| 1998 Dallas Cowboys season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Chan Gailey |
| Home field | Texas Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | 1st NFC East |
| Playoff finish | Lost NFC Wild Card Playoff (Cardinals) 7–20 |
The 1998 Dallas Cowboys season was the Cowboys' 39th season in the NFL. Team owner Jerry Jones would hire former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Chan Gailey to be the fourth head coach of the Dallas Cowboys franchise.
Offseason
NFL Draft
| 1998 Dallas Cowboys draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Greg Ellis * | Defensive end | North Carolina | |
| 2 | 38 | Flozell Adams * | Tackle | Michigan State | |
| 4 | 100 | Michael Myers | Defensive tackle | Alabama | |
| 5 | 130 | Darren Hambrick | Linebacker | South Carolina | |
| 5 | 138 | Oliver Ross | Tackle | Iowa State | from Seattle |
| 6 | 188 | Izell Reese | Safety | UAB | |
| 7 | 223 | Tarik Smith | Running back | California | |
| 7 | 227 | Antonio Fleming | Guard | Georgia | |
| 7 | 237 | Rod Monroe | Tight end | Cincinnati | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Regular season
Gailey would revitalize the Cowboys offense, particularly the running game, which had seen a recent decline despite the presence of running back Emmitt Smith. The trio of Smith, Troy Aikman, and Michael Irvin helped the Cowboys be the first ever NFC East team to sweep their division en route to capturing the NFC East title, the team's sixth of the 90's. The Cowboys would later encounter the Arizona Cardinals for the third time that season in the NFC Wild Card Game, but would lose in a stunning upset in the first round at Texas Stadium. Cornerback Deion Sanders suffered an injury to his toe in a regular season victory over Arizona and made a surprise return against them in the playoff loss.
Aikman was injured in a week two loss at Denver and missed the next five games. Future Cowboys Head Coach Jason Garrett started all games during Aikman's absence and went 3–2 as the starting quarterback.
Notable additions to the team that year include defensive end Greg Ellis and offensive tackle Flozell Adams. Ellis was drafted with the 8th pick in the first round, and many were stunned that the Cowboys didn't draft Randy Moss (most likely for off the field issues).
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | TV Time(CT) | TV Announcers | Attendance | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6, 1998 | Arizona Cardinals | W 38–10 | Fox 3:05pm | Tim Ryan, Bill Maas and Ronnie Lott | 1–0 | |
| 2 | September 13, 1998 | at Denver Broncos | L 42–23 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 1–1 | |
| 3 | September 21, 1998 | at New York Giants | W 31–7 | ABC 7:20pm | Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf and Boomer Esiason | 2–1 | |
| 4 | September 27, 1998 | Oakland Raiders | L 13–12 | CBS 12:00pm | Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms | 2–2 | |
| 5 | October 4, 1998 | at Washington Redskins | W 31–10 | Fox 12:00pm | Dick Stockton and Matt Millen | 3–2 | |
| 6 | October 11, 1998 | Carolina Panthers | W 27–20 | Fox 12:00pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 4–2 | |
| 7 | October 18, 1998 | at Chicago Bears | L 13–12 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 4–3 | |
| 8 | Bye | ||||||
| 9 | November 2, 1998 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 34–0 | ABC 7:20pm | Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf and Boomer Esiason | 5–3 | |
| 10 | November 8, 1998 | New York Giants | W 16–6 | Fox 12:00pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 6–3 | |
| 11 | November 15, 1998 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 35–28 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 7–3 | |
| 12 | November 22, 1998 | Seattle Seahawks | W 30–22 | CBS 12:00pm | Verne Lundquist and Randy Cross | 8–3 | |
| 13 | November 26, 1998 | Minnesota Vikings | L 46–36 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 8–4 | |
| 14 | December 6, 1998 | at New Orleans Saints | L 22–3 | Fox 12:00pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 8–5 | |
| 15 | December 13, 1998 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 20–17 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 8–6 | |
| 16 | December 20, 1998 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 13–9 | Fox 3:15pm | Pat Summerall and John Madden | 9–6 | |
| 17 | December 27, 1998 | Washington Redskins | W 23–7 | ESPN 7:15pm | Mike Patrick, Joe Theismann and Paul Maguire | 10–6 | |
Standings
| NFC East | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (3) Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 381 | 275 | W2 |
| (6) Arizona Cardinals | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 325 | 378 | W3 |
| New York Giants | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 287 | 309 | W4 |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 319 | 421 | L1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 161 | 344 | L3 |
Roster
| Dallas Cowboys 1998 roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
| Offensive Linemen
Defensive Linemen
| Linebackers
Defensive Backs
Special Teams
| Reserve Lists
Practice squad
Rookies in italics | |||
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Publications
- The Football Encyclopedia ISBN 0-312-11435-4
- Total Football ISBN 0-06-270170-3
- Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes ISBN 0-446-51950-2