2018 National Football League Season
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The 2018 NFL season was the 99th season 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 ...
(NFL) and the 53rd of the
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
era. The season began on September 6, 2018, with the
NFL Kickoff Game The National Football League Kickoff game, along with related festivities, marks the official start of the National Football League (NFL) regular season. A single game is held, preceded by a concert and other ceremonies. This first game of the se ...
with defending
Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...
champion
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
defeating
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
. The season concluded with
Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...
, the league's championship game, on February 3, 2019, at
Mercedes-Benz Stadium Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in August 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it serves as the home stadium of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) ...
in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, Georgia, in which
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
defeated the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
for their sixth Super Bowl championship and their third title in five years.


Player movement

The 2018 NFL League year and trading period began on March 14. On March 9, clubs were allowed to exercise options for 2018 on players who have option clauses in their contracts, submit qualifying offers to their pending restricted free agents and submit a Minimum Salary Tender to retain exclusive negotiating rights to their players with expiring 2017 contracts and who have fewer than three accrued seasons of free agent credit. Teams were required to be under the salary cap using the "Top-51" definition (in which the 51 highest paid-players on the team's payroll must have a combined salary cap hit below the actual cap). On March 12, clubs were allowed to contact and enter into contract negotiations with the agents of players who were set to become unrestricted free agents.


Free agency

Over 550 players were eligible for some form of free agency during the free agency period. Notable players to change teams include: * Quarterbacks
Sam Bradford Samuel Jacob Bradford (born November 8, 1987) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, most notably with the St. Louis Rams and Minnesota Vikings. He was also a member of the P ...
(Minnesota to Arizona),
Kirk Cousins Kirk Daniel Cousins (born August 19, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan State and was drafted by the team then known as the Washingto ...
(Washington to Minnesota),
Case Keenum Casey Austin Keenum (born February 17, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Houston, where he became the NCAA's all-time leader in total passing ...
(Minnesota to Denver), and
A. J. McCarron Raymond Anthony "A. J." McCarron Jr. (born September 13, 1990) is an American football quarterback for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL. He previously played in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons. McCarron played college f ...
(Cincinnati to Buffalo). * Running backs
Isaiah Crowell Isaiah Hassan Crowell ( ; born January 8, 1993) is a former American football running back. He played college football at Georgia and Alabama State. Crowell was signed by the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent in 2014. High school ca ...
(Cleveland to New York Jets),
Carlos Hyde Carlos Dawon Hyde (born September 20, 1990) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Ohio State University and was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Hig ...
(San Francisco to Cleveland),
Frank Gore Franklin Gore Sr. (born May 14, 1983) is an American former American football, football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. A member of the San Francisco 49ers during most of his career, he ranks third ...
(Indianapolis to Miami),
Dion Lewis Dion John Lewis (born September 27, 1990) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football at the University of Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Philadelphia ...
(New England to Tennessee),
Jerick McKinnon Jerick Deshun McKinnon (born May 3, 1992), nicknamed Jet, is an American football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia Southern and was drafted by the Minnesota Viki ...
(Minnesota to San Francisco), and
Adrian Peterson Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football at Oklahoma, where he set the ...
(Arizona to Washington) * Wide receivers
Danny Amendola Daniel James Amendola (born November 2, 1985) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at Texas Tech. He was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2008. After spending his entire rookie season ...
(New England to Miami),
Allen Hurns Allen Bernard Hurns (born November 12, 1991) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in 2014. He played college football at the University of Miami. Early ...
(Jacksonville to Dallas),
Jordy Nelson Jordy Ray Nelson (born May 31, 1985) is a former American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League for 11 seasons with the Green Bay Packers and the Oakland Raiders. He played college football at Kansas State, where he ...
(Green Bay to Oakland),
Allen Robinson Allen Bernard Robinson II (born August 24, 1993) is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft, and pl ...
(Jacksonville to Chicago), and
Sammy Watkins Samuel Benjamin Watkins IV (born June 14, 1993) is an American football wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson and was drafted by the Buffalo Bills fourth overall in ...
(Los Angeles Rams to Kansas City) * Tight ends
Jimmy Graham Jimmy Graham (born November 24, 1986) is an American football tight end who is a free agent. He played only one year of college football at Miami Hurricanes football, University of Miami after playing four years of college basketball, basketball ...
(Seattle to Green Bay),
Austin Seferian-Jenkins Austin Edward Seferian-Jenkins (born September 29, 1992) is a former American football tight end. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Washington. He also played fo ...
(New York Jets to Jacksonville), and
Marcedes Lewis Marcedes Alexis Lewis (born May 19, 1984) is an American football tight end for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UCLA, earning consensus All-American honors. He was selected by the Jac ...
(Jacksonville to Green Bay) * Offensive linemen
Cameron Fleming Cameron Jarrod Fleming (born September 3, 1992) is an American football offensive tackle for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He playe ...
(New England to Dallas),
Andrew Norwell Andrew Norwell (born October 25, 1991) is an American football guard for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Carolina Panthers ...
(Carolina to Jacksonville),
Mike Pouncey James Michael Pouncey (born July 24, 1989) is a former American football center who played ten seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Florida, was a member of a BCS National Championship ...
(Miami to Los Angeles Chargers),
Justin Pugh Justin David Pugh (born August 15, 1990) is an American football guard for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Syracuse. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the first round of the 2 ...
(New York Giants to Arizona),
Weston Richburg Weston Blaine Richburg (born July 9, 1991) is a former American football center. He was drafted by the New York Giants in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft, and also played for the San Francisco 49ers. He played college football at Colorado ...
(New York Giants to San Francisco),
Nate Solder Nathaniel Perry Solder (born April 12, 1988) is an American football offensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football for the University of Colorado, and was recognized as an All-American. He was drafted by the New England Patri ...
(New England to New York Giants),
Josh Sitton Josh James Sitton ( ; born June 16, 1986) is a former American football guard. He played college football at the University of Central Florida and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He made four P ...
(Chicago to Miami), and
Travis Swanson Travis Swanson (born January 30, 1991) is a former American football center. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Arkansas. Early years A native of Houston, Texas, Swanson ...
(Detroit to New York Jets) * Defensive linemen
Adrian Clayborn Adrian Jarrell Clayborn (born July 6, 1988) is a former American football defensive end. He played college football for the University of Iowa, and earned consensus All-American honors. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first r ...
(Atlanta to New England),
Vinny Curry Vincent Curry (born June 30, 1988) is an American football defensive end for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for Marshall, he was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of t ...
(Philadelphia to Tampa Bay),
Sheldon Richardson Sheldon Adam Richardson (born November 29, 1990) is an American football defensive tackle who is a free agent. He played college football at Missouri, and was drafted by the New York Jets in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Richardson has ...
(Seattle to Minnesota),
Ndamukong Suh Ndamukong Ngwa Suh ( , born January 6, 1987) is an American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Nebraska, where he earned All-American honors, and was drafte ...
(Miami to Los Angeles Rams),
Star Lotulelei Starlite Lotulelei Jr. ( ; born December 20, 1989) is a Tongan professional American football defensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He played college foo ...
(Carolina to Buffalo), and
Muhammad Wilkerson Muhammad Hassan "Mo" Wilkerson (born October 22, 1989) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Temple Owls, and was selected by the N ...
(New York Jets to Green Bay) * Linebackers
Demario Davis Demario Davis (born January 11, 1989) is an American football linebacker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the New York Jets in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He played college football a ...
(New York Jets to New Orleans),
Trent Murphy Trenton Allen Murphy (born December 22, 1990) is a former American football defensive end. He played college football at Stanford, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. High school career Murphy ...
(Washington to Buffalo),
Tahir Whitehead Tahir Ali Whitehead (born April 2, 1990) is a former American football linebacker. He played college football for Temple University, and was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Early years A native of Newark, ...
(Detroit to Oakland), and
Avery Williamson Avery Milton Williamson (born March 9, 1992) is an American football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Kentucky. High schoo ...
(Tennessee to New York Jets) * Defensive backs
Malcolm Butler Malcolm Terel Butler (born March 2, 1990) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played his first four seasons with the Patriots, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2014. After leaving New England, he was a member ...
(New England to Tennessee),
Morgan Burnett Morgan Mark Burnett (born January 13, 1989) is a former American football strong safety. He played college football at Georgia Tech and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He also played for the Pittsbu ...
(Green Bay to Pittsburgh),
T. J. Carrie Travis J. Carrie (born July 28, 1990) is an American football cornerback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio after playing for De La Salle High School where he was an all-state cor ...
(Oakland to Cleveland),
Ross Cockrell Ross Cockrell (born August 6, 1991) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at Duke. Early life Cockrell was born on Au ...
(New York Giants to Carolina), E. J. Gaines (Buffalo to Cleveland),
Marcus Gilchrist Marcus Tyler Gilchrist (born December 8, 1988) is a former American football Safety (gridiron football position), safety. He played college football at Clemson Tigers football, Clemson. He was drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the second roun ...
(Houston to Oakland), Trumaine Johnson (Los Angeles Rams to New York Jets),
Tyrann Mathieu Tyrann Devine Mathieu (; born May 13, 1992) is an American football safety for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting a ...
(Arizona to Houston),
Rashaan Melvin Rashaan DeMarcus Melvin (born October 2, 1989) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Northern Illinois, and signed with Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2013. College career Melvin started 27 ...
(Indianapolis to Oakland),
Eric Reid Eric Todd Reid Jr. (born December 10, 1991) is a former American football safety. He played college football for Louisiana State University (LSU), and received consensus All-American recognition. He was selected in the first round of the 2013 ...
(San Francisco To Carolina), Patrick Robinson (Philadelphia to New Orleans), and Richard Sherman (Seattle to San Francisco) * Kicker
Sebastian Janikowski Sebastian Paweł Janikowski (; born March 2, 1978) is a Polish former American football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Oakland Raiders. He played college football at Florida State ...
(Oakland to Seattle) * Punter
Marquette King Marquette King Jr. (born October 26, 1988) is an American football punter for the Arlington Renegades of the XFL. He played college football at Fort Valley State and was signed by the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2012. King led ...
(Oakland to Denver)


