2008 NFL season

This article is about the American football season in the United States. For the Gaelic football season in Ireland, see 2008 National Football League (Ireland).
2008 National Football League season
Regular season
Duration September 4[1] to December 28, 2008
Playoffs
Start date January 3, 2009
AFC Champions Pittsburgh Steelers
NFC Champions Arizona Cardinals
Super Bowl XLIII
Date February 1, 2009[2]
Site Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Champions Pittsburgh Steelers
Pro Bowl
Date February 8, 2009
Site Aloha Stadium

The 2008 NFL season was the 89th regular season of the National Football League, themed with the slogan “Believe in Now.”

Super Bowl XLIII, the league’s championship game, was at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on February 1, 2009,[2] with the Pittsburgh Steelers coming out victorious over the Arizona Cardinals 27–23 and winning their NFL-record sixth Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Conversely, the Detroit Lions became the first NFL team with a winless season since the strike-shortened 1982 NFL season, finishing their season 0–16. For the first time since the NFL expanded to the sixteen game season in 1978, three teams won two or fewer games: the Lions, the Kansas City Chiefs and the St. Louis Rams. Previously two teams won two or fewer games in 1979, 1981, 1985, 1992 and 2001.

The regular season began on September 4 with the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants defeating the Washington Redskins 16–7, and concluded with the 2009 Pro Bowl on February 8, 2009 in Honolulu.

Schedule

Preseason

In preseason games, the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game was played August 3 between the Indianapolis Colts and Washington Redskins, which aired on NBC.[3] Washington won the game, 30–16.[4] Other preseason highlights included the first game of the Toronto Series, which was played August 14 between the Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Toronto’s Rogers Centre. The Bills won that game, 24–21.[5]

Regular season

Formula

Based on the NFL’s scheduling formula, the intraconference and interconference matchups for 2008 were:[6]

Thomas Jones scores a touchdown for the New York Jets against the St. Louis Rams in week 10 of the season
Division AFC opponent NFC opponent
AFC East West West
AFC North South East
AFC South North North
AFC West East South
NFC East North West
NFC North South South
NFC South West North
NFC West East East

Opening Weekend

The annual NFL Kickoff Game to start the season took place on September 4 and featured the Super Bowl XLII champion New York Giants winning over their division rivals, the Washington Redskins, at Giants Stadium by a score of 16–7. The game’s kickoff was ninety minutes earlier than previous years, at 7 p.m. EDT, because of a time conflict with the 2008 Republican National Convention.[1]

Other featured games during the opening week included the NBC Sunday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and the Indianapolis Colts (the first regular season game at Lucas Oil Stadium, New England Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady suffered a season ending injury at Kansas City, and a rematch of Super Bowl XLI), in which the Kyle Orton-led Bears upset the Colts 29–13. In addition, there were two Monday Night Football contests, both division rivalries, as part of the now annual doubleheader: The Minnesota Vikings at the Green Bay Packers (the Packers’ first Monday night game without Brett Favre since 1992) in which Aaron Rodgers helped the Packers win, 24–19, and the Denver Broncos at the Oakland Raiders, where Jay Cutler and Eddie Royal led the Broncos in beating the Raiders, 41–14.[7]

Flexible scheduling

The 2008 season also was the third season of the use of the "flexible scheduling" for Sunday games starting with Week 11.

International play

This was the second consecutive season that the league played at least one regular season game outside the United States as part of its International Series. The contest between the San Diego Chargers and the New Orleans Saints was played at Wembley Stadium in London on October 26, with New Orleans winning 37–32.[8][9] The Chargers played at Buffalo the week beforehand on October 19 so they could immediately travel to London afterward in order to get used to the time difference.[8]

The league has also approved the Bills’ request to play at least one regular season home game at Toronto’s Rogers Centre over each of the next five seasons.[10] Team owner Ralph Wilson petitioned the league to play at least one game in Canada to strengthen his club’s fan base in Ontario.[11] The game in Toronto was on December 7, after the end of the 2008 CFL season,[10] against the Miami Dolphins; Miami won 16–3. CBS televised both games regionally; the Toronto game was carried across Canada on Rogers Sportsnet and City TV.

Thanksgiving

The traditional Thanksgiving Day games [12] were held on November 27, with the Detroit Lions hosting the Tennessee Titans at 12:30 PM EST on CBS (with the then 10–1 Titans handily defeating the then 0–11 Lions by a 47–10 score), and the Dallas Cowboys’ home game following suit on Fox at 4:15 PM EST against the Seattle Seahawks (Dallas Cowboys defeated the Seattle Seahawks by a score of 34–9). A third game on NFL Network, featuring the Arizona Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles followed at 8:15 PM EST.[1][6] It was the first home game for the Eagles on Thanksgiving Day since 1940, and their first Thanksgiving game at any location since the infamous Bounty Bowl Game in 1989; the Eagles defeated the Cardinals by a score of 48–20. (The Cardinals and Eagles would, two months later, rematch in the NFC Championship Game, with Arizona winning this time by a score of 32–25.)

Seattle and the New York Jets play on December 21, 2008

Christmas

Despite NFL tradition to play games on Christmas if the holiday lands on a day of the week when the NFL normally plays, and the fact that Christmas landed on a Thursday in 2008, the NFL opted not to hold a Christmas game this season, instead scheduling all of its week 17 matchups for Sunday, December 28.

Pro Bowl

The NFL’s Pro Bowl all-star game at the end of the season was played at Aloha Stadium in the Honolulu, Hawaii for the 30th consecutive season. The league had the option under their current contract to hold the game elsewhere, including the possibility of moving it to the host site of the Super Bowl.[13][14]

Final regular season standings

W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, PCT = Winning Percentage, PF= Points For, PA = Points Against

Playoff seeds are marked in parentheses and shaded in green.

