1998 Buffalo Bills season

39th season in franchise history November 2013 March 2026 Buffalo Bills 1998 10–6 3rd AFC East Wade Phillips John Butler Ralph Wilson Ralph Wilson Stadium Lost Wild Card Playoffs(at Dolphins) 17–24 QB Doug FlutieFB Sam GashWR Eric MouldsG Ruben BrownDE Bruce SmithDT Ted Washington Bills seasons The 1998 Buffalo Bills season was the team's 39th season, and 29th in the National Football League (NFL).1998 Buffalo Bills Roster & Players https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/1998_roster.htm 2024-12-02 Pro-Football-Reference.com en The season marked an important development in the Bills’ history as a quarterback controversy would consume the whole season between Rob Johnson and Doug Flutie. It would also mark the beginning of the Wade Phillips era. The Bills improved on the previous season's output of 6–10, and finished third in the AFC East with a 10–6 record,http://buffalobills.com/display_cont.jsp?cont_id=73872&print=yes Buffalo Bills www.buffalobills.com December 8, 2015 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20040918141743/http://buffalobills.com/display_cont.jsp?cont_id=73872&print=yes September 18, 2004 and would qualify for the playoffs only to lose in the wild card round to the Miami Dolphins. The Bills lost their first three games of the season, all by six points or less, and looked to be headed for a losing season. After a bye in Week Four, quarterback Rob Johnson finally won his first game with Buffalo, holding on for a 26–21 win over San Francisco in Week Five. Flutie started the next eleven games, winning nine of them. The Bills had a playoff spot locked up by the final game of the season, which Johnson started and won. The Bills played the Dolphins in the Wild Card round of the 1998 AFC Playoffs, where wide receiver Eric Moulds would set the NFL playoff record for receiving yards, with 240. The Bills would end up losing the game 24–17, as Dolphins lineman Trace Armstrong sacked Flutie on Buffalo's last drive, forcing him to fumble, and icing the game for Miami. Offseason The Bills, looking to upgrade the quarterback position, signed Rob Johnson, who had played for Jacksonville in 1997, and improved his stock with a win in relief of Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell. Bills general manager John Butler traded away the Bills' first- and fourth-round picks to Jacksonville for the rights to Johnson. The Bills also signed long-time CFL quarterback Doug Flutie to back up Johnson; Flutie would end the 1998 season with the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award. Additions Subtractions QB Rob Johnson (Jaguars) WR Steve Tasker (retirement) QB Doug Flutie (CFL) QB Todd Collins (Chiefs) G Joe Panos (Eagles) LB Bryce Paup (Jaguars) G Corbin Lacina (Panthers) NFL draft 1998 NFL draft 1998 Buffalo Bills 2 39 Sam Cowart Linebacker Florida State yes yes 3 68 Robert Hicks Offensive tackle Mississippi State yes 5 131 Jonathan Linton Fullback North Carolina yes 6 160 Fred Coleman Wide receiver Washington no 7 198 Victor Allotey Guard Indiana no 7 238 Kamil Loud Wide receiver Cal-Poly SLO yes no Undrafted free agents + 1998 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeJason CreboLinebackerMontanaShane DoyleDefensive endWashington StateJames GrierDefensive tackleMississippi StateRaymond HillDefensive backMichigan StateHerb HowardDefensive tackleVirginia StateTodd KollarOffensive tackleYoungstown StateCarl McCulloughRunning backWisconsinHardy MitchellDefensive tackleBuffaloDavid MudgeOffensive tackleMichigan StateMark NohraRunning backBritish ColumbiaWillie RodgersLinebackerFloridaJerry RossTight endPittsburg StateHassan Shamsid-DeenDefensive backNC StateAdrion SmithDefensive backSouthwest Missouri StateDuane StewartDefensive backWashington StatePaul TurnerWide receiverColorado StateClarence "Pooh Bear" WilliamsRunning backFlorida StateDan WilliamsCenterWoffordUndre WilliamsWide receiverFlorida A&M Personnel Staff 1998 Buffalo Bills President – Ralph Wilson Executive