Trades

The following notable trades were made during the 2018 league year: * March 14:
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
traded WR
Jarvis Landry Jarvis Charles Landry (born November 28, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the second round o ...
to
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
for a 2018 fourth round selection (123rd overall) and a
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
seventh round selection. * March 14: Buffalo traded QB
Tyrod Taylor Tyrod Diallo Taylor (born August 3, 1989) is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Virginia Tech, leading the Hokies to the 2009 Orange Bowl as a Sophomore ...
to
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
for a 2018 third round selection (65th overall). * March 14: Buffalo traded T
Cordy Glenn Cordy Glenn (born September 18, 1989) is a former American football offensive tackle. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He played college football at Georgia. Glenn earned a 2010 All-American select ...
, a 2018 first round selection (21st overall), and a 2018 fifth round selection (158th overall) to
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
for a 2018 first round selection (12th overall) and a 2018 sixth round selection (187th overall). * March 14: Green Bay traded CB
Damarious Randall Damarious Wayne Randall (born August 29, 1992) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He played college football at Arizona State and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. Early years Ran ...
, a 2018 fourth round selection (114th overall), and a 2018 fifth round selection (150th overall) to
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
for QB
DeShone Kizer DeShone Allen Kizer (born January 3, 1996) is an American football quarterback who has played in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. He played college football at Notre Dame and was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the secon ...
, a 2018 fourth round selection (101st overall), and a 2018 fifth round selection (138th overall) * March 14:
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
traded DT
Danny Shelton Daniel Saileupumoni Shelton (born August 20, 1993) is an American football defensive tackle for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He pl ...
and a 2018 fifth round selection (159th overall) to
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
for a
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
third round selection. * March 14:
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
traded QB
Alex Smith Alexander Douglas Smith (born May 7, 1984) is an American former quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. He played college football at Utah, where he received first-team All-American honors and won the 20 ...
to
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
in exchange for CB
Kendall Fuller Kendall Christopher Fuller (born February 13, 1995) is an American football cornerback for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Virginia Tech and was drafted by the Washington Commanders ...
and a 2018 third round selection (78th overall). * March 14:
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
traded CB
Marcus Peters Marcus Peters (born January 9, 1993) is an American football cornerback who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft and was also a member of the Los Angeles Rams and the Baltimore Raven ...
and a 2018 sixth round draft selection (196th overall) to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
in exchange for a 2018 fourth round selection (124th overall) and a 2019 second round selection. * March 14:
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
traded CB
Aqib Talib Aqib Talib (born February 13, 1986) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at the University of Kansas, where he received consensus All-American honors, and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first rou ...
to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
in exchange for a 2018 fifth round selection (160th overall). * March 14: The
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
traded LB Alec Ogletree and a 2019 seventh round draft selection to 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. ...
in exchange for a 2018 fourth round selection ( 135th overall) and a 2018 sixth round selection ( 176th overall). * March 14: The
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
traded DE Robert Quinn and a 2018 sixth round selection to
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
in exchange for a 2018 fourth round selection and a 2018 sixth round selection. * March 14: Seattle traded DE Michael Bennett and a 2018 seventh round selection to
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
for WR Marcus Johnson and a 2018 fifth round selection. * March 14:
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
traded WR Torrey Smith to
Carolina Carolina may refer to: Geography * The Carolinas, the U.S. states of North and South Carolina ** North Carolina, a U.S. state ** South Carolina, a U.S. state * Province of Carolina, a British province until 1712 * Carolina, Alabama, a town in ...
for CB Daryl Worley. * March 18:
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 ...
traded WR Cordarrelle Patterson and a 2018 sixth round selection (210th overall) to
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
for a 2018 fifth round selection (159th overall). * March 22: 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. ...
traded DE
Jason Pierre-Paul Jason Andrew Pierre-Paul (born January 1, 1989) is an American football outside linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Florida and was drafted by the New York Giants in t ...
and their 2018 fourth round selection (102nd overall) to Tampa Bay in exchange for a 2018 third round selection (69th overall) and a 2018 fourth round selection (108th overall). * March 29:
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
traded S
Su'a Cravens Su'a Kristopher Cravens (born July 7, 1995) is a former American football strong safety. He played college football at USC, and was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Cravens played the linebacker pos ...
, a 2018 fourth round selection (113th overall), and a 2018 fifth round selection (149th overall) to
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
in exchange for a 2018 fourth round selection (109th overall), two 2018 fifth round selections (142nd and 163rd overall), and a conditional
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
selection. *April 3:
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
traded WR Brandin Cooks and a 2018 fourth round selection (136th overall) to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
for a 2018 first round selection (23rd overall) and a 2018 sixth round selection (198th overall). *April 26: Pittsburgh traded WR Martavis Bryant 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 ...
for a 2018 third round selection (79th overall). *August 29: 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 ...
traded QB Teddy Bridgewater and a 2019 sixth-round selection to New Orleans for a 2019 third round selection. *September 1:
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 ...
traded DE/OLB
Khalil Mack Khalil Delshon Mack (; born February 22, 1991) is an American football outside linebacker for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Buffalo, and was drafted by the Oakland Raiders with the ...
, a 2020 second round selection, and a conditional 2020 fifth round selection to Chicago in exchange for a 2019 first round selection, a 2020 first round selection, a 2020 third round selection, and a 2019 sixth round selection. *September 17:
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
traded WR Josh Gordon and a conditional 2019 seventh round selection to
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
in exchange for a 2019 fifth round selection. *October 19:
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
traded RB
Carlos Hyde Carlos Dawon Hyde (born September 20, 1990) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He played college football at Ohio State University and was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Hig ...
to Jacksonville in exchange for a fifth round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. *October 23:
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 ...
traded WR Amari Cooper to Dallas in exchange for a 2019 first round selection. *October 30:
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
traded WR
Demaryius Thomas Demaryius Antwon Thomas (December 25, 1987 – December 9, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons, primarily with the Denver Broncos. He played college ...
and a 2019 seventh round selection to Houston for a 2019 fourth round selection and a 2019 seventh round selection. *October 30: Detroit traded WR
Golden Tate Golden Herman Tate III (born August 2, 1988) is an American baseball player and former football wide receiver who is currently a center fielder for the Port Angeles Lefties of the West Coast League (WCL). He played college football at Notre D ...
to
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
for a 2019 third round selection. *October 30: Jacksonville traded DE Dante Fowler to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
for a 2019 third round selection and a 2020 fifth round selection. *October 30: Green Bay traded S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
for a 2019 fourth round selection and RB Ty Montgomery to
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
for a 2020 seventh round selection.


