NFL playoffs , 1998 - 99 The NFL playoffs following the 1998 NFL season led up to Super Bowl XXXIII . Wild Card playoffs . January 2 , 1999 . AFC : Miami Dolphins 24 , Buffalo Bills 17 . The Dolphins forced five Bills turnovers , including Buffalo quarterback Doug Flutie ' s fumble at the Miami 5 - yard line with 17 seconds left in the game . Buffalo ' s wide receiver Eric Moulds set an NFL postseason record with 240 receiving yards , including a 32 - yard touchdown catch . The Bills twice erased deficits before falling behind 24 - 14 , then rallied again . Late in the fourth quarter , the Bills drove the Dolphins 1 - yard line , but receiver Andre Reed ' s unsportsmanlike conduct foul pushed them back 15 yards and forced them to settle for Steve Christie ' s 33 - yard field goal with 1 : 47 left . Buffalo subsequently recovered an onside kick and drove 64 yards in 10 plays to the Dolphins 5 - yard line . But as Flutie stepped up to make a throw , he lost the ball while being sacked by Miami ' s Trace Armstrong and lineman Shane Burton recovered the fumble . NFC : Arizona Cardinals 20 , Dallas Cowboys 7 . Quarterback Jake Plummer passed for 213 yards and two touchdowns as he led the Cardinals to their first playoff victory since 1947 . Their victory was especially satisfying against the Cowboys , who defeated them twice during the season . Arizona running back Adrian Murrell rushed for 95 yards and caught 2 passes for 16 yards and a touchdown , while their defense sacked Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman four times ( twice by linebacker Jamir Miller ) and intercepted three of his passes ( two by defensive back Aeneas Williams ) . On the Cardinals second possession of the game , Plummer completed a 59 - yard pass to receiver Frank Sanders , setting up Murrell ' s 11 - yard touchdown catch a few plays later . Later on , the Cardinals increased their lead to 10 - 0 with Chris Jacke ' s 37 yard field goal with 19 seconds left in the half . On the first play of the second half , Murrell took off for a 74 - yard run to the Cowboys 3 - yard line . It was the longest postseason run ever surrendered by the Cowboys in their 52 - postseason game history . On the next play , Plummer threw a 3 - yard touchdown pass to fullback Larry Centers , making the score 17 - 0 . In the fourth quarter , Arizona defensive back Aeneas Williams recorded his second interception from Aikman , setting up a 46 - yard field goal by Jacke . Meanwhile , all Dallas could do was avoid a shutout on Aikman ' s 6 - yard touchdown pass to Billy Davis with 3 : 33 left in the game . It was the last time ABC aired a game between these two teams , after six games on " Monday Night Football " . ESPN has yet to show these teams playing on Monday night ( though they did meet on Sunday night on ESPN once ) . January 3 , 1999 . AFC : Jacksonville Jaguars 25 , New England Patriots 10 . Running back Fred Taylor ran for 162 yards and a touchdown as the Jaguars won their first home playoff game in team history . Jacksonville kicker Mike Hollis contributed 4 field goals . Patrtiots running back Robert Edwards , who rushed for 1 , 115 yards and 9 touchdowns during the season , was held to 28 yards on 17 carries . The Patriots , playing without starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe , receiver Terry Glenn and linebacker Ted Johnson due to injuries , could not score any points in the first half . Hollis opened up the scoring with two field goals . The second one was set up by a 46 - yard run by Taylor and followed two overthrown passes by quarterback Mark Brunell to receiver Keenan McCardell and running back George Jones , who were both wide open in the end zone . Brunell struggled throughout most of the game , finishing with just 14 of 34 completions for 161 yards . Later in the second quarter , Taylor ' s 21 - yard run gave his team a first down on the Patriots 34 - yard line . Four plays later , he scored on a 13 - yard touchdown run , giving his team a 12 - 0 lead after a failed 2 - point conversion attempt . But in the third quarter , Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak managed to spark a rally . First he led New England 85 yards on a drive