two rushing scores. The 24–17 Dolphins win put both teams plusNew England in a three-way tie for theAFC East lead at 6–4 withBuffalo at 5–5; it was also Marino's final victory over the Jets.

• November 23 vs.Minnesota Vikings

Leon Johnson opened scoring by returning a Vikings punt 66 yards for a touchdown. The Jets raced to a 23–7 lead in the third quarter, but in the fourth the Vikings behindBrad Johnson scored twice on touchdowns toJake Reed andAndrew Glover; a 2-point conversion attempt after Glover's score was stopped, securing the 23–21 win and the first .500 season for the Jets since1993.

• December 14 vs.Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After losing two straight, falling to 8–6, the Jets authored their most decisive win of the season as they limited the Bucs to 136 total yards and three turnovers.Trent Dilfer was picked off twice byOtis Smith and Smith ran back touchdowns for a combined 96 yards.Leon Johnson opened the third quarter by running back the kickoff 101 yards for another touchdown, andAdrian Murrell finished off the scoring on a seven-yarder in the third. The 31–0 score put the Jets within reach of a division title and secured their first outright winning season since1988.

• December 21 @Detroit Lions

With the 9–6 Dolphins hosting the 9–6 Patriots onMonday Night Football the 9–6 Jets had a chance for a Wild Card berth. The Jets clawed out front on ten first-quarter points, but the Lions led byBarry Sanders began storming back. TwoJason Hanson field goals in the second and third quarters were followed by a 25-yard Sanders touchdown.Neil O'Donnell had been rotated in and out under center during the season, but after going 21–35 for 202 yards and a pickBill Parcells called for others to start throwing the ball. On a halfback optionLeon Johnson threw for the endzone but was intercepted. Later rookieRay Lucas rushed for 30 yards and completed three passes for 28 yards, but was intercepted in the endzone. This ended the Jets' hopes of the postseason in a 13–10 Lions win. The game was marred by near-tragedy, however; on a scramble for anAdrian Murrell fumble Lions linebackerReggie Brown struck his head into the back of a falling player; he suffered a spinal cord injury and was paralyzed; he lost consciousness butCPR saved his life; he was taken by ambulance to the hospital where surgery prevented his paralysis from being permanent. The injury dominated Parcells’ postgame press conference.

• 1997 statistics

• New York Jets seasons
• 1997 NFL season by team
• 1997 in sports in New Jersey
• 20th century in East Rutherford, New Jersey
• Meadowlands Sports Complex

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