Retirements

*S
Kam Chancellor Kameron Darnel Chancellor (born April 3, 1988), nicknamed "Bam Bam", is an American former football strong safety who played for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Virginia Tech prior to ...
: Four-time Pro Bowler, two-time second-team All-Pro safety, and Super Bowl XLVIII champion. He played his entire eight-year career with the
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 ...
. *CB Antonio Cromartie: Four-time Pro Bowler and one-time first-team All-Pro. Cromartie played for 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 ...
,
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 ...
,
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 ...
, and
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 ...
during his 11-year career, before spending the entire 2017 season as an unsigned free agent. *DE Elvis Dumervil: Five-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro. Dumervil played for the Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens, and San Francisco 49ers during his 12-year career. *DE Dwight Freeney: Seven-time Pro Bowler, four-time All-Pro (three first-team, one second-team), and
Super Bowl XLI Super Bowl XLI was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League (NFL) champio ...
champion. Freeney played for 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 ...
,
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
,
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 ...
, and
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 ...
during his 16-year career. *LB James Harrison: Five-time Pro Bowler, four-time All-Pro (two first-team, two second-team), two-time Super Bowl champion ( XL and XLIII), and 2008
Defensive Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY or DPOTY) is the name of an award given in sports for outstanding defensive play by a single player over the course of a season. Many sports leagues award this type of award. League awards for Defensive Player o ...
. Harrison played for 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 ...
,
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 ...
, and
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 ...
during his 15-year career. * KR Devin Hester: Four-time Pro Bowler, four-time All-Pro (three first-team, one second-team), and three time
NFL Special Teams Player of the Year 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 major ...
. Hester played for the
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
,
Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
, Baltimore Ravens, and
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 ...
during his 11-year career. He spent 2017 out of football before announcing his retirement in early 2018. *G Richie Incognito: Four-time Pro Bowler. Played for the
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. ...
, Miami Dolphins, and St. Louis Rams during his 12-year career. Incognito came out of retirement to sign with the
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 ...
in . *C Nick Mangold: Seven-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro (two first-team, one second-team). Played his entire 11-year career with 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 ...
. He had spent the 2017 season out of football after the Jets released him. *CB Darrelle Revis: Seven-time Pro Bowler, four-time first-team All-Pro, and Super Bowl XLIX champion. Revis played for 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 ...
, Tampa Bay Buccaneers,
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 ...
, and Kansas City Chiefs during his 11-year career. *OT Joe Thomas: Ten-time Pro Bowler and nine-time All-Pro (seven first-team, two second-team). Played his entire 11-year career for the Cleveland Browns. A deteriorating left knee contributed to Thomas's retirement. * TE
Jason Witten Christopher Jason Witten (born May 6, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for 17 seasons, primarily for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Univers ...
: Eleven-time Pro Bowler, four-time All Pro (two first-team, two second-team), and 2012
Walter Payton Man of the Year The Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award is presented annually by the National Football League (NFL) honoring a player's commitment to philanthropy and community impact, as well as his excellence on the field. Prior to 1999, it was called s ...
. Witten played 15 seasons, all with the Dallas Cowboys. He took a job with ESPN as their '' Monday Night Football'' color commentator. However he came out of retirement for the
2019 NFL season The 2019 NFL season was the 100th season of the National Football League (NFL) and the 54th of the Super Bowl era. The season began on September 5, 2019, with the NFL Kickoff Game, in which Green Bay defeated Chicago. The season concluded w ...
, with the Cowboys.


Other retirements


Draft

The
2018 NFL Draft The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...
was held from April 26 to 28 at
AT&T Stadium AT&T Stadium, formerly Cowboys Stadium, is a retractable roof, retractable-roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It serves as the home of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was completed on May 27, 2009. I ...
in
Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...
. This was the first draft to take place in an NFL stadium, and the first to be held in Texas. The Cleveland Browns selected
Baker Mayfield Baker Reagan Mayfield (born April 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Texas Tech, Mayfield played college football at Oklahoma, where he won the Hei ...
with the first overall pick.


Officiating changes


Offseason

The following officials were hired: *
Land Clark Land Clark (born March 1, 1962 in Santa Barbara, California) is an American football official in the National Football League (NFL) since the 2018 NFL season, wearing uniform number 130. Personal life Clark resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico. ...
(Field Judge) * Matt Edwards (Side Judge) * Chad Hill (Side Judge) * Anthony Jeffries (Field Judge) * Tony Josselyn (Back Judge) * Brian Matoren (Replay Official) * Mark Stewart (Line Judge) * Don Willard (Field Judge) Four referees retired during the 2018 off-season, the most to do so since records on the statistics have been kept. *
Ed Hochuli Edward G. Hochuli ( ; born December 25, 1950) is an American attorney and retired American football official. He has served as an attorney at Jones, Skelton & Hochuli, P.L.C. since 1983, and was an official in the National Football League (NFL ...
: At the time of his retirement, Hochuli was the league's longest-tenured referee, having served with the league for 28 seasons, 26 as a head referee. He was succeeded by his son,
Shawn Hochuli Shawn Hochuli ( ; born June 25, 1978) is a National Football League (NFL) official. He wears jersey #83. He entered the league in the 2014 NFL season and was promoted for 2018 from back judge to referee, following the retirement of his father, lo ...
. * Terry McAulay: McAulay spent 20 seasons as an official, 17 as a head referee, and officiated three
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
s. McAulay will work as a rules analyst for NBC's ''
Sunday Night Football Sunday Night Football may refer to: * ''NBC Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games by NBC since 2006 * ''ESPN Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games from 1987 to 2005 by ESPN * ...
''.
Shawn Smith Shawn Smith may refer to: *Shirley Patterson (1922 – 1995), a Canadian-born actress also known as Shawn Smith * Shawn Smith (musician) (1965 – 2019), American singer, songwriter, and musician *Shawn Smith (American football), a National Foot ...
, an umpire since , was promoted to replace McAulay. * Gene Steratore: Steratore spent 15 seasons as an official and was the referee of
Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...
. Steratore was involved in the controversial ruling known as the Calvin Johnson rule, as well as the infamous use of an index card during a game between the
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 ...
and Dallas Cowboys. He was one of two officials who also covered NCAA Division I basketball games. Steratore accepted an offer from CBS to fill its rules analyst position, which had been vacant since 2015. Umpire
Clay Martin Clay Martin is a National Football League (NFL) official. He wears uniform number 19. He entered the league in the season as an umpire, and was promoted to referee for the season, following the retirements of Terry McAulay and Gene Steratore. ...
was promoted to referee to replace Steratore. * Jeff Triplette: Triplette had spent 22 years as an official with the NFL, 19 as a head referee. Alex Kemp replaced Triplette. Other officials retiring: * Jim Howey (Down Judge) * Ed Walker (Down Judge) * Ron Marinucci (Line Judge) * Buddy Horton (Field Judge) * Jon Lucivansky (Field Judge) * Laird Hayes (Side Judge)


In-season

Down judge Hugo Cruz was fired for performance-related issues culminating with a missed false start during a Week 6 game between the Los Angeles Chargers and Cleveland Browns. It was the first time in the
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
era that an official was dismissed in-season.