vice-president/general manager – John Butler Vice-president of football operations – Wade Phillips Director of pro personnel – A. J. Smith Director of player personnel – Dwight Adams Head coach – Wade Phillips Assistant to the Head Coach – Max Bowman Offensive coordinator – Joe Pendry Quarterbacks – Turk Schonert Running backs – Bishop Harris Receivers – Charlie Joiner Tight ends – Max Bowman Offensive line – Carl Mauck Offensive quality control – Chris Dickson Defensive coordinator – Ted Cottrell Defensive line – John Levra Linebackers – Chuck Lester Defensive backs – Bill Bradley Special teams – Bruce DeHaven Strength and conditioning Coordinator – Rusty Jones 1998 Buffalo Bills Media Guide Roster 1998 Buffalo Bills  7 Doug Flutie 11 Rob Johnson American football 10 Alex Van Pelt 33 Sam Gash FB 35 Jonathan Linton y FB 23 Antowain Smith 34 Thurman Thomas 39 Pooh Bear Williams FB 88 Quinn Early 89 Kamil Loud y 80 Eric Moulds 83 Andre Reed 82 Kevin Williams wide receiver, born 1971 KR/PR 84 Lonnie Johnson American football 85 Jay Riemersma 66 Victor Allotey y G 79 Ruben Brown G 63 Bill Conaty C 70 John Fina T 77 Robert Hicks T American football y 74 Jamie Nails G 60 Jerry Ostroski T 72 Joe Panos G 70 Marcus Spriggs T 61 Dusty Zeigler C 90 Phil Hansen American football DE 94 Mark Pike DE 91 Shawn Price DE 78 Bruce Smith DE 92 Ted Washington NT 75 Marcellus Wiley DE 93 Pat Williams American football NT 96 Dan Brandenburg OLB 51 Joe Cummings American football ILB 56 Sam Cowart ILB y 52 John Holecek ILB 98 Sean Moran ILB 99 Gabe Northern OLB 58 Marlo Perry ILB 59 Sam Rogers linebacker OLB 55 Wayne Simmons American football OLB 25 Donovan Greer CB 27 Ken Irvin CB 31 Raymond Jackson American football CB 20 Henry Jones American football SS 21 Manny Martin FS 22 Daryl Porter safety CB 24 Kurt Schulz FS 40 Eric Smedley SS 28 Thomas Smith cornerback CB 76 Ethan Albright LS  2 Steve Christie K  9 Chris Mohr P 13 Jim Ballard QB IR 46 Marlon Kerner CB IR 73 Mike Rockwood T IR 53 active, 3 inactive, 4 practice squad 81 Fred Coleman y WR 71 Dave Mudge y T 86 Jerry Ross tight end y TE 14 Undre Williams y WR Regular season The opening game for 1998 constituted the first time since 1985 that the Bills played the San Diego Chargers.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/play-index/tgl_finder.cgi?request=1&match=game&year_min=1961&year_max=2012&game_type=&playoff_round=&game_num_min=0&game_num_max=99&week_num_min=0&week_num_max=99&game_day_of_week=&game_time=&time_zone=&game_location=&surface=&roof=&game_result=&overtime=&league_id=&team_id=buf&opp_id=sdg&conference_game=&division_game=&tm_is_playoff=&opp_is_playoff=&tm_is_winning=&opp_is_winning=&tm_scored_first=&tm_led=&tm_trailed=&c1stat=&c1comp=gt&c1val=&c2stat=&c2comp=gt&c2val=&c3stat=&c3comp=gt&c3val=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&order_by=game_date&order_by_asc=Y Buffalo Bills v San Diego Chargers Pro-Football-Reference.com The reason for this is that before the admission of the Texans in 2002, NFL scheduling formulas for games outside a team's division were much more influenced by table position during the previous season.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/blog/?p=521 History of the NFL's Structure and Formats Pro-Football-Reference.com Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 6 at San Diego Chargers L 14–16 0–1 Qualcomm Stadium 64,037 2 September 13 at Miami Dolphins L 7–13 0–2 Pro Player Stadium 73,097 3 September 20 St. Louis Rams L 33–34 0–3 Ralph Wilson Stadium 65,199 4 Bye 5 October 4 San Francisco 49ers W 26–21 1–3 Ralph Wilson Stadium 76,615 6 October 11 at Indianapolis Colts W 31–24 2–3 RCA Dome 52,938 7 October 18 Jacksonville Jaguars W 17–16 3–3 Ralph Wilson Stadium 77,635 8 October 25 at Carolina Panthers W 30–14 4–3 Ericcson Stadium 64,050 9 November 1 Miami Dolphins W 30–24 5–3 Ralph Wilson Stadium 79,011 10 November 8 at New York Jets L 12–34 5–4 Giants Stadium 75,403 11 November 15 New England Patriots W 13–10 6–4 Ralph Wilson Stadium 72,020 12 November 22 