that consumed 8 : 48 off the clock and ended with a 1 - yard touchdown run from Edwards . Then on the Patriots next possession , he led them to Jacksonville ' s 9 - yard line . Following a dropped pass by tight end Lovett Purnell on third down , Adam Vinatieri ' s 27 - yard field goal cut the score to 12 - 10 . But on the Jaguars ensuing possession , quarterback Mark Brunell , threw a pass to receiver Jimmy Smith , who managed to break past defensive back Ty Law and make a 37 - yard touchdown catch in the back of the end zone . On the Patriots next drive , Jacksonville lineman Joel Smeenge forced and recovered a fumble , setting up Hollis ' third field goal . He added a fourth field goal to close out the scoring after the Patriots turned the ball over on downs deep in their own territory on their next possession . NFC : San Francisco 49ers 30 , Green Bay Packers 27 . The 49ers defeated the Packers , who had eliminated them from the playoffs in each of the past three seasons , in one of the wildest back - and - forth games in league history . Both teams took advantage of each other ' s turnovers and mistakes throughout the game . In the first quarter , Green Bay safety Pat Terrell ' s recovery of a fumble from receiver Terrell Owens set up a 48 - yard drive that ended with a Ryan Longwell field goal . But later in the period , 49ers lineman Chris Doleman recovered a fumble from Dorsey Levens on the Packers 17 - yard line . Two plays later , Steve Young threw a 1 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Greg Clark , giving San Francisco a 7 - 3 lead . The Packers offense responded by driving 62 yards in 9 plays , and Levens made up for his miscue with a 22 - yard run to the 49ers 2 - yard line on fourth down and 1 . On the next play , quarterback Brett Favre finished the drive with a 2 - yard touchdown pass to Antonio Freeman 4 seconds into the second quarter . Later in the second quarter , 49ers defensive back R . W . McQuarters returned a punt 19 yards to the 47 - yard line . Running back Garrison Hearst then rushed 3 times for 28 yards on a 37 - yard drive that ended with a field goal by Wade Richey , tying the game at 10 . But before the half ended , the Packers retook the lead with a 9 - play , 83 - yard drive , aided by two 15 - yard penalties against San Francisco . Levens finished the drive with a 2 - yard touchdown run , giving Green Bay a 17 – 10 halftime lead . Early in the third quarter , 49ers linebacker Lee Woodall intercepted a pass from Favre and returned it 17 yards to the Packers 33 - yard line . Four plays later , Owens dropped a pass in the end zone , but Young threw his second touchdown pass to Clark on the next play , tying the score at 17 . Then after forcing a punt , they took the lead by driving 48 yards and scoring with a 48 - yard field goal by Richey . In the fourth quarter , the Packers drove 60 yards in 11 plays , featuring a 33 - yard reception by fullback William Henderson , and scored a 37 - yard field goal to tie the game . But on the 49ers ensuing drive , a 34 - yard completion for Young to Owens set up another Richey field goal to put them back in the lead , 23 – 20 . With 6 : 16 left in the game , 49ers defensive back Darnell Walker intercepted a pass from Favre and returned it to the Packers 40 - yard line , giving his team a chance to put it out of reach . But after two runs by Hearst failed to make a significant gain , Owens dropped a potential first - down catch , his fourth drop of the day , and San Francisco had to punt . Taking the ball back at their own 11 - yard line with 4 : 19 remaining , Favre led the Packers back to retake the lead on a 15 - yard touchdown pass to Freeman at the end of an 89 - yard drive , featuring a 47 - yard completion to seldom - used rookie receiver Corey Bradford . But San Francisco responded with an equally impressive drive , in which Jerry Rice visibly fumbled on his first reception of the game , but was ruled down by contact even though replays appeared to show the ball came out before his knee hit the ground . The use of instant replay challenges was not in effect until the following year , allowing the drive to continue behind Young , who completed 7 of 9 passes on