AFC East
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(3) Miami Dolphins [b] 1150.688345317 Details
New England Patriots 1150.688410309 Details
New York Jets 970.563405356 Details
Buffalo Bills 790.438336342 Details
AFC North
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(2) Pittsburgh Steelers 1240.750347223 Details
(6) Baltimore Ravens [d] 1150.688385244 Details
Cincinnati Bengals 4111.281204364 Details
Cleveland Browns 4120.250232350 Details
AFC South
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(1) Tennessee Titans 1330.813375234 Details
(5) Indianapolis Colts 1240.750377298 Details
Houston Texans 880.500366394 Details
Jacksonville Jaguars 5110.313302367 Details
AFC West
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(4) San Diego Chargers [c] 880.500439347 Details
Denver Broncos 880.500370448 Details
Oakland Raiders 5110.313263388 Details
Kansas City Chiefs 2140.125291440 Details
NFC East
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(1) New York Giants [a] 1240.750427294 Details
(6) Philadelphia Eagles 961.594416289 Details
Dallas Cowboys 970.563362365 Details
Washington Redskins 880.500265296 Details
NFC North
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(3) Minnesota Vikings 1060.625379333 Details
Chicago Bears 970.563375350 Details
Green Bay Packers 6100.375419380 Details
Detroit Lions 0160.000268517 Details
NFC South
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(2) Carolina Panthers 1240.750414329 Details
(5) Atlanta Falcons 1150.688391325 Details
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 970.563361323 Details
New Orleans Saints 880.500463393 Details
NFC West
TeamWLTPCTPFPA 
(4) Arizona Cardinals 970.563427426 Details
San Francisco 49ers 790.438339381 Details
Seattle Seahawks 4120.250294392 Details
St. Louis Rams 2140.125232465 Details
Tiebreakers

Postseason

The playoffs began with Wild Card Weekend on January 3–4, 2009. The Divisional Playoffs were played on January 10–11 and the Conference Championship Games on January 18. Super Bowl XLIII was played on February 1 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida with the Pittsburgh Steelers winning their record sixth Super Bowl.

Within each conference, the four division winners and the two wild card teams (the top two non-division winners with the best overall regular season records) qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners are seeded 1 through 4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, and the wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round. In the first round, dubbed the wild-card playoffs or wild-card weekend, the third-seeded division winner hosts the sixth seed wild card, and the fourth seed hosts the fifth. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference then receive a bye in the first round. In the second round, the divisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5 or 6), while the number 2 seed will play the other team (seed 3, 4 or 5). The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games then meet in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Although the Super Bowl, the fourth and final round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, the designated home team is based on an annual rotation by conference.

Playoff seeds
Seed AFC NFC
1 Tennessee Titans (South winner) New York Giants (East winner)
2 Pittsburgh Steelers (North winner) Carolina Panthers (South winner)
3 Miami Dolphins (East winner) Minnesota Vikings (North winner)
4 San Diego Chargers (West winner) Arizona Cardinals (West winner)
5 Indianapolis Colts (wild card) Atlanta Falcons (wild card)
6 Baltimore Ravens (wild card) Philadelphia Eagles (wild card)

Playoffs bracket

                                   
Jan. 4 – Dolphin Stadium   Jan. 10 – LP Field          
  6   Baltimore   27
  6   Baltimore   13
  3   Miami   9     Jan. 18 – Heinz Field
  1   Tennessee   10  
AFC
Jan. 3 – Qualcomm Stadium   6   Baltimore   14
Jan. 11 – Heinz Field
    2   Pittsburgh   23  
  5   Indianapolis   17 AFC Championship
  4   San Diego   24
  4   San Diego   23*   Feb. 1 – Raymond James Stadium
  2   Pittsburgh   35  
Wild Card Playoffs  
Divisional Playoffs
Jan. 4 – Humphrey Metrodome  A2    Pittsburgh   27
Jan. 11 – Giants Stadium
   N4    Arizona   23
  6   Philadelphia   26 Super Bowl XLIII
  6   Philadelphia   23
  3   Minnesota   14     Jan. 18 – University Phoenix Stadium
  1   N.Y. Giants   11  
NFC
Jan. 3 – University Phoenix Stadium   6   Philadelphia   25
Jan. 10 – Bank of America Stadium
    4   Arizona   32  
  5   Atlanta   24 NFC Championship
  4   Arizona   33
  4   Arizona   30  
  2   Carolina   13  
* Indicates overtime victory

Rule changes

The following rule changes were passed at the league’s annual owners’ meeting in Palm Beach, Florida during the week of March 31:[15]

Media

Television

For more details on this topic, see NFL on television.
NFL on Fox announcers at Candlestick Park, November 16, 2008

This was the third season under the league’s current television contracts with its American broadcast partners. CBS Sports and Fox Sports televised Sunday afternoon AFC and NFC away games, respectively.[17] For primetime games, NBC broadcast Sunday Night Football and ESPN airs Monday Night Football.[18] The NFL Network’s Run to the Playoffs also broadcast seven Thursday and one Saturday late season night games,[19] although there were reportedly negotiations to move those games to ESPN Classic.[20] This was also the last NFL season to be broadcast over the air in analog television in the United States; the digital television transition occurred in June 2009. Border stations in Canada and Mexico will continue to broadcast in analog; cable stations are unaffected and will be distributed in the format of the cable provider’s choice.