Rule changes

The following playing rule changes have been approved by the Competition Committee for the 2018 season: * Make permanent the current rule that changes the spot of the ball after a touchback on a kickoff to the 25-yard line. Prior to
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
, the ball was placed at the 20-yard line. * Update the standards for a "catch" to have: **Two feet down or any body part other than the hands **Control of the ball **Make a "football move" such as making a 3rd step, reaching/extending to the line to gain, tucking the ball away, warding off defensive players, or have the ability to perform such an act. *:The rule for receivers who were going to the ground during the catch process has been deleted. This is in response to several issues regarding the "going to the ground" rule, especially catches by Dallas Cowboys WR Dez Bryant in the 2014 NFL playoffs and one by
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 ...
TE
Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, bank and train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the " Little Dixie" area of Western Missouri, James and his family maintained stro ...
in 2017 that were overturned due to this rule. * Allow a designated member of the officiating department (for 2018, senior vice president of officiating Al Riveron, vice president officiating evaluation and development Wayne Mackie, and vice president of instant replay and administration Russel Yurk) to instruct game officials to disqualify any player who commits a flagrant non-football act on the field for a foul called on the field. This is in response to a situation where
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 ...
tight end Rob Gronkowski intentionally inflicted a late hit on
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. ...
defensive back
Tre'Davious White Tre'Davious White Sr. (born January 16, 1995) is an American football cornerback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU, where he was a consensus All-American as a senior in 2016. He was d ...
causing a concussion to White. Gronkowski was not ejected for the foul on the field, but did receive a one-game suspension after the NFL's review of the play. *Illegally batting a ball on a scrimmage down will incur a loss of down in addition to the previous 10-yard penalty. *In overtime, when a team is ahead by 3 points, a down will run to its conclusion and all applicable points will score, even if there is a loss of possession. Previously, the offense of the trailing team could not legally score if they lost and regained possession and reached the opponent's end zone all on the same play. The rule remains that if there is a double change of possession on a play with one team in the lead, it is the last play of the game. *If a team scores a touchdown on the final play of regulation which either gives them the victory or leaves them three or more points behind, no extra-point conversion try will be needed. *A ball carrier may slide either head first or feet first to be considered giving himself up on the play, and he is afforded all protections previously provided to a runner sliding feet first. The following bylaws and resolutions were passed: *Make permanent the liberalization of workout rules for draft prospects. *For a one-year trial period, liberalize the rules for re-signing a player on waivers. *Players on injured reserve can be traded. *Players with injuries deemed major can be placed directly on injured reserve without clearing waivers. *The 10-day postseason waiver claiming period has been reduced to 1 day. *Players can be activated from injured reserve after eight games instead of eight weeks. *Teams have seven business days to complete an injury settlement instead of five. *Players in certain reserve list categories cannot be reinstated after a team's week 13 game. This restriction was previously applied to the last 30 days of the regular season. *Clarify roster procedures for players with military obligations. *For a one-year trial period, teams may contact a player who has been publicly announced to be released before the NFL lists the transaction on a Player Personnel Notice. The following changes to the kickoff rules were approved at the NFL Spring Owners' Meeting on May 23, 2018: * Players are required to line up for the kickoff as follows: **Five players on the kicking team must be on either side of the kicker **At least two players on each side must be lined up outside of the numbers and at least two additional players on each side must be lined up between the numbers and the hashmarks **Players on the kicking team (excluding the kicker) may only line up within 1 yard of the kickoff spot (the previous limit was 5 yards) **The receiving team must have eight players in a 15-yard "set-up zone" (measured from the receiving team's side of the restraining line 10 yards from the kickoff spot) * No wedge blocks. Players would only be able to do a double-team block within the "set-up zone". * Blocking is prohibited inside the restraining zone (10 yards from the kickoff spot) until the ball touches the ground or is touched in the field of play. * Once a kickoff lands in the end zone, it would become an automatic touchback. Players will no longer have to "kneel" in the end zone to stop the play. * Any player(s) being disqualified are subject to replay review. * It is now a foul (15 yards) for players to lower their helmet to initiate and make contact with an opposing player. The fouling player risks disqualification if: **Player lowers his helmet to establish a linear body posture prior to initiating or making contact with the helmet **Player delivering the blow had an unobstructed path to his opponent **Contact was clearly avoidable (player delivering the blow had other options) The chain crew was reduced by one member; the "X" marker, usually unseen on television but used to mark the start of an offensive drive, was eliminated. In response to the recent National Anthem protests in the league the past two seasons, any player or staff member who is on the field during the performance of " The Star-Spangled Banner" must stand for the duration of the performance. Such players and staff members are not required to be on the field at that time and may wait in the locker room as an alternative. The NFL will not directly fine offending players or staff members for defying the rule, instead fining the teams, who will in turn have power to fine the players or staff members at their own discretion. The National Football League Players Association filed a grievance with the league over the policy on July 11.


2018 deaths

The following people associated with the NFL (or AFL) died in 2018.


Members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame

; Tommy McDonald: A 1998 inductee of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, McDonald played 12 seasons in the NFL, the majority of them with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he had the majority of his success. The six-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro (first or second team) led the league in both receiving yards and receiving touchdowns in 1961 and was the last non- kicking position player to play without a facemask. He died September 24 at the age of 84. ; Jim Taylor: The nine-year veteran of the
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 ...
was the first member of the team's 1961–1968 dynasty to be inducted into the Hall as a 1976 inductee. The fullback, who played from 1958 through the first World Championship, appeared in five Pro Bowls, was named first or second team All-Pro six times, and led the league in both rushing touchdowns and yards in 1962, leading the latter category in 1961 as well. He finished his career on the inaugural roster of the New Orleans Saints. He died October 13, aged 83.


Team owners

* Paul Allen: Allen owned the
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 ...
from 1996 until his death on October 15, at the age of 65. Allen left no wife or children, and his estate is believed to be in control of his sister, Jody Allen. Allen was also the owner of the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
's Portland Trail Blazers, and part owner of MLS's
Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...
. * Tom Benson: Benson owned the New Orleans Saints from 1985 until his death on March 15, at the age of 90. His wife Gayle Benson inherited the team. *
Bob McNair Robert C. McNair (January 1, 1937 – November 23, 2018) was an American businessman, philanthropist, and the owner of a National Football League team, the Houston Texans. Early life and education McNair grew up in Forest City, North Car ...
: McNair died November 23 at the age of 81. He had owned the
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
from the time of its establishment in 2002 until his death. His wife Janice McNair and his son
Cal McNair Daniel Calhoun "Cal" McNair (born October 24, 1961) is an American businessman and sports executive. He currently serves as chairman and chief executive officer for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). Early life and educat ...
took over as owners, and the government of Harris County, Texas' minority stake in the team precludes any incoming owner from relocating the team. *
Alex Spanos Alexander Gus Spanos (September 28, 1923 – October 9, 2018) was an American billionaire real estate developer, founder of the A. G. Spanos Companies, and the majority owner of the San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football Lea ...
: Spanos owned the Chargers from 1984 until his death; he had had senile dementia since 2008 and was not directly involved in the team's relocation from San Diego back to Los Angeles, which was largely orchestrated by his son
Dean Spanos Dean Alexander Spanos (born May 26, 1950) is the chairman and owner of the National Football League (NFL)'s San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers franchise. He is the son of Alex Spanos, who purchased majority interest in the team in 1984. Spanos too ...
, who will head the family consortium that inherits the team. Spanos died October 9, aged 95.