a 76 - yard drive for the winning score . Owens , who had dropped four passes and lost a fumble , caught the 25 - yard winning touchdown pass with eight seconds left in the game . Hearst finished the game with 128 rushing yards and 3 receptions for 15 yards . Levens rushed for 116 yards , caught 6 passes for 37 yards , and scored a touchdown . Favre threw for 292 yards and 2 touchdowns , while Young passed for 182 yards and 3 scores . Both Young and Favre were intercepted twice . This game was later featured on the NFL ' s Greatest Games as The Catch II . Divisional playoffs . January 9 , 1999 . NFC : Atlanta Falcons 20 , San Francisco 49ers 18 . Atlanta running back Jamal Anderson rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns , while the Falcons defense intercepted three passes from quarterback Steve Young as they barely escaped with a victory in the first playoff game ever played at the Georgia Dome . This would eventually prove to be the final postseason game in Young ' s hall of fame career . On the first play of the game , the 49ers suffered a major setback when running back Garrison Hearst suffered a broken ankle . This turned out to be a devastating injury that would prevent Hearst from playing another game until the 2001 season . Two touchdown runs by Anderson gave the Falcons a 14 - 0 first half lead . Late in the second quarter , backup running back Terry Kirby fumbled a pitch from Young . After several players scrambled for it , the ball bounced up in the air and was picked up by Atlanta ' s Chuck Smith , who returned it for an apparent touchdown . However , line judge Ron Baynes ruled that Kirby briefly gained possession of the ball and his knee was down when touched by Atlanta linebacker Henri Crocket , and the 49ers regained possession . A few plays later , Young threw a 17 - yard touchdown pass to Jerry Rice , cutting the score to 14 - 7 . Then on the Falcons ensuing possession , linebacker Charles Haley deflected a pass from Chris Chandler into the arms of defensive end Junior Bryant , who returned the interception to the Falcons 36 - yard line . On the final play of the half , Wade Richey kicked a 36 - yard field goal to cut the 49ers deficit to 14 - 10 at halftime . In the third quarter , the 49ers drove all the way to the Falcons 3 - yard line . But safety Eugene Robinson intercepted a pass from Young and returned it 77 yards , setting up Morten Andersen ' s 29 - yard field goal . Later in the quarter , the 49ers drove deep into Falcons territory again , only to have Young throw an interception to William White , who returned the ball 14 yards with a personal foul on the 49ers adding another 15 . At the end of Atlanta ' s ensuing drive , Andersen kicked his second field goal , giving his team a 20 - 10 lead early in the fourth quarter . With 2 : 57 left in the regulation , Young scored on an 8 - yard touchdown run . Backup quarterback Ty Detmer fumbled the snap on the extra point attempt , but he picked up the ball and threw it to tight end Greg Clark for a successful 2 - point conversion , making the score 20 - 18 . San Francisco managed to force a punt and got the ball back with 34 seconds but no timeouts left . William White ' s interception at midfield as time expired sealed the victory . This was the last game for Jerry Markbreit as he retired from officiating NFL football . AFC : Denver Broncos 38 , Miami Dolphins 3 . Denver blew out Miami , outgaining them in rushing yards 250 - 14 and scoring touchdowns on each of their first three possessions . On their opening drive , they took 7 : 55 off the clock on the way to a 1 - yard touchdown run by Terrell Davis . Then after forcing a punt , they moved the ball much faster , driving 66 yards in four plays and scoring with Davis ' second touchdown on a 20 - yard burst . Miami managed to respond with a 22 - yard field goal from Olindo Mare . However , the Broncos stormed right back , driving 87 yards in 11 plays and scoring with Derek Loville ' s 11 - yard touchdown run , giving them a 21 - 3 lead by halftime On the first play of the second half , Davis took off for a 62 - yard run , setting up Jason Elam ' s field goal to make the score 24 - 3 . Miami managed to prevent Denver from scoring for the rest of the period , but in the fourth quarter , Broncos quarterback John Elway threw a 28 - yard touchdown pass to Rod Smith . Then on Miami ' s ensuing drive , defensive end Neil Smith closed out the scoring by returning a fumble 79 yards for a touchdown . Terrell Davis ran for 199 yards , caught a pass for 7 yards , and scored 2 touchdowns . Elway threw for 182 yards and a touchdown , and rushed for 19 yards . Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino threw for 243 yards , but could not lead his team to a single touchdown and was intercepted twice . This was the only time that Hall of Famers Elway and Marino ( both members of the famous 1983 draft class ) faced each other in the playoffs ; Elway was in his last season , and Marino in his next - to - last . January 10 , 1999 . AFC : New York Jets 34 , Jacksonville Jaguars 24 . Quarterback Vinny Testaverde passed for 284 yards as the Jets held the ball for 39 : 16 . Receiver Keyshawn Johnson caught 9 passes for 121 yards and a touchdown , rushed for 28 yards and a touchdown , recovered a fumble , and intercepted a pass on defense near the end of the game when he was brought in as an extra defensive back . Jets running back Curtis Martin rushed for 124 yards , caught 6 passes for 58 yards , and scored 2 touchdowns . Jacksonville receiver Jimmy Smith caught 5 passes for 104 yards and 2 touchdowns . Quarterback Mark Brunell threw 3 touchdown passes , but was held to just 12 of 31 completions for 156 yards and intercepted 3 times . Johnson ' s 21 - yard touchdown reception on the opening drive of the game was the only score from either team in the first quarter . Most of the second quarter belonged to the Jets , who held the ball for all but 51 seconds of the period and added 10 points to their lead . First , John Hall made a 51 - yard field goal . Then on New York ' s next drive , Martin lost a fumble that safety Chris Hudson initially recovered on the Jaguars 18 - yard line . But during the return , he fumbled while attempting a lateral to teammate Dave Thomas as he was being tackled by Testaverde , and Johnson recovered the ball on New York ' s 34 - yard line . The Jets then drove back into Jacksonville territory and scored with Johnson ' s 10 - yard run . However , Brunell threw a 52 - yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Smith on the last play of the half , cutting the score to 17 - 7 . Early in the third quarter , Jets defensive back Corwin Brown intercepted a pass from Brunell on third down and returned it 40 yards . On the ensuing drive , Testaverde ' s 23 - yard completion to Johnson set up a 1 - yard touchdown run by Martin . However , Jacksonville ' s Reggie Barlow returned the ensuing kickoff 88 yards , setting up a 3 - yard touchdown pass from Brunell to Keenan McCardell and cutting their deficit to 24 - 14 . New York struck right back , with Testaverde throwing for 70 yards on a six minute drive then ended with Martin ' s second touchdown to put them up 31 - 14 going into the fourth quarter . But Jacksonville refused to give up . First , Brunell threw a 19 - yard touchdown pass to Smith . Then a fumble from Jets receiver Wayne Chrebet set up a field goal from Mike Hollis , bringing the Jaguars to within one touchdown , 31 - 24 . New York responded by driving inside the Jacksonville 20 - yard line . With 2 : 30 left in the game , rookie safety Donovin Darius intercepted a pass from Testaverde in the end zone , but instead on kneeling down for a touchback , he attempted to return the ball and was tackled at the one yard line . Jacksonville was unable to get a first down on their ensuing drive and turned the ball over on downs . A few plays later , Hall kicked a field goal to put the game away . NFC : Minnesota Vikings 41 , Arizona Cardinals 21 . Running back Robert Smith led the Vikings to a victory as he ran for a team - playoff - record 124 yards and caught 2 passes for 14 yards . Fullback Leroy Hoard scored franchise playoff record 3 touchdowns , while quarterback Randall Cunningham completed 17 of 27 passes for 236 yards and 3 touchdowns with 1 interception . Arizona quarterback Jake Plummer threw for more yards than Cunningham , but was intercepted twice by Robert Griffith . Running back Mario Bates scored 3 touchdowns , but had only 4 rushing yards . Hoard ' s 1 - yard touchdown run on the opening drive of the game gave the Vikings a 7 - 0 lead . Later in the period , the Vikings drove all the way to the Cardinals 7 - yard line , but on the first play of the second quarter , defensive back Aeneas Williams intercepted a pass intended for Randy Moss in the end zone . However , Griffith recorded interceptions on each of the Cardinals next two possessions , setting up Cunningham ' s 15 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Andrew Glover and a 34 - yard field goal by Gary Anderson . his gave the Vikings a 17 - 0 lead before Arizona had made a single completion or gained a first down . Arizona managed to respond with a 1 - yard touchdown run from Bates , but Smith ' s 45 - yard run on the ensuing drive set up Hoard ' s 16 - yard touchdown reception , increasing the Vikings lead to 24 - 7 by halftime . Leading 27 - 14 late in the third quarter , Minnesota took advantage of a fumbled snap by Plummer by converting it into Cunningham ' s third touchdown pass of the day , a 3 - yard pass to Moss . Arizona responded with another touchdown run from Bates , but the Vikings struck back with Hoard ' s 6 - yard touchdown run at the end of a 12 - play drive to seal the victory . Conference championships . January 17 , 1999 . NFC Championship : Atlanta Falcons 30 , Minnesota Vikings 27 ( OT ) . This was the first conference championship game to feature two teams who play their home games in domes . The 14 - 2 Falcons came into the game as 11 point underdogs , but managed to win an extremely competitive game late in overtime , making Minnesota the first 15 - 1 team ever to fail to reach the Super Bowl . The Vikings had set an NFL record with 556 points and won their nine previous home games by an average of 23 points , but they could not win this game despite maintaining a lead for nearly all of the time in regulation . Fox Sports ranked it the third most exciting NFC Championship Game ever . Atlanta took the opening kickoff and stormed down the field , scoring with Chris Chandler ' s 5 - yard pass to Jamal Anderson . Aided by a 30 - yard pass interference penalty on Falcons defensive back Ray Buchanan , Minnesota struck right back on their first drive with Randall Cunningham ' s 31 - yard scoring strike to Randy Moss . In the second quarter , the Vikings converted an Atlanta fumble into a Gary Anderson field goal . Then after forcing a punt , Cunningham ' s 1 - yard touchdown run increased his team ' s lead to 17 - 7 with 5 minutes left in the half . Atlanta lost another fumble on their next possession , giving the ball back to Minnesota again . The Vikings blew a chance at another touchdown when Moss dropped a pass in the end zone , but Anderson kicked another field goal to make the score 20 - 7 . After forcing another Atlanta punt , the Vikings attempted to increase their lead more before halftime , but this time Falcons lineman Chuck Smith forced a fumble from Cunningham and Atlanta recovered the ball deep in Vikings territory , setting up Chandler ' s 14 - yard touchdown pass to Terance Mathis to cut their deficit to 20 - 14 by the end of the half . It was the turning point for the Falcons , as the game ' s momentum began to shift their way ( albeit subtly ) . Atlanta forced the Vikings to punt on the opening drive of the second half , and two plays by receiver Tim Dwight , a 26 - yard punt return and a 21 - yard run , set up Morten Andersen ' s 27 - yard field goal to cut their deficit to 3 points . The Vikings countered on their ensuing possession , driving 82 yards in 15 plays and scoring on Matthew Hatchette ' s 5 - yard reception to make the score 27 - 17 with just over 13 minutes left in the fourth quarter . Atlanta responded by driving inside the Vikings 10 - yard line and scoring with Andersen ' s 24 - yard field goal , narrowing the gap to 27 - 20 . Minnesota took the ensuing kickoff and marched down to the Falcons 30 - yard line , but lost their scoring opportunity when Cunningham fumbled a snap and Atlanta recovered the ball . The Falcons subsequently marched deep