NBC broadcast Super Bowl XLIII, their first Super Bowl since Super Bowl XXXII at the end of the 1997 season.[18]

Changes

ESPN reduced the on-air roles of sideline reporters Michele Tafoya and Suzy Kolber during the Monday Night Football telecast.[21] Also, Emmitt Smith has been replaced on Sunday NFL Countdown by Cris Carter, who came over from HBO.

Meanwhile, NBC’s Football Night in America reunited Dan Patrick with Keith Olbermann on television for the first time since 1997 when they co-hosted SportsCenter.

The in-house NFL Network saw Bryant Gumbel resign as their play-by-play announcer after two seasons on the network’s Run to the Playoffs package after critics described his play-by-play calling as "lackluster."[22] New York Giants radio announcer Bob Papa took his place.

Additionally, NFL Films-produced Inside the NFL changed premium cable homes from Time Warner’s HBO after three decades to CBS’ Showtime. Also changed: James Brown (from the parent network’s The NFL Today) as host and Phil Simms as one of the analysts. Cris Collinsworth is staying, but Dan Marino has been dropped as a studio analyst, and the aforementioned Cris Carter moved to ESPN. Taking their place is Warren Sapp.

3-D Telecast

On December 4, the NFL Network broadcast its game between the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers to theaters in New York City, Boston and Los Angeles using state of the art 3-D technology. The viewings, which were limited to NFL and consumer electronics executives, served as a test for future use of 3D in NFL television games.[23] Because of a technical glitch, the first half was not shown.

Radio

On radio, Westwood One separated from its longtime corporate sister, CBS Radio and the Sports USA Radio Network, another syndicator, has been sold along with parent company Jones Radio Networks to the Triton Media Group.. This led to the former “NFL on Westwood One” giving way in 2011 to “NFL on Dial Global”.

Internet television

On Internet television, both NFL.com and NBCSports.com carried complete live games of NBC Sunday Night Football for the first time ever. NFL.com continued its live coverage of Thursday and Saturday Night Football, which began in 2007, however for the first time the complete game rather than live look-ins was shown.

Home video

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2008 season/Super Bowl XLIII championship home video went on sale on DVD on February 24, 2009. One week later on March 3, it was released on Blu-ray Disc, making it the first NFL Films home video release to be on Blu-ray Disc.[24] The Blu-ray copy is "officially" sold exclusively through Amazon.com, though it is also available through the Sports Illustrated Super Bowl offer as well as eBay. Among its exclusive content included having most of the features in high-definition video as well as the NFL on Fox fourth-quarter coverage of the Steelers matchup against the Dallas Cowboys at Heinz Field in its entirety. The matchup, which took place during Week 14 and renewed the rivalry the two teams had in the 1970s & 1990s, saw the Steelers come back from a 4th quarter ten-point deficit to win 20–13.

The New York Giants 2007 season/Super Bowl video was only released on DVD the previous year despite the fact that Toshiba dropped support of HD DVD (the primary rival of Blu-ray) just two weeks after Super Bowl XLII.

Uniforms

The Tennessee Titans switched their home jerseys. They changed their alternate Columbia blue jersey to make it their primary color while the navy blue jersey became the alternate jersey.

The Denver Broncos brought back the alternate orange jerseys after a three-year hiatus and wore them for games against the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs.[25]

In their first two home games, the New England Patriots wore their white jerseys against the Kansas City Chiefs and Miami Dolphins. It is the first time the Patriots have worn white at home since 1994.[26]

For the first time in the team’s history, the Oakland Raiders wore their white jerseys at home against the San Diego Chargers.

Changes

Coaching

The following teams hired new head coaches prior to the start of the 2008 season:

Team 2008 Coach Former Coach(es) Reason for leaving Story/Accomplishments
Atlanta Falcons Mike Smith, Jacksonville Jaguars defensive coordinator[27] Bobby Petrino;[28]
Emmitt Thomas, interim for 3 games[29]		 Petrino resigned after 13 games to take the head coaching job at the University of Arkansas. In his first and only season, Petrino went 3–10 before resigning. Under interim head coach Thomas, the Falcons went 1–2 over the remainder of the season. Thomas would be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and remain as a special assistant coach for the Falcons.
Baltimore Ravens John Harbaugh, Philadelphia Eagles special teams coach [30] Brian Billick[31] Fired Billick coached the Ravens to a victory in Super Bowl XXXV, and was 80–64 with the Ravens in the regular season and 5–3 in the postseason, but went 5–11 in 2007, the worst record the Ravens had in his nine-year tenure. Became a color commentator for Fox Sports in 2008.
Miami Dolphins Tony Sparano, Dallas Cowboys assistant head coach/offensive line coach[32] Cam Cameron[33] Fired In his first and only season, the Cameron-led Dolphins finished with a league worst 1–15 record. After his sacking, Cameron became John Harbaugh’s offensive coordinator at Baltimore.
Washington Redskins Jim Zorn, Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach[34] Joe Gibbs[35] Retired Finished 16 overall seasons as Redskins head coach. During his first tenure, 1981–92, the club won three Super Bowls (XVII, XXII, and XXVI) and four NFC Championships (1982, 1983, 1987 and 1991). After being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996, he rejoined the team in 2004, and returned to running the day-to-day operations of his self-owned racing team after his second retirement.

