The 1995 NFL season was the 76th
regular season
In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of Se ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
. The league expanded to 30 teams with the addition of
the Carolina Panthers and
the Jacksonville Jaguars. The two expansion teams were slotted into the two remaining divisions that previously had only four teams (while the other four had five teams): the
AFC Central
The American Football Conference – Northern Division or AFC North is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The division was adopted after the restructuring of the 2002 NFL ...
(Jaguars) and the
NFC West
The National Football Conference - Western Division or NFC West is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). It currently has four members: the Arizona Cardinal ...
(Panthers).
Meanwhile, the two teams in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
relocated to other cities: the
Rams
In engineering, RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability and safety)St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
and the
Raiders moved back to
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
; this would be the start of a 20-year absence for the NFL in Los Angeles. During the course of the season it emerged that
the Cleveland Browns would
relocate to
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
for the
1996 season. The Raiders’ move was not announced until after the schedule had been announced, which resulted in a problem in the third week of the season when both the Raiders and
the San Francisco 49ers had games scheduled to air on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
which ended up overlapping each other. The Raiders game was rescheduled for 10:00 AM PDT in case they were to relocate and NBC was given the doubleheader so that both Bay Area teams had their games televised locally.
The season ended with
Super Bowl XXX, when the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
defeated the
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...
27–17 at
Sun Devil Stadium
Sun Devil Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in the southwestern United States, on the campus of Arizona State University (ASU) in Tempe, Arizona. It is home to the ASU Sun Devils football team of the Pac-12 Conference. The s ...
. They became the first team in NFL history to win three Super Bowls in four years. This season was Miami Dolphins head coach
Don Shula’s last season as coach.
Player movement
Transactions
*July 27: The Tampa Bay Bucaneers signed linebacker
Tommy Thigpen
Tommy Thigpen (born March 17, 1971) is an American college football coach and former player. He is currently the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at University of North Carolina, a position he assumed in January 2018. Prior to that, ...
*July 27: The Miami Dolphins signed Defensive End
Steve Emtman
Steven Charles Emtman (born April 16, 1970) is a former professional American football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Washington and was selected first overall by ...
*July 29: The New York Giants signed
Jessie Armstead
Jessie Willard Armstead (born October 26, 1970) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) who played for eleven seasons with the New York Giants and the Washington Redskins between 1993 and 2003. He played col ...
*July 29: The Indianapolis Colts signed wide receiver
Wendell Davis
Wendell Tyrone Davis (born January 3, 1966) is a former professional American football wide receiver who played for the Chicago Bears for six seasons from 1988 to 1993. He was selected by the Bears in the 1st round (27th overall) in the 1988 N ...
Retirements
*April 18, 1995: Four-time Super Bowl champion quarterback
Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
announced his retirement. He spent the last two seasons of his career with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Draft
The
1995 NFL draft
The 1995 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1995 at the Paramount Th ...
was held from April 22 to 23, 1995 at
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
's
Theater at Madison Square Garden
The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden is a theater located in New York City's Madison Square Garden. It seats between 2,000 and 5,600, and is used for concerts, shows, sports, meetings, and other events. It is located beneath the main Madison ...
. With the first pick, the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
selected running back
Ki-Jana Carter
Kenneth Leonard "Ki-Jana" Carter (; born September 12, 1973) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. He played college football at Penn State, where he earned consensus All ...
from
Penn State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State became ...
.
Expansion Draft
The
1995 NFL expansion draft was held on February 15, 1995. The
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
held the first pick overall, while the
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
were second, alternating picks as the existing teams made six players available for selection,. The Panthers ultimately picked 35 players, while the Jaguars picked 31. With the first selection in the Expansion Draft, the Jaguars selected quarterback
Steve Beuerlein
Stephen Taylor Beuerlein (born March 7, 1965) is a former American football quarterback, and is currently an NFL and college football analyst for CBS.
