The 1998

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 ...

season was the Cowboys' 39th season in the NFL. The Cowboys were looking to improve on their 6–10 mark from the year before and head to the Super Bowl for the final time in the 1990s. After the previous season, head coach

Barry Switzer Barry Layne Switzer (born October 5, 1937) is a former American football coach and player. He served for 16 years as head football coach at the University of Oklahoma and four years as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football Le ...

resigned after four seasons in which he led the Cowboys to the playoffs three times and won Super Bowl XXX.

Chan Gailey Thomas Chandler Gailey Jr. (born January 5, 1952) is a former American football coach. Most recently in 2020, he was the offensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). Gailey has previously served as the hea ...

, who had been

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...

with 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 ...

, was hired as his replacement. The Cowboys did manage to record a 10–6 record and once again win the

NFC East The National Football Conference – Eastern Division or NFC East 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 Dallas Cowboys ...

as they had done in the five seasons prior to 1997. However, the Cowboys did not advance beyond the Wild Card round as they were upset by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

, who had not won a playoff game since

1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country in ...

, when the franchise was based in Chicago. The Cowboys would not win another NFC East title until 2007.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Regular season

Gailey would revitalize the Cowboys offense, particularly the running game, which had seen a recent decline despite the presence of

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

Emmitt Smith Emmitt James Smith III (born May 15, 1969) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons, primarily with the Dallas Cowboys. Among other accolades, he is the lea ...

. The trio of Smith,

Troy Aikman Troy Kenneth Aikman (born November 21, 1966) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. After transferring from Oklahoma, he played college football at UCLA, ...

, and

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 ...

helped the Cowboys be the first ever NFC East team to sweep their division en route to capturing the

title, the team's sixth of the 90's. The Cowboys would later encounter the

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 Texas Stadium was an American football stadium located in Irving, Texas, a suburb west of Dallas. Opened on October 24, 1971, it was known for its distinctive hole in the roof, the result of abandoned plans to construct a retractable roof (Cowboy ...

Cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

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 Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

Greg Ellis and

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

Flozell Adams Flozell Jootin Adams (born May 18, 1975) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football for Michigan State University. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round of the 1998 NFL Draft, and also played ...

. Ellis was drafted with the 8th pick in the first round. Many were stunned that the Cowboys didn't draft

Randy Moss Randy Gene Moss (born February 13, 1977) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, Tennessee ...

(most likely for his off-the-field issues).

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Standings

Playoffs

Roster

Publications

* ''The Football Encyclopedia'' * ''Total Football'' * ''Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes''

References

External links

*
Pro Football Hall of Fame

Dallas Cowboys Official Site
Dallas Cowboys seasons

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 ...

NFC East championship seasons

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