The following head coaches were fired during the 2008 season:

Team Interim Coach Former Coach Reason for leaving Story/Accomplishments
St. Louis Rams Jim Haslett, defensive coordinator; former head coach of the New Orleans Saints Scott Linehan Dismissed September 29 four games into the season Linehan went 11–25 (.306 percentage) in his 2¼ seasons as Rams coach. After Haslett was named interim head coach, the Rams won two straight games against Washington and Dallas, but dropped the final 10 games of the season. On January 15, 2009, Haslett learned he would not be considered for the permanent head coach position. Haslett became the coach of the new United Football League’s Orlando franchise.
Oakland Raiders Tom Cable, offensive line coach Lane Kiffin Relieved of duties September 30 after four games Kiffin was fired in spite of being hired as the youngest coach in the NFL one year earlier, as shown by a 5–15 record (.250 percentage) in his 1¼ seasons as the fourth coach since Jon Gruden left. A dispute with owner Al Davis was said to be behind his dismissal, but Kiffin got a new job as coach of the University of Tennessee in December. Cable was named permanent head coach following back-to-back wins over Houston and at Tampa Bay, where the Buccaneers were eliminated from playoff contention.
San Francisco 49ers Mike Singletary, assistant head coach and linebackers coach Mike Nolan Fired October 20 after seven games The son of former coach Dick Nolan went 18–37 (.327 percentage) after nearly 3½ seasons as 49ers coach. Singletary had the interim tag removed following their 27–21 win over the Redskins on December 28, signing a four-year extension.

The firing of Kiffin and Linehan marked the first time since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 that multiple head coaches were fired before Week 5 of the season, and the first since 1989 that any coach was fired this early in a season. Both were released heading into their teams’ respective bye weeks, while Nolan was released prior to the game just before the 49ers’ bye.

For changes made since the end of the regular season, see 2009 NFL season: Coaching changes.

New logo

2008 was the first season that the NFL used a new, updated logo. Unveiled on August 31, 2007 in USA Today, the new design features eight white stars, representing each of the league’s eight divisions, instead of 25 on the old logo. The football has been redesigned and rotated to the same angle as the one on the top of the Vince Lombardi Trophy given to the Super Bowl champion. Darker shades of red and blue, specifically navy blue, are also used, along with font lettering to that of the league’s current typeface for other logos.[36] The new logo officially made its debut during the 2008 NFL Draft on April 26.

New stadiums

In addition to the Bills playing one home game in Toronto’s Rogers Centre, this was the first season that the Indianapolis Colts played their home games at Lucas Oil Stadium.[37] Meanwhile, 2008 was the final year that the Dallas Cowboys played at Texas Stadium; they moved to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas in 2009.[38]

Milestones

The following teams and players set all-time NFL records during the regular season:

Record Player/Team Date Broken/Opponent Previous Record Holder
Longest Field Goal Attempt
(76 yards)		 Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland September 28, vs San Diego Mark Moseley, Nov 25, 1979 (74 yards)
Most Receiving Yards by a Tight End, Career
(10,887 yards)		 Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City October 5, at Carolina Shannon Sharpe, 1990–2003 (10,060)[39]
Longest Overtime Blocked Punt Return for a Touchdown
(3 yards)		 Monty Beisel, Arizona October 12, vs Dallas None, first time in NFL history[40]
Longest Overtime Field Goal
(57 yards)		 Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland October 19, vs NY Jets Chris Jacke, Oct 4, 1996 (53)[41]
Consecutive Games with 6+ Receptions, Start of Season
(11 games)		 Wes Welker, New England November 9, vs Buffalo Jimmy Smith, 2001 (8)[42]
Consecutive Games with 400+ Yards Passing
(2)		 Matt Cassel, New England November 17, vs NY Jets, Miami Billy Volek, Dan Marino, Dan Fouts, Phil Simms (2)
Longest Interception Return
(108 yards)		 Ed Reed, Baltimore November 23, vs Philadelphia Ed Reed, Nov 7, 2004 (106) [43]
Most Passing Yards, First 10 Weeks of Season
(3,254 yards)		 Drew Brees, New Orleans November 23, vs Green Bay Dan Fouts 1982 (3,164 yards)
Highest Total Points Scored in a Single Week
(837 points)		 All 32 teams Nov 20–24, 2008 Done three times: Sept 5–9, 2002; Dec 5–6, 2004; and Dec 29–30, 2007 (788 points)
Longest Regular Season Interception Return without TD
(98 yards)		 Brandon McDonald, Cleveland December 15, at Philadelphia Julius Peppers October 10, 2004 (97 yards)
Most Consecutive Games Lost, Start of Season
(16)		 Detroit Lions December 21, vs New Orleans 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and 1980 New Orleans Saints (both started season 0–14)[44]
Most Consecutive Games Lost, End of Season
(16)		 December 28, vs Green Bay 2001 Carolina Panthers (15)[44]
Most Games Lost, Season
(16)		 Tied by 8 teams (15)[44]
Fewest Sacks By A Team, Season
(10)		 Kansas City Chiefs Cincinnati Bengals 1982 Baltimore Colts (11)[45]
Fewest Accepted Penalties, 16-game season
(58)		 New England Patriots December 28, vs Buffalo Bills Seattle Seahawks, 2007 (59)
Most Wins Without Making Playoffs, Since 1990
(11)		 New England Patriots December 28 Kansas City Chiefs, 2005, and Cleveland Browns, 2007 (10).
(1990 was the year the playoff field expanded to its current 12 teams. The last team to miss with 11 games won was the 1985 Denver Broncos, at a time when only 10 teams made it into the playoffs.)[46]
Lowest Winning Percentage While Still Making Playoffs, Non-Strike Season
(.500)		 San Diego Chargers December 28 Tied with multiple teams[47]
Most Super Bowl wins, team
(6)		 Pittsburgh Steelers February 1 with win over Arizona San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys (5 each)