Indianapolis Colts W 34–11 7–4 Ralph Wilson Stadium 49,032 13 November 29 at New England Patriots L 21–25 7–5 Foxboro Stadium 58,304 14 December 6 at Cincinnati Bengals W 33–20 8–5 Cinergy Field 54,359 15 December 13 Oakland Raiders W 44–21 9–5 Ralph Wilson Stadium 62,002 16 December 19, 1998 New York Jets L 10–17 9–6 Ralph Wilson Stadium 79,056 17 December 27 at New Orleans Saints W 45–33 10–6 Louisiana Superdome 39,707 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Week 1 Starting QBs: Buffalo: Rob Johnson ** Johnson left with a concussion with the Bills trailing 10-0. ** San Diego Chargers: Ryan Leaf ** 1st NFL Start ** Vegas Line: San Diego Chargers -1.5 Over/Under:41.0 (under) Buffalo Bills (0-0) at San Diego Chargers (0-0) Bills 0 0 7 7 Chargers 3 0 10 3 Sep 6, 1998 QUALCOMM Stadium, San Diego, California 4:15pm EST 64,037 73 F C • 9 mph km/h knot Ron Blum Gus Johnson (sportscaster) and Steve Tasker NFL on CBS https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/199809060sdg.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com Buffalo Bills at San Diego Chargers — September 6th, 1998 BUF SD collapsed 1 1:06 Chargers 9 45 5:19 FG 48 John Carney (American football) 0 3 3 13:16 Chargers 3 72 1:44 RecTD Bryan Still Ryan Leaf 6 good John Carney (American football) run/pass good/failed/incomplete 0 10 3 8:50 Bills 1 66 0:12 RecTD Andre Reed Doug Flutie 43 good Steve Christie run/pass good/failed/incomplete 7 10 3 3:00 Chargers 12 61 5:50 FG 47 John Carney (American football) 7 13 4 9:05 Bills 8 31 4:52 RecTD Andre Reed Doug Flutie 5 good Steve Christie run/pass good/failed/incomplete 14 13 4 4:30 Chargers 9 28 4:35 FG 54 John Carney (American football) 14 16 14 16 left Buffalo Bills 1974thru2001 Bills San Diego Chargers 1988thru2006 Chargers Doug Flutie 12/20, 158 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT Antowain Smith 20 carries, 54 yards Andre Reed 7 receptions, 94 yards, 2 TD Ryan Leaf 16/31, 192 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT Natrone Means 15 carries, 57 yards Bryan Still 6 receptions, 128 yards, 1 TD nfl right Buffalo Bills 1974thru2001 Bills San Diego Chargers 1988thru2006 Chargers 20 62-297 28-90 207 20-34-2 33:08 14 51-254 20-67 187 16-31-2 26:52 nfl Week 2 Week 2 at Miami Dolphins Score: L 13-7 Date: September 13, 1998 Stadium: Pro Player Stadium, Miami FL Start Time: 1PM ET/10AM PT Attendance: 73,097 Weather: 82 F, 10% chance of rain TV: CBS Announcers: Ian Eagle and Mark May Week 3 vs St Louis Rams Score: L 33-34 Date: September 20, 1998 Stadium: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY Start Time: 1PM ET/10AM PT Attendance: 65,199 Weather: 72 F, sunny, wind 10 mph on TV: Fox Announcers: Kenny Albert and Tim Green Week 4 Bye Week 5 vs San Francisco 49ers Score: W 26-21 Date: October 4, 1998 Stadium: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY Start Time: 1PM ET/10AM PT Attendance: 76,615 Weather: 50 F, cloudy TV: Fox Announcers: Ray Bentley and Ron Pitts Week 6 at Indianapolis Colts Score: W 31-24 Date: October 11, 1998 Stadium: RCA Dome, Indianapolis IN Start Time: 1PM ET/10AM PT Attendance: 52,938 Weather: Dome TV: CBS Announcers: Bill Macatee and John Dockery Week 7 vs Jacksonville Jaguars Score: W 17-16 Date: October 18, 1998 Stadium: Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, NY Start Time: 1PM ET/10AM PT Attendance: 77,635 Weather: 68 F, sunny TV: CBS Announcers: Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms Week 8 Bills 10 7 10 3 Panthers 0 7 0 7 October 25 Ericsson Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina 8:20 p.m. 55 F, wind 2 mph on Gerry Austin Mike Patrick, Joe Theismann, Paul Maguire and Solomon Wilcots ESPN yes 1 BUF Eric Moulds 20 yard pass from Doug Flutie (Steve Christie kick) Bills 7–0 1 BUF Steve Christie 42 yard field goal Bills 10–0 2 CAR William Floyd 1 yard run (John Kasay kick) Bills 10–7 2 BUF Eric Moulds 82 yard pass from Doug Flutie (Steve Christie kick) Bills 17–7 3 BUF Steve Christie 47 yard field goal Bills 20–7 3 BUF Thurman Thomas 17 yard run (Steve Christie kick) Bills 27–7 4 BUF Steve Christie 44 yard field goal Bills 30–7 4 CAR Mark Carrier 8 yard pass from Steve Beuerlein (John Kasay kick) Bills 30–14 yes https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/199810250car.