Others

*
Grady Alderman Grady Alderman (December 10, 1938 – April 5, 2018) was an American football player and executive. He played professionally as an offensive tackle for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), mostly with the Minnesota Vikings. Career ...
* Willie Brown * Billy Cannon * Dwight Clark * Lindon Crow *
Bennie Cunningham Bennie Lee Cunningham, Jr. (December 23, 1954 – April 23, 2018 Matt Connolly ''The State'', April 23, 2018 ) was an American football tight end. Cunningham was drafted out of the Clemson University in the 1976 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh ...
*
Keith Fahnhorst Keith Victor Fahnhorst (February 6, 1952 – June 12, 2018) was a National Football League offensive lineman from 1974 through 1987. Fahnhorst, a 273-pound, 6-foot-6-inch lineman from the University of Minnesota, led the San Francisco 49ers in s ...
* Bill Fralic * Jim Garrett *
Chris Gedney Christopher Joseph Gedney (August 9, 1970 – March 9, 2018) was an American college and professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons. He played college football for Syracuse Universit ...
*
Tom Heckert Jr. Thomas Heckert Jr. (July 17, 1967 – August 5, 2018) was an American football executive who served as the general manager for the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). In his 27-year career, Heckert was ...
* Wes Hopkins * Wayne Huizenga * David Humm * Edwin Jackson * Ron Johnson *
Billy Kinard Billy Russell Kinard (December 16, 1933 – June 30, 2018) was an American football player and coach. He played professionally as a defensive back for the Cleveland Browns and Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL) and the Buf ...
*
Chuck Knox Charles Robert Knox (April 27, 1932 – May 12, 2018) was an American football coach at the high school, collegiate and professional levels. He served as head coach of three National Football League (NFL) teams, the Los Angeles Rams ( 1973–19 ...
*
Vince Manuwai Vincent Keoni Manuwai (July 12, 1980 – November 4, 2018) was an American football guard. He was drafted in the third round of the 2003 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He played college football for the University of Hawaii Warriors. E ...
* Dick Modzelewski * Jeremy Nunley * Jack Patera *
Gabriel Rivera Gabriel Rivera (April 7, 1961 – July 16, 2018), nicknamed "Señor Sack", was an American football nose tackle in the National Football League (NFL). Rivera played college football for Texas Tech where he earned All-American honors in 1982. ...
* Isiah Robertson * Tim Rossovich * Kona Schwenke * Ed Schultz * Clyde Scott * Tony Sparano * George Taliaferro *
Frank Varrichione Frank Joseph Varrichione (pronounced "Vair-akee-oh'-nee;" January 14, 1932 – January 6, 2018) was an American athlete. Varrichione was best remembered for being part of the 1953 University of Notre Dame football team that shared the collegiate ...
* Manch Wheeler * Leon "Big Van Vader" White


Preseason

Training camps A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...
for the 2018 season were held in late July through August. Teams started training camp no earlier than 15 days before the team's first scheduled preseason game. The Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, in which the Baltimore Ravens defeated the
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
17–16, was played on August 2; and was televised nationally by NBC. The Ravens, who made their first Hall of Fame Game appearance, were represented in the 2018 Hall of Fame class by former linebacker Ray Lewis, while the Bears were represented by former linebacker Brian Urlacher.


Regular season

The 2018 regular season's 256 games were played over a 17-week schedule that began on September 6. Each of the league's 32 teams played a 16-game schedule, with one bye week for each team. The regular season concluded with a full slate of 16 games on December 30, all of which were intra-division matchups, as it had been since .


Scheduling formula

Under the NFL's current scheduling formula, each team plays the other three teams in its own division twice. In addition, a team plays against all four teams in one other division from each conference. The final two games on a team's schedule are against the two remaining teams in the same conference that finished in the same position in their respective divisions (e.g., the team that finished fourth in its division will play all three other teams in the conference that also finished fourth). The division pairings for 2018 were as follows: The entire season schedule was released on April 19. Highlights of the 2018 season included: *
NFL Kickoff Game The National Football League Kickoff game, along with related festivities, marks the official start of the National Football League (NFL) regular season. A single game is held, preceded by a concert and other ceremonies. This first game of the se ...
: The season began with the Kickoff Game on September 6, with Atlanta at defending
Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...
champion
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
; Philadelphia won, 18–12. * NFL International Series: ** NFL London Games: Three games were played in London in 2018. All games were played at Wembley Stadium. The first game featured Seattle at
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 ...
, on October 14; this game was originally scheduled to be played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but was relocated to Wembley when it was determined that the construction at Tottenham would not be finished in time. The two games originally slated to take place at Wembley were Tennessee at the Los Angeles Chargers on October 21 and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
at Jacksonville on October 28. This was the first time the London games were played on three consecutive weeks, a move the league has taken to try to streamline their London operations. Seattle, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia won these games. ** NFL Mexico Game: One game,
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
at the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
on November 19, was scheduled to take place at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. However, due to poor field conditions resulting from recent concerts and
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
games at the facility, as well as a "difficult rainy season," the NFL announced on November 13 that the game would be moved back to the Rams' home stadium, 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 ...
. Although attempts were made to re-sod the field, it failed an inspection by NFL officials. The Rams would beat the Chiefs 54–51, marking the highest-scoring game in '' Monday Night Football'' history. * Thanksgiving Day: As has been the case since , three games were played on November 22: Chicago at Detroit and
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
at Dallas in the traditional afternoon doubleheader, and
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
at New Orleans in the primetime game. Chicago, Dallas, and New Orleans won these contests. *
Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...
game:
Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...
, December 24, fell on a Monday in 2018. As was the case in 2007, a ''Monday Night Football'' game was scheduled between two western teams, the
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
at
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 ...
, with Oakland winning. This marked the teams' record 18th matchup on ''MNF''.


Scheduling changes

When the entire season schedule was released on April 19, the league announced flexible scheduling for Saturday games in weeks 15 and 16. The final times of these games were announced on October 24: * Week 7: The
Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
game was flexed from 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS to the 8:20 p.m. EDT slot on NBC, replacing the originally-scheduled
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
San Francisco game, which was moved to 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS. This is the earliest NBC flex game since it took over the Sunday Night package in 2006. * Week 10: The
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
Green Bay game was moved from 1:00 p.m. ET to 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS. Additionally, the Arizona–Kansas City game, originally scheduled at 1:00 p.m. ET on
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''). Twelv ...
, was cross-flexed to CBS, in the same time slot. * Week 11: The MinnesotaChicago game was flexed from 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox to 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC, replacing the originally scheduled PittsburghJacksonville game which was moved to 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS. Additionally, the
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
New Orleans game was moved from 1:00 p.m. ET to 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox. * Week 12: The Miami–
Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
game was moved from 1:00 p.m. ET to 4:25 p.m. ET on CBS. * Week 13: The Los Angeles Chargers–Pittsburgh game originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS was flexed to 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC, replacing the originally scheduled San Francisco– Seattle game which was moved to 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox. * Week 14: The Los Angeles Rams–Chicago game originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox was flexed to 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC, replacing the originally scheduled Pittsburgh–
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 ...
game which was moved to 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox. * Week 15: The Houston
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 ...
started at 4:30 p.m., while the
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
game started at 8:20 p.m. EST, both games broadcast by NFL Network. And the
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
–Jacksonville game originally scheduled at 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox was cross-flexed to CBS, in the same time slot. *Week 16: two games were moved to Saturday, December 22 on NFL Network: The
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
Tennessee game started at 4:30 p.m. EST, while the
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
Los Angeles Chargers game started at 8:20 p.m. EST. This marked the first time that games were rescheduled to a different day (excluding games rescheduled due to severe weather) and 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. ...
–Indianapolis game originally scheduled at 1:00 p.m. ET on Fox was cross-flexed to CBS, in the same time slot. * Week 17: The Indianapolis– Tennessee game originally scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS, was selected as the final 8:20 p.m. ''NBC Sunday Night Football'' game of the season, which decided the final AFC wild card spot. Also, the Cincinnati–Pittsburgh,
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
, Oakland–Kansas City, Philadelphia–Washington, and Chicago–Minnesota games were moved from 1:00 p.m. ET to 4:25 p.m. ET. with no change in network assignment.


Regular season standings


Division


Conference


Postseason

The 2018 playoffs began on the weekend of January 5–6, 2019, with the Wild Card Playoff round. The four winners of those playoff games visited the top two seeds in each conference in the Divisional round games the weekend of January 12–13. The winners of those games advanced to the Conference Championship games on January 20. (In the event that both Los Angeles teams had advanced to their respective conference championships with both teams as the home team, one of the two games would have been postponed to the evening of January 21.) The
2019 Pro Bowl The 2019 Pro Bowl was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2018 NFL season, played on January 27, 2019, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. It was televised nationally by ESPN and its sister networks. Game format The 201 ...
was held at Camping World Stadium in
Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
on January 27.
Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...
was held on February 3 at
Mercedes-Benz Stadium Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in August 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it serves as the home stadium of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) ...
in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
.