Regular season statistical leaders

Team[48]
Points scored New Orleans Saints (463)
Total yards gained New Orleans Saints (6,571)
Yards rushing New York Giants (2,518)
Yards passing New Orleans Saints (5,069)
Fewest points allowed Pittsburgh Steelers (223)
Fewest total yards allowed Pittsburgh Steelers (3,795)
Fewest rushing yards allowed Minnesota Vikings (1,230)
Fewest passing yards allowed Pittsburgh Steelers (2,511)
Individual[49]
Scoring Stephen Gostkowski, New England (148 points)
Touchdowns DeAngelo Williams, Carolina (20 TDs)
Most field goals made Stephen Gostkowski, New England (36 FGs)
Rushing Adrian Peterson, Minnesota (1,760 yards)
Passer rating Philip Rivers, San Diego (105.5 rating)
Passing touchdowns Drew Brees, New Orleans and Philip Rivers, San Diego (34 TDs)
Passing yards Drew Brees, New Orleans (5,069 yards)
Pass receptions Andre Johnson, Houston (115 catches)
Pass receiving yards Andre Johnson, Houston (1,575 yards)
Punt returns Santana Moss, Washington (6 for 124 yards, 20.7 average yards)
Kickoff returns Domenik Hixon, New York Giants (3 for 180 yards, 60.0 average yards)not enough to qualify
Interceptions Ed Reed, Baltimore (9)
Punting Shane Lechler, Oakland (90 for 4,391 yards, 48.8 average yards)
Sacks DeMarcus Ware, Dallas (20)

Season highlights

Awards

Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning, Quarterback, Indianapolis Colts
Coach of the Year Mike Smith, Atlanta Falcons
Offensive Player of the Year Drew Brees, Quarterback, New Orleans Saints
Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison, Linebacker, Pittsburgh Steelers
Offensive Rookie of the Year Matt Ryan, Quarterback, Atlanta Falcons
Defensive Rookie of the Year Jerod Mayo, Linebacker, New England Patriots
NFL Comeback Player of the YearChad Pennington, Quarterback, Miami Dolphins
Super Bowl Most Valuable Player AwardSantonio Holmes, Wide Receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers
All-Pro Team
Special teams
KickerStephen Gostkowski, New England
PunterShane Lechler, Oakland
Kick returnerLeon Washington, New York Jets

Team Superlatives

2008 NFC South champions Carolina against Chicago in week 2 of the season

Offense

[50]

Defense

[51]

2008 AFC Players of the Week

Week Offense Defense Special Teams
1 RB Willie Parker, Pittsburgh Steelers CB Cortland Finnegan, Tennessee Titans WR-KR Roscoe Parrish, Buffalo Bills
2 WR Brandon Marshall, Denver Broncos S Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh Steelers LB Keith Bulluck, Tennessee Titans
3 RB Ronnie Brown, Miami Dolphins CB Antonio Cromartie, San Diego Chargers K Josh Scobee, Jacksonville Jaguars
4 QB Brett Favre, New York Jets LB Derrick Johnson, Kansas City Chiefs K Jeff Reed, Pittsburgh Steelers
5 QB Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers LB Gary Brackett, Indianapolis Colts K Matt Prater, Denver Broncos
6 QB Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts CB Eric Wright, Cleveland Browns WR-PR Jacoby Jones, Houston Texans
7 QB Matt Cassel, New England Patriots LB Terrell Suggs, Baltimore Ravens K Sebastian Janikowski, Oakland Raiders
8 QB Chad Pennington, Miami Dolphins S Chris Hope, Tennessee Titans WR-PR Jacoby Jones, Houston Texans
9 QB Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens DT Kris Jenkins, New York Jets K Adam Vinatieri, Indianapolis Colts
10 QB Jay Cutler, Denver Broncos LB Ray Lewis, Baltimore Ravens P Craig Hentrich, Tennessee Titans
11 QB Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts LB James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers KR-RB Leon Washington, New York Jets
12 QB Matt Cassel, New England Patriots S Ed Reed, Baltimore Ravens PR-WR Johnnie Lee Higgins, Oakland Raiders
13 RB Steve Slaton, Houston Texans DE Robert Mathis, Indianapolis Colts CB Maurice Leggett, Kansas City Chiefs
14 QB Matt Schaub, Houston Texans S Ed Reed, Baltimore Ravens K Dan Carpenter, Miami Dolphins
15 QB Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers DE Aaron Smith, Pittsburgh Steelers KR-CB Ellis Hobbs, New England Patriots
16 QB Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts CB Leon Hall, Cincinnati Bengals P Sam Koch, Baltimore Ravens
17 QB Chad Pennington, Miami Dolphins S Tyrone Carter, Pittsburgh Steelers P Chris Hanson, New England Patriots

2008 NFC Players of the Week

Week Offense Defense Special Teams
1 RB Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons DE Adewale Ogunleye, Chicago Bears KR/PR Will Blackmon, Green Bay Packers
2 QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals S Chris Horton, Washington Redskins KR/RB Felix Jones, Dallas Cowboys
3 RB Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons S Brian Dawkins, Philadelphia Eagles K John Carney, New York Giants
4 QB Jake Delhomme, Carolina Panthers LB Derrick Brooks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers K Matt Bryant, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
5 RB Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins CB Antoine Winfield, Minnesota Vikings PR/RB Reggie Bush, New Orleans Saints
6 QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints S Oshiomogho Atogwe, St. Louis Rams WR Sean Morey, Arizona Cardinals
7 RB Steven Jackson, St. Louis Rams S Aaron Rouse, Green Bay Packers S Zackary Bowman, Chicago Bears
8 QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints DE Mathias Kiwanuka, New York Giants PR/WR Santana Moss, Washington Redskins
9 QB Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons S Antrel Rolle, Arizona Cardinals KR/PR Clifton Smith, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
10 RB Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings DE Julius Peppers, Carolina Panthers LB Chase Blackburn, New York Giants
11 QB Shaun Hill, San Francisco 49ers CB Aaron Ross, New York Giants K Neil Rackers, Arizona Cardinals
12 QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints CB Ronde Barber, Tampa Bay Buccaneers PR/WR Harry Douglas, Atlanta Falcons
13 RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles DE Jared Allen, Minnesota Vikings KR/PR Mark Jones, Carolina Panthers
14 RB DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers LB Gerald Hayes, Arizona Cardinals RB/KR Pierre Thomas, New Orleans Saints
15 QB Tavaris Jackson, Minnesota Vikings LB DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Cowboys KR/S Danieal Manning, Chicago Bears
16 RB Derrick Ward, New York Giants CB Josh Wilson, Seattle Seahawks P Ryan Plackemeier, Washington Redskins
17 RB Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons DE Chris Clemons, Philadelphia Eagles K Ryan Longwell, Minnesota Vikings

