The 1998 St. Louis Rams season was the team's 61st year with the National Football League (NFL) and the fourth season in St. Louis. It was the second year for head coach Dick Vermeil. The team failed to improve on its 5–11 record from 1997, and instead finished the season 4–12 and missed the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season, during which they had compiled a league-worst 45–99 record.
Despite all of this, the Rams showed signs of life during the season when they beat playoff teams such as the New York Jets (who would make the AFC Championship game during the season) and the New England Patriots (who would make a wild card). Some claim that those two wins helped them build signs of strong life into next season, when they won Super Bowl XXXIV against the Tennessee Titans. Despite the Rams finishing 4–12, six of those losses were only by a touchdown or less.
Offseason Additions Subtractions QB Steve Bono (Packers) QB Will Furrer (Jaguars) WR Ricky Proehl (Bears) DE Leslie O'Neal (Chiefs) DT Ray Agnew (Giants) WR Torrance Small (Colts) DT Joe Phillips (Chiefs) FB Craig Heyward (Colts) DE Mike Jones (Patriots) P Mike Horan (Bears) LB Eric Hill (Cardinals) LB Robert Jones (Dolphins) S Ron Carpenter DT Bill Johnson (Eagles) P Rick Tuten (Seahawks)
NFL draft
Undrafted free agents + 1998 Undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeDaryl BushLinebackerFlorida StateRoger ChanoineTackleTempleLondon FletcherLinebackerJohn CarrollKadar HamiltonSafetyStanfordTony HorneWide receiverClemsonJeremy McKinneyTackleIowaFred PollackGuardNebraskaRussell ShawWide receiverMichiganGlenn Young Jr.Defensive endVanderbilt
Roster
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 6 New Orleans Saints L 17–24 0–1 Trans World Dome 56,943 2 September 13 Minnesota Vikings L 31–38 0–2 Trans World Dome 56,234 3 September 20 at Buffalo Bills W 34–33 1–2 Ralph Wilson Stadium 65,199 4 September 27 Arizona Cardinals L 17–20 1–3 Trans World Dome 55,832 5 Bye 6 October 11 New York Jets W 30–10 2–3 Trans World Dome 55,938 7 October 18 at Miami Dolphins L 0–14 2–4 Pro Player Stadium 65,418 8 October 25 San Francisco 49ers L 10–28 2–5 Trans World Dome 58,563 9 November 1 at Atlanta Falcons L 15–37 2–6 Georgia Dome 37,996 10 November 8 at Chicago Bears W 20–12 3–6 Soldier Field 50,263 11 November 15 at New Orleans Saints L 3–24 3–7 Louisiana Superdome 46,430 12 November 22 Carolina Panthers L 20–24 3–8 Trans World Dome 50,716 13 November 29 Atlanta Falcons L 10–21 3–9 Trans World Dome 47,971 14 December 3 at Philadelphia Eagles L 14–17 3–10 Veterans Stadium 66,155 15 December 13 New England Patriots W 32–18 4–10 Trans World Dome 48,946 16 December 20 at Carolina Panthers L 13–20 4–11 Ericcson Stadium 50,047 17 December 27 at San Francisco 49ers L 19–38 4–12 3Com Park 68,386 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Standings
References
External links 1998 St. Louis Rams at Pro-Football-Reference.com