1998 Dallas Cowboys season
| 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 | 227 | 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 9th 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 | Attendance | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 6, 1998 | Arizona Cardinals | W 38–10 | FOX 4:15pm | 1–0 | |
| 2 | September 13, 1998 | at Denver Broncos | L 42–23 | FOX 4:15pm | 1–1 | |
| 3 | September 21, 1998 | at New York Giants | W 31–7 | ABC 9:00pm | 2–1 | |
| 4 | September 27, 1998 | Oakland Raiders | L 13–12 | CBS 4:15pm | 2–2 | |
| 5 | October 4, 1998 | at Washington Redskins | W 31–10 | FOX 1:00pm | 3–2 | |
| 6 | October 11, 1998 | Carolina Panthers | W 27–20 | FOX 1:00pm | 4–2 | |
| 7 | October 18, 1998 | at Chicago Bears | L 13–12 | FOX 4:15pm | 4–3 | |
| 8 | Bye | |||||
| 9 | November 2, 1998 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 34–0 | ABC 9:00pm | 5–3 | |
| 10 | November 8, 1998 | New York Giants | W 16–6 | FOX 1:00pm | 6–3 | |
| 11 | November 15, 1998 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 35–28 | FOX 4:15pm | 7–3 | |
| 12 | November 22, 1998 | Seattle Seahawks | W 30–22 | CBS 1:00pm | 8–3 | |
| 13 | November 26, 1998 | Minnesota Vikings | L 46–36 | FOX 4:00pm | 8–4 | |
| 14 | December 6, 1998 | at New Orleans Saints | L 22–3 | FOX 1:00pm | 8–5 | |
| 15 | December 13, 1998 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 20–17 | FOX 4:15pm | 8–6 | |
| 16 | December 20, 1998 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 13–9 | FOX 4:15pm | 9–6 | |
| 17 | December 27, 1998 | Washington Redskins | W 23–7 | ESPN 8:15pm | 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 |