Detroit Lions going 0–16

The 2008 Detroit Lions would mark the capstone of the ill decisions of President/General Manager Matt Millen since arriving on the job in 2001. After an 0–3 start, the Lions fired Millen on September 23 after seven seasons, during the team’s bye week. During that time, the Lions compiled the worst record in the league (31–84, .270 percentage) and had many questionable draft choices.

However, by that point, the damage had been done. The Lions went on to lose every game and finished 0–16, the first winless season in the NFL since the strike-shortened 1982 NFL season saw the Baltimore Colts finish 0–8–1, and the first full-season imperfect season since the expansion 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished 0–14. It marked the first time that a non-expansion team, non-strike shortened team, non-merged team finished winless since the 1944 Brooklyn Tigers finished 0–10. It was the second winless season for the Lions, who finished 0–11 in 1942.

Retirement/Unretirement of Brett Favre

The 2008 season marked the first time since September 20, 1992 that someone other than Brett Favre started at quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, as Aaron Rodgers became the new offensive “Leader of The Pack.” At first, this was given Favre’s announcement on March 4, 2008 that he would retire from the league after seventeen seasons. He owns many NFL records, including most wins as a quarterback, most touchdowns thrown, (broken by Peyton Manning in 2014) and most consecutive starts at quarterback, as well as most interceptions. He started every Packers game, regular season and postseason, for nearly sixteen full seasons (September 27, 1992 – January 20, 2008).

Aaron Rodgers hands off to Ryan Grant in Green Bay's week 5 encounter against the Atlanta Falcons

The Packers were scheduled to retire Favre’s #4 jersey in a ceremony during the first week of the season. However, on July 2, 2008, he publicly indicated that he wanted to play again as the starting quarterback. On July 11, 2008, Favre sent a letter to the Packers management asking for an unconditional release which will allow him to play for another team. The Packers did not give it to him, but they were unwilling to release him for fear that he would sign with division rival Minnesota Vikings (Favre's choice for an alternate team). Also, the Packers would not start him as quarterback if he came back to the team, and named the other Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers as the starting quarterback and Favre as the backup.

From July 14 to 15, Favre did TV interviews discussing his comeback, Rodgers taking his place, and frustrations on the Packers for not being honest with him, personally and publicly.

On July 16, 2008, the Packers filed tampering charges against the Vikings for alleged improper communication between Favre, Vikings head coach Brad Childress and Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell. Favre filed for reinstatement on July 29, 2008 and by August 4, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell reinstated Favre.

Three days later on August 7, the Packers traded Favre to the New York Jets for a conditional draft pick. He played well for most of the year, but entering December he suffered a shoulder injury which dropped the Jets out of playoff contention. Favre again retired following the 2008 season. The Jets then released Favre in favor of moving in the direction of getting a star college quarterback in the draft, eventually landing Mark Sanchez. Another protracted “will he/won’t he retire’ saga emerged in 2009 which concluded in August of that year when Favre signed with, as expected, the Minnesota Vikings.

Hurricane Ike

Main article: Hurricane Ike

Hurricane Ike forced several changes to the 2008 schedule. The Houston Texans' Week 2 home game against the Baltimore Ravens was first postponed to Monday, September 15, before Ike made landfall; damage to Reliant Stadium forced a further postponement, to Week 10, on Sunday, November 9, giving the Texans and the Ravens their bye weeks in Week 2. Furthermore, to accommodate this move, the Texans’ home game against the Cincinnati Bengals was moved forward from November 9 to Sunday, October 26, pushing the Bengals’ bye week from Week 8 to Week 10.[52] Although no other games were postponed, Ike and its remnants also impacted several other Week 2 games on September 14.

The Texans ended up having to wait until Week 5 against the Indianapolis Colts to have their home opener, the latest an NFL team went into the season before playing at home since the New Orleans Saints played their entire schedule on the road in 2005 due to the damages of the city of New Orleans as a result of Hurricane Katrina. (Every other NFL team had at least one home game by the end of Week 2.) With the Ravens eventually advancing to the AFC Championship Game against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers (and having to enter the playoffs as a wild card team), the impromptu decision to give the Ravens and Texans their bye week so early in the season ended up having the unintended effect of the Ravens playing in an NFL-record 18 consecutive weeks without a break in the schedule.