High school career
In his senior year, Beuerlein led Anaheim's Servite High School to the C ...
from the Arizona Cardinals. Selecting second, the Panthers obtained cornerback
Rod Smith from the New England Patriots.
New referees
Mike Carey and
Walt Coleman
Walt Coleman III (born January 16, 1952) is a former American football official who officiated in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1989 season until the end of the 2018 season. He wore uniform number 65. During his final season in ...
were promoted to referee; Carey became the second African-American referee in NFL history following
Johnny Grier, who was promoted in 1988.
Dale Hamer
Dale Hamer (born 1937) is a former American football official in the National Football League (NFL) who served from 1978 to 2001, with a break taken for health reasons during the 1995 season. During his 23 seasons in the NFL, Hamer was assigned t ...
had to sit out the 1995 season to recover from open heart surgery, while league expansion from 28 to 30 teams required an additional officiating crew.
Major rule changes
*An eligible receiver forced out of bounds by a defensive player may return to the field and automatically become eligible to legally be the first player to touch a forward pass.
*Quarterbacks may now receive communications from the bench from a small radio receiver in their helmets, partly repealing a rule that had been in force since
1956.
Preseason
American Bowl
A series of
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
pre-season exhibition games that were held at sites outside the United States. Two games were contested in 1995.
Hall of Fame Game
The
Pro Football Hall of Fame Game
The Pro Football Hall of Fame Game is an annual National Football League (NFL) exhibition game in Canton, Ohio, held the weekend of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's induction ceremonies. The game is played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, part ...
, featured the NFL's newest expansions teams, as the
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
defeated the
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
20-14, was played on July 29, and held at
Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium
Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, formerly Fawcett Stadium, is a football stadium and entertainment complex in Canton, Ohio. It is a major component of ''Hall of Fame Village'', located adjacent to the grounds of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The ...
in
Canton, Ohio
Canton () is a city in and the county seat of Stark County, Ohio. It is located approximately south of Cleveland and south of Akron in Northeast Ohio. The city lies on the edge of Ohio's extensive Amish country, particularly in Holmes and ...
, the same city where
the league was founded. The 1995 Hall of Fame Class included Jim Finks, Henry Jordan, Steve Largent, Lee Roy Selmon and Kellen Winslow
Regular season
Scheduling formula
Highlights of the 1995 season included:
*
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...
: Two games were played on Thursday, November 23, featuring the Minnesota Vikings at
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...
and Kansas City Chiefs at
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, with Detroit and Dallas winning.
*
Snowball Game (1995): In the final weekend of the season, the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
hosted the
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...
. Giants fans threw snowballs onto the field throughout the contest. This action resulted in 15 arrests and the ejection of 175 fans from
Giants Stadium
Giants Stadium (sometimes referred to as Giants Stadium at the Meadowlands or The Swamp) was a stadium located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The venue was open from 1976 to 2010, and it primarily hosted sp ...
; San Diego posted a 27–17 victory in what became known as the "Snowball Game".
Final standings
Tiebreakers
*Indianapolis finished ahead of Miami in the AFC East based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
*San Diego was the first AFC Wild Card based on head-to-head victory over Indianapolis (1–0).
*Cincinnati finished ahead of Houston in the AFC Central based on better division record (4–4 to Oilers’ 3–5).
*Seattle finished ahead of Denver and Oakland in the AFC West based on best head-to-head record (3–1 to Broncos’ 2–2 and Raiders’ 1–3).
*Denver finished ahead of Oakland in the AFC West based on head-to-head sweep (2–0).
*Philadelphia was the first NFC Wild Card ahead of Detroit based on better conference record (9–3 to Lions’ 7–5).
*San Francisco was the second NFC playoff seed ahead of Green Bay based on better conference record (8–4 to Packers’ 7–5).
*Atlanta was the third NFC Wild Card ahead of Chicago based on better record against common opponents (4–2 to Bears’ 3–3).
