1998 New Orleans Saints season

1998 New Orleans Saints season
Head coach	Mike Ditka
Home field	Louisiana Superdome
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	3rd NFC West
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1998 New Orleans Saints season was the team’s 32nd as a member of the National Football League (NFL).^[1]

The Saints failed to qualify for the playoffs for the sixth straight year, and after a promising start of 3–0 only equalled their 6–10 record of the previous season. In the process the Saints lost to the 0–7 Carolina Panthers and were to follow this up the following season against the expansion Browns to become the only team since the NFL/AFL merger to lose to the last winless team in successive seasons.^[2] Ironically, the only other time the Saints have been the last winless team’s victim was another expansion team’s first win, that of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1977.

Offseason

NFL Draft

1998 New Orleans Saints draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	7	Kyle Turley *	Offensive tackle	San Diego State
2	40	Cam Cleeland	Tight end	Washington
4	97	Fred Weary	Cornerback	Florida
4	99	Julian Pittman	Defensive end	Florida State
5	132	Wilmont Perry	Running back	Livingstone
6	161	Chris Bordano	Linebacker	SMU
7	204	Andy McCullough	Wide receiver	Tennessee
7	239	Ron Warner	Defensive end	Kansas
Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[3]

Personnel

Staff

1998 New Orleans Saints staff
	Front office Owner – Tom Benson President/General Manager/Chief Operating Officer – Bill Kuharich Vice President of Football Operations/Assistant General Manager – Chet Franklin Director of College Scouting – Bruce Lemmerman Head coaches Head Coach – Mike Ditka Assistant Head Coach/Secondary – Rick Venturi Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Danny Abramowicz Quarterbacks – Tom Clements Running Backs – Lary Kuharich Wide Receivers – Harold Jackson Tight Ends/Offensive Line Assistant – Dan Neal Offensive Line – Dick Stanfel Offensive Assistant – Judd Garrett			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Zaven Yaralian Defensive Line – Walt Corey Linebackers – Jack Del Rio Defensive Assistant – Ned James Special teams coaches Special Teams – Bobby April Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Mike Woicik Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Markus Paul

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 6, 1998	at St. Louis Rams	W 24–17	56,943
2	September 13, 1998	Carolina Panthers	W 19–14	51,915
3	Bye
4	September 27, 1998	at Indianapolis Colts	W 19–13	48,480
5	October 4, 1998	New England Patriots	L 27–30	56,172
6	October 11, 1998	San Francisco 49ers	L 0–31	62,811
7	October 18, 1998	at Atlanta Falcons	L 23–31	60,774
8	October 25, 1998	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 9–3	52,695
9	November 1, 1998	at Carolina Panthers	L 17–31	62,514
10	November 8, 1998	at Minnesota Vikings	L 24–31	63,779
11	November 15, 1998	St. Louis Rams	W 24–3	46,430
12	November 22, 1998	at San Francisco 49ers	L 20–31	68,429
13	November 29, 1998	at Miami Dolphins	L 10–30	73,216
14	December 6, 1998	Dallas Cowboys	W 22–3	65,065
15	December 13, 1998	Atlanta Falcons	L 17–27	61,678
16	December 20, 1998	at Arizona Cardinals	L 17–19	51,617
17	December 27, 1998	Buffalo Bills	L 33–45	39,707

Standings

NFC West
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
(2) Atlanta Falcons	14	2	0	.875	442	289	W9
(4) San Francisco 49ers	12	4	0	.750	479	328	W1
New Orleans Saints	6	10	0	.375	305	359	L3
Carolina Panthers	4	12	0	.250	336	413	W2
St. Louis Rams	4	12	0	.250	285	378	L2

References

1. 1998 New Orleans Saints
2. Last Winless NFL Team(s) in Each Season
3. "1998 New Orleans Saints Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 3, 2014.