New formations result in high scores

The 2008 season saw a marked increase in the use of two new offensive philosophies (at least for the NFL, these offenses previously saw extensive use in college or Canadian football for a few years): the “wildcat formation,” a formation based on the halfback option play, the “spread offense,” which uses multiple wide-receiver sets and the quarterback frequently in shotgun, and the “Suggs package,” which features two quarterbacks on the field at once. In week 3 of the season, the wildcat formation, used up until this point primarily as a trick play, was used eight times, including four times in a Miami Dolphins game and three times in a game between the Oakland Raiders and Buffalo Bills.[53] Season-ending injuries to the starting and backup quarterbacks for the Chiefs prompted the team's offensive coordinator Chan Gailey to switch to a spread offense after six games.[54] In Baltimore, the Ravens, led by rookie head coach John Harbaugh, implemented the "Suggs package," which places two quarterbacks on the field at once, Joe Flacco and Troy Smith.[55] Due mainly to the new formations, 837 points were scored league wide in Week 12, the most ever for one NFL weekend.[54] The wildcat formation in particular was credited with turning the Miami Dolphins from a last-place team into the winner of the AFC East,[56] and four of the top ten plays ranked by NFL.com were directly based on the wildcat (two others featured wide receivers throwing passes).[55]

Tie game

On November 16, during Week 11, a game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium ended in a 13–13 tie, the first NFL tie game since November 10, 2002, when the Atlanta Falcons and the Pittsburgh Steelers ended in a 34–34 draw. After the game, Donovan McNabb mentioned that he did not know there were ties in the NFL, apparently confusing the NFL's postseason rules (where teams can and have played double overtime games because those contests continue until a team finally wins) with the regular season rules. This drew the ire of many fans, who thought that a quarterback of his caliber should know some fundamental rules; however, none of McNabb’s critics accused him of not playing to win during the OT period in Cincinnati, and his play was tied into a game that was widely derided as one of the ugliest, most disjointed results in NFL history.

Ironically, the tie game ultimately helped the Eagles make the playoffs, as it was the deciding tiebreaker for the #6 seed in the NFC; the Eagles went on to lose to the Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game.

Tributes

St. Louis Rams and Georgia Frontiere

On January 18, 2008, Georgia Frontiere, owner of the St. Louis Rams died due to complications with breast cancer.[57] The Rams announced that during the 2008 season they will wear a commemorative patch in her honor, with her signature on their left shoulder.

Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Hunt

On January 31, 2008, Clark Hunt, chairman of the board for the Kansas City Chiefs announced that henceforth the team’s Lamar Hunt/American Football League tribute patch that was introduced in the 2007 season will be a permanent part of the Chiefs’ uniform.[58] joining the Chicago Bears (with George Halas) and the Cleveland Browns (with Al Lerner) with such a patch.

Tim Russert

The stretch of highway outside Ralph Wilson Stadium along U.S. Route 20A in Orchard Park, New York has been named the Timothy J. Russert Highway. Russert, who was NBC News's chief Washington bureau correspondent and the host of Meet the Press, was a Buffalo native and noted Buffalo Bills fan. He died of a heart attack in June 2008.

Gene Upshaw

The league is also honoring the memory of NFLPA leader Gene Upshaw, who died suddenly at age 63 on August 20 just three days after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. For the entire season, the Oakland Raiders are wearing a patch on the left chest of the jerseys with the initials "GU" and his number 63, his jersey number with the Raiders.[59] All NFL teams also honored Upshaw with a video tribute and a replica of the uniform patch painted onto the field during the opening weekend.[60] Originally, the patch on the field and the video tribute were only going to be done in Oakland at the Raiders' home opener against the Denver Broncos as Upshaw played his entire 15-year Hall of Fame career with the Silver and Black, and at Giants Stadium, when the Giants and Redskins opened the NFL season on September 4. All players wore the same patch during Week One, and have since changed to a smaller helmet decal. The Raiders wore the patch through the remainder of the season.

Sean Taylor

The Washington Redskins honored the anniversary of death of Sean Taylor this season in a home game against the visiting New York Giants.

Steelers ownership restructure

The eventual NFL champion Steelers (in throwbacks) in week 4 against Baltimore, the eventual AFC runner-up

On July 7, 2008, owners of the Pittsburgh Steelers, including Art Rooney's five sons who own 80% of the franchise,[61] looked to restructure the ownership plan of the franchise in order to comply with NFL ownership regulations.[62] Current Steelers Chairman, Dan Rooney, and his son, Art Rooney II, President of the franchise, wished to stay involved with the franchise, while the remainder of the brothers — Art Jr., Timothy, Patrick and John — wished to further pursue racetracks that they own in Florida and New York.[63] Since 2006, many of the racetracks have added video slot machines, causing them to violate "NFL policy that prohibits involvement with racetrack and gambling interests".[64] On July 11, it was confirmed that investor Stanley Druckenmiller had been in discussion with the five Rooney brothers.[61] A Steelers fan for many years, Druckenmiller "has been known to paint his face black and gold" during games.[65] Coach Mike Tomlin stated that the situation could become a distraction, but "I'm here to coach, they're [the players] here to play. Those questions will be answered by the Rooneys."[66] On September 18, Druckenmiller withdrew his bid to purchase the team.[67]

NFL owners unanimously approved the restructuring of ownership on December 17, 2008, with Dan & Art II getting the mandated 30% stake. Meanwhile, brothers Timothy and Patrick (the ones who own race tracks with slot machines, which violate NFL ownership rules) are selling their shares outright, while Art Jr., John, and the McGinley family selling some shares but retaining smaller ownership roles, with the brothers reducing their shares from 16% to 6% and the McGinley family reducing their shares from 20% to 10%. Also coming on as partners are Pilot Corporation & Pilot Travel Centers president Jim Haslam III (son of founder Jim Haslam Jr. and brother of Knoxville, Tennessee mayor Bill Haslam), Legendary Pictures president & CEO Thomas Tull, and the Paul family of Pittsburgh & Los Angeles (who are primarily involved with Pittsburgh-based Ampco Pittsburgh Corporation and serve on numerous boards, including UPMC and Pitt), each getting a 16% stake in the team.[68] Dan Rooney mentioned he has no ill will towards Druckenmiller, mentioning he's a great Steelers fan and wishes he remains one.