*St. Louis finished ahead of Carolina and New Orleans in the NFC West based on best head-to-head record (3–1 to Panthers’ 1–3 and Saints’ 2–2).
*Carolina finished ahead of New Orleans in the NFC West based on better conference record (4–8 to 3–9).
Playoffs
Milestones
The following players set all-time records during the season:
Statistical leaders
Team
Individual
The 1995 season produced four of the top twenty highest single-season totals for receiving yards. Two of the top five teams receiving yard totals of all time – Jerry Rice's 1,848 &
Isaac Bruce
Isaac Isidore Bruce (born November 10, 1972) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) and a member of the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the second round o ...
's 1,781 – were recorded in 1995.
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...
receiver
Herman Moore
Herman Joseph Moore (born October 20, 1969) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He played college football for the Virginia Cavaliers. He was drafted by ...
gained 1,686 yards (6th highest all time) and
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
receiver
Michael Irvin
Michael Jerome Irvin (born March 5, 1966) is an American sports commentator and former professional football wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). In 2007, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fa ...
gained 1,603 yards (11th most in NFL history).
Awards
Coaching changes
Offseason
*
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...
:
Mike Shanahan
Michael Edward Shanahan (born August 24, 1952) is a former American football coach, best known as the head coach of the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL) from 1995 to 2008. During his fourteen seasons with the Broncos, he led ...
replaced the fired
Wade Phillips
Harold Wade Phillips (born June 21, 1947) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL. He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys. He has also ser ...
*
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
:
Dom Capers
Ernest Dominic Capers (born August 7, 1950) is an American football coach who is a senior defensive assistant for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously the inaugural head coach of the Carolina Panthers and ...
became this expansion team's first head coach.
*
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...
:
Jeff Fisher
Jeffrey Michael Fisher (born February 25, 1958) is an American football coach who is the head coach and general manager for the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League (USFL). He is a former cornerback and return specialist. He ...
became the permanent head coach. Fisher served as interim for the final six games of 1994 after
Jack Pardee
John Perry Pardee (April 19, 1936 – April 1, 2013) was an American football linebacker and the only head coach to helm a team in college football, the National Football League (NFL), the United States Football League (USFL), the World Footbal ...
was fired.
*
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
:
Tom Coughlin
Thomas Richard Coughlin ( ; born August 31, 1946) is a former American football coach and executive. He was the head coach for the New York Giants from 2004 to 2015. He led the Giants to victory in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI, both time ...
became this expansion team's first head coach.
*
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
:
Mike White replaced the fired
Art Shell
Arthur Lee Shell Jr. (born November 26, 1946) is an American former professional football player in the American Football League (AFL) and later in the National Football League (NFL), a Hall of Fame offensive tackle and a two-time former head co ...
for the Raiders' first season since returning to Oakland.
*
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
:
Ray Rhodes
Raymond Earl Rhodes (born October 20, 1950) is a former American football player and coach. Rhodes played wide receiver and cornerback for the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers. He served as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles an ...
replaced the fired
Rich Kotite
Richard Edward Kotite (born October 13, 1942) is a former National Football League (NFL) player and coach. In the 1990s, he had stints as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Jets
Playing career
Kotite was born in Brooklyn, ...
.
*
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
:
Rich Kotite
Richard Edward Kotite (born October 13, 1942) is a former National Football League (NFL) player and coach. In the 1990s, he had stints as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Jets
Playing career
Kotite was born in Brooklyn, ...
replaced the fired
Pete Carroll
Peter Clay Carroll (born September 15, 1951) is an American football coach who is the head coach and executive vice president for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously the head football coach at USC from ...
.
*
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...
:
Dennis Erickson
Dennis Brian Erickson (born March 24, 1947) is an American football coach who most recently served as the head coach for the Salt Lake Stallions of the Alliance of American Football league. He was also the head coach at the University of Idaho ( ...
replaced the fired
Tom Flores
Thomas Raymond Flores (born March 21, 1937) is a former American football coach and quarterback. After his retirement as a coach, he was a radio announcer for more than twenty years.