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com Buffalo Bills at Carolina Panthers — October 25th, 1998 Week 10 Bills 3 6 3 0 Jets 7 6 7 14 Nov 8, 1998 Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey 4:15 PM EST 75,403 38 F C • 11 mph km/h knot Bernie Kukar Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms NFL on CBS Week 14 First meeting of the two teams in Cincinnati since the 1988 AFC Championship Game. Starting QBs: Buffalo: Doug Flutie Cincinnati: Neil O'Donnell Vegas Line: Buffalo Bills -4.5 Over/Under: 43.0 (over) On the first play from scrimmage, Eric Moulds became the 20th Player in Bills History With 50+ Receptions In A Season, as he caught a 55 yard reception from Doug Flutie. https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/single-season-receiving.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com Buffalo Bills Single-Season Receiving Leaders Buffalo Bills (7-5) at Cincinnati Bengals (2-10) Bills 10 10 6 7 Bengals 0 13 0 7 Sunday Dec 6, 1998 Cinergy Field Cincinnati 1:00 p.m. EST 54,359 66 F C 1 • 14 mph km/h knot Ron Blum Gus Johnson (sportscaster) and Steve Tasker NFL on CBS https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/buf/1998.htm Pro-Football-Reference.com 1998 Buffalo Bills Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees BUF CIN collapsed 1 12:44 Bills 4 66 2:16 RushTD Antowain Smith 1 good Steve Christie run/pass good/failed/incomplete 7 0 1 6:12 Bills 9 69 1:52 FG 20 Steve Christie 10 0 2 14:10 Bengals 1 3 0:06 RecTD Darnay Scott Neil O'Donnell 8 no good (snap fumbled) run/pass good/failed/incomplete 10 6 2 9:13 Bengals 5 57 2:26 RecTD Carl Pickens Neil O'Donnell 3 good Doug Pelfrey run/pass good/failed/incomplete 10 13 2 1:41 Bills 1 65 0:13 RecTD Eric Moulds Doug Flutie 70 good Steve Christie run/pass good/failed/incomplete 17 13 2 0:04 Bills 6 22 0:45 FG 52 Steve Christie 20 13 3 10:38 Buffalo 8 38 3:13 FG 46 Steve Christie 23 13 3 3:22 Bills 10 39 4:25 FG 34 Steve Christie 26 13 4 12:12 Bills 4 59 2:00 RecTD Eric Moulds Doug Flutie 30 good Steve Christie run/pass good/failed/incomplete 33 13 4 1:42 Bengals 6 24 1:41 RushTD Corey Dillon 3 good Doug Pelfrey run/pass good/failed/incomplete 33 20 33 20 left Buffalo Bills 1974thru2001 Bills Cincinnati Bengals 1997thru2003 Bengals Doug Flutie 18/30, 319 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT Antowain Smith 18 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD Eric Moulds 9 receptions, 196 yards, 2 TD Neil O'Donnell 19/31, 168 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT Corey Dillon 11 carries, 43 yards, 1 TD Carl Pickens 8 receptions, 97 yards, 1 TD nfl y right Buffalo Bills 1974thru2001 Bills Cincinnati Bengals 1997thru2003 Bengals 21 64-448 34-139 309 18-30-3 34:23 15 53-234 17-58 176 22-36-1 25:37 nfl y Week 15 Wade Wilson gets his 2nd start at QB since 1993 by head coach John Gruden. Buffalo clinches playoff berth with the win. Wade Phillips also gets his first head coaching win vs the Raiders. Raiders (7-6) at Bills (8-5) Raiders 0 7 7 7 Bills 3 17 17 7 December 13 Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York 1:00 p.m. EST 62,002 38 F C • 11 mph km/h knot Bill Carollo Ian Eagle and Mark May NFL on CBS Standings Playoffs AFC: Miami Dolphins 24, Buffalo Bills 17 Bills 0 7 7 3 Dolphins 3 3 8 10 Pro Player Stadium, Miami, Florida 12:30 p.m. EST 80 °F °C, partly cloudy ABC Al Michaels (play-by-play), Dan Dierdorf, Boomer Esiason (color commentators), and Lesley Visser (sideline reporter) Mike Carey 72,698 Awards and honors Doug Flutie, AFC Pro Bowl Selection Doug Flutie, NFL Comeback Player of the Year Notes note References Bills on Pro Football Reference Bills on jt-sw.com Bills Stats on jt-sw.com Category:Buffalo Bills seasons Buffalo Bills Buff