# 1998 Indianapolis Colts season

The 1998 Indianapolis Colts season was the 46th season for the team in the National Football League (NFL) and 15th in Indianapolis. The Indianapolis Colts finished the National Football League's 1998 season with a record of 3 wins and 13 losses, and finished fifth in the AFC East division.
Coming off a 3–13 season the year before, the Colts drafted quarterback Peyton Manning with the first overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft. Manning would mark the beginning of a new era for the Colts, as he would lead them to their second Super Bowl title nine seasons later.
This season was Marshall Faulk's last with the Colts as he was traded to the St. Louis Rams in the off-season. He had his best seasons in St. Louis, helping the Rams to two Super Bowls in 1999 and 2001 and winning the league's MVP in 2000.
On November 29, the Colts played their first game in Baltimore since the controversial relocation in 1984.
As previously mentioned, this was Faulk's final year in a Colts uniform and he finished his Indianapolis career in style rushing for 1,319 yards and 6 touchdowns and catching a team leading 86 passes for 908 yards and 4 touchdowns leading the entire NFL in total yards from scrimmage with 2,227 (beating out 2nd place finisher and league MVP Terrell Davis by just two yards). Another bright spot was rookie quarterback Peyton Manning who passed for 3,739 yards and 26 touchdowns. Although the Colts only matched their 3–13 record from the preceding season, seven of those losses were by seven points or fewer.

## Offseason

| Additions | Subtractions |
| DT Jeff Zgonina (Rams) | QB Jim Harbaugh (Ravens) |
| G Tom Myslinski (Steelers) | G Doug Widell (Packers) |
| S Tim Hauck (Seahawks) | WR Sean Dawkins (Saints) |
| RB Craig Heyward (Rams) | K Cary Blanchard (Redskins) |
| LB Jeff Herrod (Eagles) | WR Brian Stablein (Patriots) |
| CB Jeff Burris (Bills) | G Jason Mathews (Oilers) |
| WR Torrance Small (Rams) | LB Steve Grant (Buccaneers) |
| QB Bill Musgrave (Broncos) | G Eugene Chung (Chiefs) |
| | FS Derwin Gray (Panthers) |

### NFL Draft

1998 Indianapolis Colts draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 1 | Peyton Manning * $^†$ | QB | Tennessee | |
| 2 | 32 | Jerome Pathon | WR | Washington | |
| 3 | 71 | E. G. Green | WR | Florida State | from Baltimore |
| 4 | 93 | Steve McKinney | C | Texas A&M | from Indianapolis via Baltimore |
| 5 | 135 | Antony Jordan | LB | Vanderbilt | from Cincinnati |
| 7 | 190 | Aaron Taylor | C | Nebraska | |
| 7 | 231 | Corey Gaines | S | Tennessee | compensatory selection |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

### Undrafted free agents

1998 Undrafted Free Agents of note :
| Player | Position | College |
| Larry Chester | Defensive tackle | Temple |
| Mike Vanderjagt | Kicker | West Virginia |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 6 | Miami Dolphins | L 15–24 | 0–1 | RCA Dome | 60,587 |
| 2 | September 13 | at New England Patriots | L 6–29 | 0–2 | Foxboro Stadium | 60,068 |
| 3 | September 20 | at New York Jets | L 6–44 | 0–3 | Giants Stadium | 66,321 |
| 4 | September 27 | New Orleans Saints | L 13–19 (OT) | 0–4 | RCA Dome | 48,480 |
| 5 | October 4 | San Diego Chargers | W 17–12 | 1–4 | RCA Dome | 51,988 |
| 6 | October 11 | Buffalo Bills | L 24–31 | 1–5 | RCA Dome | 52,938 |
| 7 | October 18 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 31–34 | 1–6 | 3Com Park | 68,486 |
| 8 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 9 | November 1 | New England Patriots | L 16–21 | 1–7 | RCA Dome | 58,056 |
| 10 | November 8 | at Miami Dolphins | L 14–27 | 1–8 | Pro Player Stadium | 73,400 |
| 11 | November 15 | New York Jets | W 24–23 | 2–8 | RCA Dome | 55,520 |
| 12 | November 22 | at Buffalo Bills | L 11–34 | 2–9 | Rich Stadium | 49,032 |
| 13 | November 29 | at Baltimore Ravens | L 31–38 | 2–10 | Ravens Stadium | 68,898 |
| 14 | December 6 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 21–28 | 2–11 | Georgia Dome | 61,141 |
| 15 | December 13 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 39–26 | 3–11 | RCA Dome | 55,179 |
| 16 | December 20 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 23–27 | 3–12 | Kingdome | 58,703 |
| 17 | December 27 | Carolina Panthers | L 19–27 | 3–13 | RCA Dome | 58,182 |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

## Standings

AFC East :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(2)}$ New York Jets | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 416 | 266 | W6 |
| $^{(4)}$ Miami Dolphins | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 321 | 265 | L1 |
| $^{(5)}$ Buffalo Bills | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 400 | 333 | W1 |
| $^{(6)}$ New England Patriots | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 337 | 329 | L1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 310 | 444 | L2 |

## Season summary
### Week 11 vs Jets

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Jets | 3 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 23 |
| Colts | 10 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
at RCA Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana
* Date: November 15, 1998
* Game time: 1:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Indoors (dome)
* Game attendance: 55,520
* TV announcers (CBS): Ian Eagle & Mark May
* Box Score, Box Score
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Jets | Passing | Vinny Testaverde | 12/28, 249 Yds, TD, INT |
| Jets | Rushing | Curtis Martin | 28 Rush, 134 Yds |
| Jets | Receiving | Wayne Chrebet | 4 Rec, 112 Yds, TD |
| Colts | Passing | Peyton Manning | 26/44, 276 Yds, 3 TD, 2 INT |
| Colts | Rushing | Marshall Faulk | 20 Rush, 69 Yds |
| Colts | Receiving | Marvin Harrison | 9 Rec, 128 Yds, TD |
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | NYJ | IND |
| 1 | 10:17 | 7 | 19 | 2:36 | Colts | 31-yard field goal by Mike Vanderjagt | 0 | 3 |
| 1 | 6:39 | 7 | 38 | 3:38 | Jets | 37-yard field goal by John Hall | 3 | 3 |
| 1 | 3:25 | 6 | 40 | 3:14 | Colts | Torrance Small 4-yard touchdown reception from Peyton Manning, Mike Vanderjagt kick good | 3 | 10 |
| 2 | 14:02 | 7 | 74 | 4:23 | Jets | Wayne Chrebet 63-yard touchdown reception from Vinny Testaverde, John Hall kick good | 10 | 10 |
| 2 | 8:31 | 8 | 60 | 3:44 | Jets | 40-yard field goal by John Hall | 13 | 10 |
| 2 | 0:22 | 12 | 62 | 5:00 | Jets | 25-yard field goal by John Hall | 16 | 10 |
| 2 | 0:00 | | | | Jets | Missed field goal returned 104 yards for touchdown by Aaron Glenn, John Hall kick good | 23 | 10 |
| 3 | 6:28 | 4 | 49 | 1:32 | Colts | Marvin Harrison 38-yard touchdown reception from Peyton Manning, Mike Vanderjagt kick good | 23 | 17 |
| 4 | 0:24 | 15 | 80 | 2:40 | Colts | Marcus Pollard 14-yard touchdown reception from Peyton Manning, Mike Vanderjagt kick good | 23 | 24 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 23 | 24 |