Flores won a total of four Super Bowls in his playing and c ...
.
*
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arr ...
:
Rich Brooks
Richard Llewellyn Brooks (born August 20, 1941) is a retired American football player and coach. He was the head coach at the University of OregonMcCann, Michael C. (1995). Oregon Ducks Football: 100 Years of Glory. Eugene, Oregon: McCann Communic ...
replaced the fired
Chuck Knox for the Rams's first season in St. Louis.
In-season
*
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
:
Elijah Pitts
Elijah Eugene Pitts (February 3, 1938 – July 10, 1998) was an American football player, a halfback in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons, ten with the Green Bay Packers. Late in his career, he briefly played for the Los Angeles ...
served as interim for three games while
Marv Levy recovered from prostate cancer surgery.
Stadium changes
*
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
: The expansion Panthers played their first season at
Memorial Stadium in
Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson () is a city in Pickens and Anderson counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Clemson is home to Clemson University; in 2015, ''the Princeton Review'' cited the town of Clemson as ranking #1 in the United States for " town-and-gown" ...
while
their new stadium in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
remained under construction
*
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
: This is the first season since 1932 that the Packers played full time in Green Bay, no longer playing
select games in Milwaukee
*
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
: The expansion Jaguars moved into
Jacksonville Municipal Stadium
TIAA Bank Field is an American football stadium located in Jacksonville, Florida, that primarily serves as the home facility of the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL) and the headquarters of the professional wrestling prom ...
on the site of the former
Gator Bowl Stadium
*
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
: The relocated Raiders moved back from the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a mem ...
to the
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
Oakland Coliseum, currently naming rights, branded as RingCentral Coliseum, is a stadium in Oakland, California. It is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex, with the adjacent Oakland Arena, near Interstate 880 (California), In ...
*
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arr ...
: The relocated Rams initially moved from
Anaheim Stadium
Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium located in Anaheim, California. Since its opening in 1966, it has served as the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB), and was also the home stadium to the Los Angel ...
to
Busch Memorial Stadium
Busch Memorial Stadium, also known as Busch Stadium II, was a multi-purpose sports facility in St. Louis, Missouri, that operated for 40 years, from 1966 through 2005.
The stadium served as the home of the St. Louis Cardinals National League ...
in St. Louis. The
Trans World Dome
The Dome at America's Center is a multi-purpose stadium used for concerts, major conventions, and sporting events in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Previously known as the Trans World Dome from 1995 to 2001 and the Edward Jones Do ...
then opened for their fifth regular season home game, with
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...
acquiring the naming rights
*
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
:
Candlestick Park
Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium on the West Coast of the United States, located in San Francisco's Bayview Heights area. The stadium was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 un ...
was renamed 3Com Park after the digital electronics manufacturer
3Com
3Com Corporation was an American digital electronics manufacturer best known for its computer network products. The company was co-founded in 1979 by Robert Metcalfe, Howard Charney and others. Bill Krause joined as President in 1981. Metcalfe ex ...
acquired the naming rights
Uniform changes
* The inaugural
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. T ...
uniforms featured gray helmets, blue trim, black jerseys with white numbers and gray pants, and white jerseys with black numbers and white pants. The helmet logo featured a black panther head with blue trim.
* The
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
wore a navy blue version of the white "Double-Star" alternate jerseys they wore in 1994, with blue sleeves and white star logos on the shoulders. The white "Double Star" jersey was discontinued due to a since-repealed NFL policy which allowed teams only one colored jersey and one white jersey except for special occasions.
* The
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 a ...
began wearing their white pants with their white jerseys, discontinuing their blue pants. This was the first time the Oilers wore white pants with white jerseys for a full season since
1980.
* The
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...
experimented with wearing blue pants with their white jerseys for their first three games.
