1999 NFL season The 1999 NFL season was the 80th regular season of the National Football League . The Cleveland Browns returned to the field for the first time since the 1995 season . Also , the Tennessee Oilers changed its name to Tennessee Titans , and the league retired the name " Oilers " - a first in league history . The return of the Browns gave the league 31 teams ( the first time since about 1966 that the NFL had an odd number of teams ) . As a result , the NFL was forced to give at least one team a bye each week . Previously , the league never gave a club the week off during the first two weeks or last seven weeks of the season ( the only exception being in 1992 , when the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots had a bye in week 1 as Hurricane Andrew forced the postponement of their season - opening game to October 18 , when their byes were originally scheduled ) . Under this new system , for ten weeks of the season ( Week # 1 to Week # 2 , and Week # 10 to Week # 17 ) , exactly one team was scheduled a bye ; for seven weeks of the season ( Week # 3 to Week # 9 ) , three teams sat out . This format would continue for the next two seasons until the Houston Texans joined the NFL in 2002 and returned the league to an even number of teams . The start of the 1999 NFL Season was pushed back one week and started the weekend after Labor Day , a change from the previous seasons . Due to the Y2K concerns , the NFL did not want to hold the opening round of the playoffs on Saturday January 1 , 2000 , and did not want teams traveling on that day . Week 17 games were held on January 2 , 2000 , and the opening round of the playoff would be scheduled for January 8 - 9 . The bye week before the Super Bowl was removed to accommodate the one - week adjustment . The start of the season after Labor Day would become a regular fixture for future seasons , beginning in 2001 . The St . Louis Rams , who had a losing record for each of the past nine seasons , surprised the entire league by defeating the Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXXIV . Major rule changes . The league also added the following then - minor rule change that became significant in the playoffs a few years later : This new interpretation of a forward pass would later be commonly known as the " Tuck Rule " . Final regular season standings . " W = Wins , L = Losses , T = Ties , PCT = Winning Percentage , PF = Points For , PA = Points Against " " Clinched playoff seeds are marked in parentheses and shaded in green " Music City Miracle . The Music City Miracle is a famous play in the NFL Wild Card Playoffs involving the Tennessee Titans and Buffalo Bills that took place on January 8 , 2000 ( following the 1999 regular season ) at Adelphia Coliseum in Nashville , Tennessee . Going into the game , Bills coach Wade Phillips created a stir by starting quarterback Rob Johnson , rather than Doug Flutie , who had started 15 games , and who had led the team to the playoffs . Late in the fourth quarter , the stage was set for an exciting finish . Tennessee received the ball with 6 : 15 remaining . Titans receiver Isaac Byrd ' s 16 - yard punt return and five carries from Eddie George for 17 yards set up a wobbly 36 - yard field goal by Del Greco . The Titans took a 15 - 13 lead with 1 : 48 to go . On the ensuing drive , with no timeouts remaining , Bills quarterback Johnson led the Bills on a five - play , 37 - yard drive to the Titans ' 24 yard line . On the last two plays from scrimmage , Johnson played with only one shoe on , as he had lost one and had no time to put it back on , with the clock running out . With only 16 seconds remaining in the game , Steve Christie , the Bills ' kicker , made a 41 - yard field goal to put Buffalo in the lead , 16 - 15 . Moments later , Christie kicked off , and Titans player Lorenzo Neal received . Neal handed the ball off to Titans tight end Frank Wycheck , who then lateraled the ball across the field to another Titans player , Kevin Dyson , who then ran down the sidelines for a 75 - yard touchdown . The play was named Home Run Throwback by the Titans and was developed by Special Teams Coordinator Alan Lowry . Per the instant replay rules , the play was reviewed by referee Phil Luckett since it was uncertain if the ball had been a forward pass , which is illegal on a kickoff return . However , the call on the field was upheld as a touchdown , and the Titans won the game 22 - 16 . After the game , however , many Bills players and fans continued to insist that it was indeed an illegal forward pass . With this play , the Titans were able to get to the Super Bowl .