Bracket


Records, milestones, and notable statistics

Week 1 *
Adrian Peterson Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football at Oklahoma, where he set the ...
became the ninth player to rush for 100 touchdowns in a career. Week 2 *
Frank Gore Franklin Gore Sr. (born May 14, 1983) is an American former American football, football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons. A member of the San Francisco 49ers during most of his career, he ranks third ...
passed Curtis Martin to move up to fourth on the all-time rushing yards list with 14,103 career rushing yards. * Patrick Mahomes became the youngest quarterback to throw six touchdown passes in a game, at age 22 years and 364 days. Week 3 * Ryan Fitzpatrick became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 400 yards in three consecutive games. *The Minnesota Vikings tied the record for fewest rushing attempts in a game with six. The record was previously set by the 1933 Chicago Cardinals and tied by the
2004 New England Patriots The 2004 season was the New England Patriots' 35th in the National Football League (NFL), their 45th overall and their fifth under head coach Bill Belichick. They finished with their second consecutive 14–2 record before advancing to and wi ...
and
2006 Arizona Cardinals The 2006 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 87th in the National Football League (NFL) and their 19th in Arizona. The season began with the team trying to improve on their 5–11 record in 2005. They also moved into the Cardinals Stadium in Glen ...
. Week 4 * Adam Vinatieri kicked his 566th career field goal, breaking the record for most field goals in a career previously held by Morten Andersen. Week 5 * Tom Brady threw his 500th career touchdown pass, becoming the third quarterback in NFL history to do so (joining Brett Favre and
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
) and becoming the first to do so playing on one team. *Tom Brady threw a touchdown pass to a 71st different receiver, breaking an NFL record previously held by Vinny Testaverde. * Drew Brees became the NFL's all-time leading passer with 71,941 passing yards, surpassing Brett Favre and Peyton Manning in the process. Week 6 * Tom Brady became the first quarterback in NFL history to reach 200 regular season wins. Week 7 * Drew Brees became the third quarterback in NFL history to defeat all 32 teams, joining Brett Favre and
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
. He also became the fourth quarterback to throw 500 career touchdown passes, joining Favre, Manning, and Tom Brady. Week 8 * Adam Vinatieri set the record for career points scored, with 2,550, breaking a record previously held by Morten Andersen. * Adam Thielen tied Calvin Johnson's record for eight consecutive 100-yard receiving games. Week 10 * Julio Jones became the fastest player in NFL history to reach 10,000 receiving yards, doing so in 104 games. Jones broke the record previously held by Calvin Johnson, who took 115 games. * Larry Fitzgerald passed Terrell Owens to move to second on the all-time receiving yards list with 15,952 career receiving yards. Week 11 *The Kansas City Chiefs scored 51 points in a 54–51 loss to the
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
, the most points ever scored by a losing team in NFL history. The 105-point aggregate total is also the third highest in NFL history. *The Philadelphia Eagles 41-point loss to the New Orleans Saints is the largest margin of defeat by a defending
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
champion in NFL history since the inception of the game in 1966. Week 12 *The
Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
won their eighth straight game following an 0–3 start, becoming the first team in NFL history to do so. * Philip Rivers completed 25 consecutive passes to start a game, breaking the record of 22 consecutive completions to start a game previously held by Mark Brunell. This streak also tied Ryan Tannehill's record of 25 consecutive passes at any point in a game. *Philip Rivers completed 28 out of 29 passes (96.6%), breaking the record for highest completion percentage in a game (minimum 20 attempts). The previous record was held by Kurt Warner who completed 92.3% of his passes. Week 14 *
Derrick Henry Derrick Lamar Henry Jr. (born January 4, 1994) is an American football running back for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). His imposing rushing game and larger stature than the average running back earned him the nickna ...
became the second player in NFL history to record a 99-yard rushing touchdown, joining Hall of Famer Tony Dorsett who achieved this in 1982. Week 15 * Tom Brady became the fourth quarterback to reach 70,000 career passing yards. Week 16 *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 ...
won at least ten games for the 16th straight season, tying a record set by the 1983–98 San Francisco 49ers. *The Patriots clinched the
AFC East The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is one of the four Division (sport), divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). There are currently four teams that reside in the d ...
for the tenth consecutive season (extending an NFL record for most consecutive years winning any division) and their tenth straight playoff berth, breaking the record of nine straight playoff berths previously held by the Dallas Cowboys (1975–83) and
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 ...
(2002–10). * Zach Ertz set a new NFL record for the most catches in a single season by a tight end with 113, breaking a record previously held by
Jason Witten Christopher Jason Witten (born May 6, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for 17 seasons, primarily for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Univers ...
. * Chris Jones recorded a sack in his 11th consecutive game this season, marking a new NFL record. Week 17 * George Kittle had 1,377 receiving yards on the season, breaking the record for most receiving yards by a tight end previously held by Travis Kelce. *
Baker Mayfield Baker Reagan Mayfield (born April 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Texas Tech, Mayfield played college football at Oklahoma, where he won the Hei ...
threw his 27th touchdown pass of the season breaking the record for most touchdown passes by a rookie quarterback, previously shared by
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
and
Russell Wilson Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played his first 10 seasons for the Seattle Seahawks. Wilson is widely regarded ...
. * Nick Foles completed 25 consecutive passes, tying a record held by Ryan Tannehill and Philip Rivers. Divisional round * James White tied the all-time single-game playoff receptions record with 15. This record was previously set by Darren Sproles. * Julian Edelman caught his 94th post-season reception, moving him past Reggie Wayne for second place all-time, behind only Jerry Rice. Super Bowl *The Patriots defeated the Rams, 13–3, setting a new record for fewest total points (16) scored in a
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
, This record was previously held by
Super Bowl VII Super Bowl VII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...
, in which the Dolphins defeated the Redskins, 14–7 (21 points). * Tom Brady became the first player to win six Super Bowls, surpassing
Charles Haley Charles Lewis Haley (born January 6, 1964) is a former American football outside linebacker and defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the San Francisco 49ers (1986–1991, 1999) and the Dallas Cowboys (1992–1996). ...
's record of five.


Regular season statistical leaders


Awards


Individual season awards

The 8th Annual NFL Honors, saluting the best players and plays from 2018 season, was held on February 2, 2019, at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia.


All-Pro team

The following players were named First Team All-Pro by the Associated Press:


Players of the week/month

The following were named the top performers during the 2018 season:


Head coaching and front office personnel changes


Head coaches


Off-season


In-season


Front office personnel


Off-season


In-season


Stadiums

Two teams, the Carolina Panthers and
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 ...
, entered the final year of their lease agreements with their current stadium.


Carolina Panthers

On December 17, 2017, Jerry Richardson, the Panthers' founding owner, announced he was putting the team up for sale. Richardson had previously indicated the team would be put up for sale after his death, but Richardson was accused of paying hush money to cover up questionable conduct, including racial slurs and sexually suggestive requests of employees, hastening Richardson's decision. The Panthers' lease on
Bank of America Stadium Bank of America Stadium is a 74,867-seat football stadium located on in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It is the home facility and headquarters of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League and Charlotte FC of Major ...
expires after the 2018 season, which would allow any incoming owner to relocate the team out of Charlotte, North Carolina, to another market if they so desired, only being liable for the remaining debt from stadium renovation. At an estimated $35 million, the debt payment would be a small expense compared to the relocation fee the NFL charged for the two teams that relocated in 2016 and 2017. The two most likely candidates to buy the team were David Tepper, a hedge fund manager with a higher net worth and a minority stake in 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 ...
but fewer ties to Charlotte; and
Ben Navarro Benjamin W. Navarro (born 1962/1963) is an American billionaire businessman, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Sherman Financial Group, LLC, which owns Credit One Bank. Early life He is one of eight children of Frank Navarro, a coll ...
, a financial services CEO based in Charlotte who had the backing of Richardson's only living son. Tepper was announced as the new owner on May 16, with the announcement coming in time for the league to vote on his bid at the owners meeting on May 19. The sale closed on July 9 with Richardson-era chief operating officer Tina Becker (who ran the franchise after Richardson stepped away from operations) resigning. Tepper immediately stated the franchise would retain the Carolina Panthers name for the time being, but that a new stadium would likely be necessary; he stated that he hoped to build said stadium in Charlotte but would not guarantee the team remains there, claiming he did not know enough about the situation to guarantee the team stays in the Charlotte area.