into Vikings territory , but also failed to score when Chandler ' s incomplete pass on a fourth down and 2 attempt turned the ball over on downs with 6 minutes left in regulation . Minnesota then drove to the Falcons 20 - yard line , setting up a 38 - yard field goal attempt for Gary Anderson , who had not missed a field goal all season . Another successful kick would have all but wrapped up the NFC title for Minnesota , but Anderson ' s kick sailed wide left , giving the ball back to Atlanta with 2 : 07 left and new life . Chandler then led his team down to the Vikings 16 - yard line . Following a near interception by Minnesota LB Dwayne Rudd , Mathis ' 16 - yard touchdown catch tied the game with 49 seconds left . Vikings coach Dennis Green then chose to kneel down and sent the game into overtime . After the first 3 possessions of overtime ended in punts , Chandler , on a bad ankle , led his team 70 yards to set up Andersen ' s 38 - yard field goal with 3 : 08 remaining that put Atlanta in the Super Bowl for the first time in team history . Chandler had one of the best games of his career , throwing for 340 yards and 3 touchdowns . Receiver Tony Martin caught 5 passes for 129 yards . Cunningham also had a solid performance , throwing for 266 yards and 2 touchdowns , while also rushing for 13 yards and a touchdown on the ground . Numerous references to this game are made in " Little Minnesota " , an episode from the television series " How I Met Your Mother " . The game was featured as one of the " NFL ' s Greatest Games " as Andersen and Anderson . AFC Championship : Denver Broncos 23 , New York Jets 10 . In John Elway ' s last home game of his career , he completed only 13 of 34 passes . However , running back Terrell Davis , the NFL MVP in 1998 , ran for 167 yards and a touchdown , and Denver capitalized on 6 turnovers ( two interceptions by defensive back Darrien Gordon and four fumbles ) by the Jets to overcome a 10 - 0 deficit . Jets running back Curtis Martin was held to just 14 rushing yards on 13 carries . New York quarterback Vinny Testaverde threw for 356 yards , but no touchdowns and was intercepted twice . Both teams blew scoring opportunities throughout the first half . The Jets took the opening kickoff and drove deep into Denver territory , only to have John Hall miss a 42 - yard field goal attempt . New York forced the Broncos to punt on their ensuing possession , and Dave Meggett gave his team good field position with a 33 - yard return . However , Martin lost a fumble on the Broncos 44 - yard line and defensive back Tyrone Braxton recovered it . Then Denver took the ball and drove all the way to the Jets 1 - yard line , only to give it back when linebacker Mo Lewis deflected Elway ' s pass on a fourth down conversion attempt . In the second quarter , Broncos punter Tom Rouen fumbled a snap and was downed on the Denver 43 - yard line . New York subsequently drove to the 18 - yard line , but then fullback Keith Byars fumbled the ball and linebacker John Mobley recovered it . On their next drive , New York opened up the scoring with Hall ' s 32 - yard field goal . Then early in the second half , the Jets tight end Blake Spence blocked a punt and recovered it on the Broncos 1 - yard line . On the next play , Martin scored a 1 - yard touchdown run to increase their lead to 10 - 0 . However , Denver stormed back with 23 unanswered points . On their ensuing possession , Elway completed a 47 - yard pass to Ed McCaffrey . Two plays later , his 11 - yard touchdown pass to Howard Griffith cut the score to 10 - 7 . Then the Broncos caught a lucky break when the ensuing kickoff bounced back in their direction and was recovered by linebacker Keith Burns , setting up Jason Elam ' s 44 - yard field goal to tie the game . The next time Denver got the ball , Elam kicked another field goal , giving the Broncos their first lead of the game . With time running out the third quarter , Gordon ' s 36 yard punt return gave the Broncos great field position . A few plays later , Davis ' 31 - yard touchdown burst 18 seconds into the fourth quarter gave them a 20 - 10 lead . Later in the quarter , Elam kicked a 35 - yard field goal to close out the scoring .