* The inaugural
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
uniforms featured black helmets, teal jerseys with white numbers, white jerseys with teal numbers, and white pants. The helmet logo featured a jaguar head with a teal tongue.
* The
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
switched from block numbers to a rounded number font with a drop shadow. The "Flying Elvis" helmet logo was repeated on the shoulders, and TV numbers moved to the sleeves.
* The
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...
removed the black trim from the nameplates on jerseys.
* The
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
removed the black trim from their jersey numbers and nameplates.
* The
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arr ...
removed the gold stripping on their blue socks.
Television
This was the second year under the league's four-year broadcast contracts with
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
,
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
,
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
,
TNT
Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...
, and ESPN. ABC, Fox, and NBC continued to televise ''
Monday Night Football
''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, A ...
'', the NFC package, the AFC package, respectively. Sunday night games aired on TNT during the first half of the season, and ESPN during the second half of the season.
NBC renamed
its pregame show as simply ''The NFL on NBC''. The then-recently retired quarterback
Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford Montana Jr. (born June 11, 1956) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. Nicknamed "Joe Cool" and "the Comeback Kid", ...
joined the show as an analyst, alongside
Greg Gumbel
Greg Gumbel (born May 3, 1946) is an American television sportscaster. He is best known for his various assignments for CBS Sports (most notably, the National Football League and NCAA basketball). The older brother of news and sportscaster Brya ...
,
Mike Ditka
Michael Keller Ditka (born Michael Dyczko; October 18, 1939) is an American former football player, coach, and television commentator. A member of both the College (1986) and the Pro (1988) Football Halls of Fame, he was UPI NFL Rookie of Year i ...
, and
Joe Gibbs
Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional football coach. In football, he was head coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1992, and a ...
.
Phil Simms
Phillip Martin Simms (born November 3, 1955) is an American former football quarterback who spent his entire 15-year professional career playing for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He is currently a television sport ...
and
Paul Maguire
Paul Leo Maguire (born August 22, 1938) is a former American professional football player and television sportscaster.
Early sports career
Maguire attended Ursuline High School in Youngstown, Ohio where he was an All State wide receiver and ...
joined
Dick Enberg
Richard Alan Enberg (January 9, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American sportscaster. Over the course of an approximately 60-year career, he provided play-by-play of various sports for several radio and television networks, including N ...
as NBC's lead broadcast team, replacing
Bob Trumpy
Robert Theodore Trumpy Jr. (born March 6, 1945) is a former professional American football tight end who played for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1968 through 1977. He was a two-time National Football League Pro Bowler and a two-time American Footb ...
.
Verne Lundquist
Merton Laverne Lundquist Jr. (born July 17, 1940) is an American sportscaster.
Biography
Early life and career
Lundquist was born in Duluth, Minnesota. He graduated from Austin High School in Austin, Texas, before attending Texas Lutheran U ...
replaced
Gary Bender
Gary Nedrow Bender (born September 1, 1940) is a retired American sportscaster and 2008 inductee into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. He officially retired, April 13, 2011, from Fox Sports Arizona after 18 years calling the NBA's Phoenix Su ...
as TNT's play-by-play announcer. TNT also renamed its pregame show as ''Pro Football Tonight'', with
Vince Cellini
Vincent Robert Cellini (; born June 10, 1959 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American sports broadcaster for radio and television, currently working at NBA TV and Turner Sports.
Early life and career
Cellini was a lifeguard at Grovewood, a city pool ...
as its host.
External links
Football Outsiders 1995 DVOA Ratings and CommentaryFootball Outsiders 1995 team offense statsFootball Outsiders 1995 team defense statsFootball Outsiders 1995 special teams stats
References
* ''NFL Record and Fact Book'' ()
NFL History 1991–2000(Last accessed October 17, 2005)
* ''Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League'' ()
(Last accessed October 17, 2005)
{{DEFAULTSORT:1995 Nfl Season
National Football League seasons
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...