Oakland Raiders

The Raiders, prior to the 2017 season, committed to relocating to Las Vegas, Nevada, once a new
stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...
was constructed for them in 2020. In 2016, the Raiders signed a three-year extension with the Oakland Coliseum. In order to secure another season in Oakland, California, Coliseum management indicated in September 2017 that the Raiders would need to offer major concessions to compensate for the financial losses the Coliseum incurs by hosting Raiders games.


Naming rights agreements


Arizona Cardinals

On September 4, University of Phoenix Stadium, the home field of 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 ...
, was renamed State Farm Stadium. The naming rights agreement is for 18 years; however, the cost of the deal was not disclosed.


Denver Broncos

On June 20, the Denver Broncos' home stadium was renamed Broncos Stadium at Mile High. The sporting goods chain Sports Authority had held naming rights to the stadium's field (as "Sports Authority Field at Mile High") but had gone out of business in 2016. The previous signage referring to Sports Authority was removed in March. Just prior to the 2019 season, the naming rights were sold to Empower Retirement, ultimately renaming the stadium to " Empower Field at Mile High".


Jacksonville Jaguars

On February 16, EverBank Field, the home field of the Jacksonville Jaguars, was renamed TIAA Bank Field, after TIAA's 2017 acquisition of EverBank. The naming rights agreement was for 10 years and $43 million.


Uniforms


Color Rush discontinuation

The
Color Rush The NFL Color Rush was a promotion done in conjunction with the National Football League (NFL) and Nike that promotes so-called "color vs. color" matchups with teams in matchup-specific uniforms that are primarily one solid color with alternatin ...
program was discontinued, and teams were no longer required to wear the special uniforms for ''Thursday Night Football''. Teams had the option to continue using the existing Nike designs for the program as standard third jerseys.


Uniform changes

*
Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
: The Bears brought back their orange alternate jerseys that the team wore from 2005 to 2009 and 2011. The team announced that the orange uniforms will be worn twice in 2018, and the team will use the navy blue " Monsters of the Midway" throwbacks for one game. * Jacksonville Jaguars: On April 19, the Jaguars simplified their uniforms in a similar look they had used before 2013. Gold was also eliminated from their previous jerseys and the gradient black and gold helmet was reverted to an all-black gloss shell. *
Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
: On July 27, the Rams announced that due to overwhelming fan demand the NFL relaxed their alternate uniform policy and has permitted them to use their royal blue and yellow throwbacks as their color jerseys for the next two seasons until they present entirely new ones in 2020. When using their white jerseys, the team will still have to use their current set carried over from St. Louis albeit from slight modifications they made to them in 2017. * Miami Dolphins: On April 19, the Dolphins simplified their uniform outlines to take after their classic aqua-and-orange look. Dark blue was removed from everything but the logo. For the second straight year, the Dolphins will wear their official throwback jerseys twice in 2018. * Tennessee Titans: On April 4, the Titans introduced new uniforms. Most prominent among the changes is the helmet, which is changing from the white color the team had used since the 1970s (as the Houston Oilers) to navy blue. The color patterns are also simplified, with a new number typeface inspired both by Greek lettering and the shape of the state of Tennessee.


Throwback uniforms

*
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 ...
: On May 30, the Steelers unveiled a throwback uniform, that was worn in the late 1970s. Team owner Art Rooney II announced that the team will wear the uniforms for one game. * San Francisco 49ers: On May 23, 49ers unveiled a new all-white throwback uniform, that was worn in 1994, the year the team won its most recent
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
. The team announced that they will be worn for one game.


Patches

*
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 ...
: On April 9, the Packers unveiled a patch to commemorate their 100th season. *
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 ...
: On April 10, the Colts unveiled a patch to commemorate their 35th season in Indianapolis. * Los Angeles Chargers: The Chargers added a patch to commemorate the death of team owner
Alex Spanos Alexander Gus Spanos (September 28, 1923 – October 9, 2018) was an American billionaire real estate developer, founder of the A. G. Spanos Companies, and the majority owner of the San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football Lea ...
(and his wife Faye, who died in August) before Week 9's game against the Seahawks. * New Orleans Saints: On August 9, the Saints unveiled a patch to commemorate the death of team owner Tom Benson, featuring Benson in silhouette holding his second line umbrella above his initials. *
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 ...
: On October 26, the Seahawks unveiled a patch to commemorate the death of team owner Paul Allen, featuring his "PGA" initials below the team's 12th Man flag.


Media


Broadcast rights


Television

This was the fifth year under the current broadcast contracts with ESPN/ ABC, CBS,
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''). Twelv ...
, and NBC. This included "cross-flexing" (switching) Sunday afternoon games between CBS and Fox before or during the season (regardless of the conference of the visiting team). NBC continued to air ''
Sunday Night Football Sunday Night Football may refer to: * ''NBC Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games by NBC since 2006 * ''ESPN Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games from 1987 to 2005 by ESPN * ...
'', the annual Kickoff game, and the primetime Thanksgiving game. ESPN continued to air '' Monday Night Football'' and the Pro Bowl, with the latter being simulcast on ABC. CBS broadcast
Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...
. On January 31, the NFL announced that Fox had acquired the broadcast television rights to the '' Thursday Night Football'' package under a five-year deal (aligned with the remainder of the NFL's current broadcast contracts). Fox aired 11 games, in simulcast with NFL Network, with the remaining games in the package airing exclusively on NFL Network to satisfy its carriage contracts (with local broadcasts
syndicated Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...
broadcast stations in the markets of the teams in each game). CBS and NBC had made bids to renew their previous contracts (CBS had held the rights since 2014, joined by NBC since 2016), but were reluctant to pay a higher rights fee due to the league's ratings downturn.


Digital

The NFL agreed to an extension of its digital rights agreement with Verizon Communications under a 5-year, $2.5 billion deal. Unlike the previous deal, it no longer includes exclusivity for streaming in-market and nationally televised NFL games on mobile devices with screens or less in size (such as smartphones), in order to account for changes in viewing habits, but still includes enhanced access to highlights and other digital content for Verizon-owned properties. In addition, Verizon announced that it would no longer make these streams exclusive to Verizon Wireless subscribers, and would leverage its portfolio of media brands (such as Yahoo!, which it acquired in 2017) to distribute them to a larger audience. All of the NFL's current television partners have added mobile streaming rights (which were previously reserved to Verizon) to their existing contracts for the 2018 season, with telecasts becoming available via CBS All Access, the Fox Sports App, the ESPN app, and the NBC Sports app. Under the terms of the agreement, Verizon must give the majority of the advertising revenue to the broadcast partners. On April 26, 2018, the NFL announced that it had reached a two-year extension of its agreement with Amazon for shared digital rights to the ''Thursday Night Football'' games simulcast with Fox, with a 15% increase in rights fees. To fulfill a request that the streams be available freely, the games will also be made available on Twitch, an Amazon-owned streaming service that was originally designed for video game streaming.


Radio

Both of the NFL's national radio contracts, Westwood One for English language and Entravision for Spanish language, expired after the 2017 season. Westwood One's parent company Cumulus Media filed for bankruptcy in November 2017 and began terminating national broadcast contracts and sports agreements in January 2018, putting any contract extensions on hold. The company emerged from bankruptcy on June 4, 2018. With the release of the 2018 schedule, NFL.com listed ESPN Deportes Radio (which had shared NFL rights with Entravision in 2017 and had carried Super Bowl LII) as the league's national Spanish-language broadcaster. The national English-language broadcaster was still identified as Westwood One, which Westwood One has also confirmed; no press release has been issued in regard to a contract extension with that network, and it is unknown when the current arrangement was signed or when it will end. Additionally, Westwood One removed Sunday afternoon games from their package, instead focusing on the primetime matchups as well as the postseason. SportsUSA, Compass and
ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...
, which also has broadcast select Sunday afternoon NFL games, will continue to do so. Meanwhile, Entravision extended the Sunday night rights for 3 years, through 2021, and gained two Super Bowls, the entire AFC Playoff package, the Thursday Night Opener, and a Thanksgiving Day game as part of their new deal. Only one game into the pre-season,
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 ...
announcer
Bob Lamey Bob Lamey (born December 23, 1938) is an American sportscaster, formerly the radio play-by-play announcer for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League. Lamey had been "The Voice of the Colts" since the team moved to Indianapolis in 1 ...
, who had been with the team for most of the time since their 1984 relocation from Baltimore, retired suddenly after a complaint of him using a racial slur in the 1980s was revealed. Sideline reporter Matt Taylor was named his ''de facto'' replacement for the season.
Greg Papa Gregory Charles Papa (born October 10, 1962) is an American sportscaster, currently employed as the radio play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco 49ers. He has also broadcast for the Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, Oakland Athletics, ...
, after 21 years calling play-by-play for the
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 ...
, joined the San Francisco 49ers as their play-by-play announcer; Papa cited an ongoing feud with Raiders owner Mark Davis for his departure. Replacing Papa with the Raiders is
Brent Musburger Brent Woody Musburger (born May 26, 1939) is an American sportscaster, currently the lead broadcaster and managing editor at Vegas Stats and Information Network (VSiN). With CBS Sports from 1973 until 1990, he was one of the original members ...
, who came out of retirement from sports announcing to sign a three-year deal with the team that will see him serve as broadcaster through the team's relocation to Las Vegas (Musburger maintains a side business, the Vegas Sports Information Network, in Las Vegas).


Personnel changes

All four broadcast partners will employ rules analysts for the 2018 season, citing changes in the league's rules that have become too complicated for its broadcast teams to handle. NBC hired Terry McAulay to be their rules analyst for
Sunday Night Football Sunday Night Football may refer to: * ''NBC Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games by NBC since 2006 * ''ESPN Sunday Night Football'', the Sunday night broadcast of American NFL games from 1987 to 2005 by ESPN * ...
. CBS hired Gene Steratore to fill their rules analyst position, a position that had been vacant since CBS released Mike Carey in 2015. ESPN hired Jeff Triplette for Monday Night Football. Fox retained both
Mike Pereira Mike Pereira (born April 13, 1950) is a former American football official and later Vice President of Officiating for the National Football League (NFL) and currently the Head of Officiating for the United States Football League. Since 2010, he ha ...
and
Dean Blandino Dean Blandino (born September 13, 1971) is a rules analyst for Fox Sports. He previously served as the NFL's Vice President of Officiating from 2013 to 2017 and the head of officiating for the XFL in 2020. Biography Early years Blandino grew ...
. Additionally, Pereira assists with Fox's Thursday Night Football Coverage. ESPN introduced a fully new broadcast team for ''Monday Night Football''. Joe Tessitore replaced Sean McDonough as lead play-by-play man; McDonough will remain with ESPN as a college football announcer. With previous color analyst
Jon Gruden Jon David Gruden (born August 17, 1963) is a former American professional football coach who was a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. He held his first head coaching position with the Raiders franchise during thei ...
returning to coaching, ''Monday Night Football'' hired
Jason Witten Christopher Jason Witten (born May 6, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end for 17 seasons, primarily for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Univers ...
and
Booger McFarland Anthony Darelle "Booger" McFarland (born December 18, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Louisiana State University and wa ...
as their color commentators; while McFarland offers his commentary from the sidelines, he fills a role similar to the "non-football" player position that ''Monday Night Football'' has traditionally relied upon in its past three-person booths (such as Howard Cosell, Dennis Miller and Tony Kornheiser). Lisa Salters, the sideline reporter, carries over from the previous broadcast team. Jeff Triplette will replace
Gerald Austin Gerald Austin (born December 4, 1941) is a retired American football official, who worked in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1982 season through the 2007 season. He wore uniform number 34, which is now worn by Clete Blakeman. Austi ...
as rules analyst. Fox initially had planned to hire a new broadcast team for its ''Thursday Night Football'', making an overture to
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...
to serve as color commentator. Since Manning declined the offer, the network announced that it will be placing its existing lead broadcast team of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman on the package, reducing the number of games the duo will call on Sundays (Buck and Aikman will only call the nationally televised "America's Game of the Week" telecasts on Sundays). A version of '' Fox NFL Sunday'' will serve as the lead-in to ''Thursday Night Football'', without Curt Menefee or Jimmy Johnson; the show will instead be hosted by panelist Michael Strahan from New York City, displacing Rich Eisen, the studio host for Thursday night pregame since the package's inception in 2006. Strahan will be joined by fellow Fox colleagues Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long. In previous seasons, Buck did not call any NFL games during late October, working Major League Baseball playoff games instead. For 2018, Fox coordinated its schedule with MLB so that none of its scheduled broadcasts would land on a Thursday (Fox carries the
NLCS The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two National ...
and the World Series), so Buck will continue to broadcast both sports, crisscrossing the country in seven cities over a 22-day period. In addition, NBC introduced a new studio team for '' Football Night in America''.
Mike Tirico Mike Tirico (; born December 13, 1966) is an American sportscaster. He is currently the NFL play-by-play announcer on NBC's '' Sunday Night Football'', having replaced Al Michaels in 2022. From 2006 to 2015, Tirico served as a play-by-play an ...
, who was the on-site host and secondary play-by-play announcer in 2017, became the show's studio host from
Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...
, while Liam McHugh moved into Tirico's former role.
Dan Patrick Dan Patrick may refer to: * Dan Patrick (ice hockey) (born 1938), Canadian ice hockey player * Dan Patrick (politician) (born 1950), Lieutenant Governor of Texas and political and sports radio journalist * Dan Patrick (sportscaster) (born 1956), Ame ...
, who had been the studio host for ''FNiA'' since 2008, declined to sign a long-term contract and left NBC. On radio, Kurt Warner replaced Boomer Esiason as the color commentator for Westwood One's ''Monday Night Football'' broadcasts, after Esiason had filled the role for the previous 18 years. Esiason will continue as a studio host for CBS. In a surprise announcement made two days before its first game, Amazon announced it would provide its own broadcast team for its eleven games, with
Hannah Storm Hannah Lynn Storen Hicks (born June 13, 1962), known professionally as Hannah Storm, is an American television sports journalist, serving as the anchor of ESPN's ''SportsCenter'' Face to Face. She was also host of the ''NBA Countdown'' pregame s ...
and Andrea Kremer serving as the lead broadcast team. The announcement makes Kremer the first-ever female color analyst for an NFL game, the first time a game has been broadcast with no men involved in the broadcast team, and the first time since the 1987 season of ''
ESPN Sunday Night NFL ''ESPN Sunday Night NFL'' is a sports game, sports video game that was released for the Super NES, Sega CD, and Sega Genesis in 1994. Summary Like in other football games, the player must run, pass, and/or kick a ball across a regulation field ...
'' that no former coach or player served on the broadcast team in any capacity. Amazon will offer the standard Fox broadcast team, a British broadcasting team, and a Spanish language feed as alternate audio choices.


Primetime game time shifts

The kick-off times for all three primetime series were moved up to start 5 to 15 minutes earlier to facilitate local newscasts and ''
SportsCenter ''SportsCenter'' (SC) is a daily sports news television show, television program that serves as the flagship program and brand of United States, American cable television, cable and satellite television television network, network ESPN. The show ...
'' to start earlier and cause less disruption to late night television schedules in the Eastern and Central time zones. Thursday and Sunday Night games now kick off at 8:20 p.m. ET, while Monday Night games now kick off at 8:15 p.m. ET.


Most watched regular season games

After two years of decline, television viewership for the NFL slightly rebounded in 2018, with ratings up 3% as a whole through the first ten weeks of the season, despite a major decline (16%) in other programming on the same networks. The season finished with ratings up 5% compared to 2017. *DH = doubleheader; SNF = NBC Sunday Night Football *Note – Late DH matchups listed in table are the matchups that were shown to the largest percentage of the market.


References

{{NFL seasons National Football League seasons
NFL 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 major ...