Apparel

The 2008 season will mark just the third time in the salary cap era (and first since 2001) that no NFL team made major changes to their uniforms or logo. Since 1993, half of the league's teams (Arizona, Atlanta, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Denver, Minnesota, New England, New York Giants, New York Jets, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, and Tennessee) have completely redesigned their uniforms (The Patriots doing it four times, though none since 2000) while another five (Detroit, Green Bay, Miami, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh) making minor, though noticeable, changes. The Titans are swapping home and alternate designations on their light blue and navy blue jerseys though.

The Detroit Lions, in celebration of their 75th season in Motown as well as by popular demand by the fans, abandoned their black third jerseys in favor of their 1950s style throwback uniforms. They wore these uniforms against Jacksonville (November 9) and Tennessee (Thanksgiving Day – November 27). In addition, the Pittsburgh Steelers will make their throwbacks from the previous season their alternate uniform, wearing them against the Baltimore Ravens on September 29 and the New York Giants on October 26.[69] The Jets wore their New York Titans throwbacks at home against Arizona on September 28 and Cincinnati on October 12 this season, and the Bills donned their retro uniforms at home against Oakland Raiders September 21.

See also

External links

References

  1. 1 2 3 "NFL Considering Early Start for Opener". Associated Press. March 26, 2008.
  2. 1 2 "NFL.com: Future Super Bowl sites". Archived from the original on October 17, 2007. Retrieved December 25, 2007.
  3. ↑ "Colts vs. Redskins in '08 HOF Game". Pro Football Hall of Fame website. February 10, 2008. Archived from the original on January 13, 2009. Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  4. ↑ "Gamecenter: Hall of Fame Week 2008 – Colts vs. Redskins". NFL.com. Archived from the original on February 6, 2009. Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  5. ↑ Preseason national TV lineup to feature every '07 playoff team. NFL.com. April 3, 2008.
  6. 1 2 2006 NFL Record and Fact Book. p. 16. ISBN 1-933405-32-5.
  7. ↑ "Kickoff Weekend primetime schedule includes Monday doubleheader". NFL.com. March 31, 2008. Archived from the original on January 7, 2009. Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  8. 1 2 "Chargers to play Saints in London". The San Diego Union-Tribune. January 27, 2008. Retrieved January 27, 2008.
  9. ↑ "New Orleans Saints to host the San Diego Chargers as the NFL returns to Wembley". London: Daily Mail. January 27, 2008. Retrieved January 27, 2008.
  10. 1 2 "Bills have deal in place for Toronto games". The Buffalo News. January 30, 2008. Archived from the original on February 11, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
  11. ↑ Chris, Mortensen (January 8, 2008). "Bills likely to get OK to play game in Toronto". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on January 23, 2008. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
  12. ↑ Judge, Clark (November 26, 2008). "Turkeys times 10: NFL’s biggest Thanksgiving gobblers". Sportsline.com. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  13. ↑ "Pro Bowl: More moving talk". StarBulletin.com. October 14, 2007. Archived from the original on December 26, 2007. Retrieved December 17, 2007.
  14. ↑ "NFL’s Pro Bowl will stay in Honolulu". SI.com. December 28, 2007. Archived from the original on January 1, 2008. Retrieved December 29, 2007.
  15. ↑ "Proposal to reseed playoff teams withdrawn by owners". April 2, 2008. Retrieved April 2, 2008.
  16. ↑ "Boers and Bernstein 3:00 PM 7/24/08". WSCR. July 24, 2008. Retrieved July 25, 2008.
  17. ↑ Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
  18. 1 2 Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
  19. ↑ Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
  20. ↑ Pergament, Alan. Sports on the Air. The Buffalo News. June 28, 2008.
  21. ↑ Hiestand, Michael (February 10, 2008). "MNF reduces roles for field reporters Kolber, Tafoya". USA Today. Retrieved February 14, 2008.
  22. ↑ Gumbel decides to leave NFL Network. NFL.com. April 13, 2008.
  23. ↑ Mcbride, Sarah (November 24, 2008). "Coming at You! NFL Looks at 3-D". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on December 4, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
  24. ↑ Super Bowl XLIII Pittsburgh Steelers Blu-ray Disc
  25. ↑ http://broncotalk.net/2008/08/2192/broncos-news/broncos-to-bust-out-orange-jerseys/
  26. ↑ Reiss, Mike (September 7, 2008). "White jerseys note". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
  27. ↑ "Falcons hire Jaguars’ Smith as head coach". NFL.com. July 30, 2008. Archived from the original on January 7, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  28. ↑ "Petrino leaves Falcons". SI.com. December 11, 2007. Archived from the original on February 19, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  29. ↑ "Thomas named Falcons interim coach". Atlanta Journal Constitution. December 12, 2007. Archived from the original on February 16, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  30. ↑ "Ravens Hire Haubaugh As New Head Coach". NFL.com. January 18, 2008. Archived from the original on February 17, 2008. Retrieved January 18, 2008.
  31. ↑ "Billick fired". Baltimore Sun. January 1, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  32. ↑ "Dolphins hire Sparano away from Cowboys". Foxsports.com. January 16, 2008. Archived from the original on January 17, 2008. Retrieved January 16, 2008.
  33. ↑ "Dolphins Fire Cameron After 1–15 Season". Washington Post. January 4, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  34. ↑ "Redskins hire Jim Zorn as head coach". SI.com. February 9, 2008. Archived from the original on February 13, 2008. Retrieved February 9, 2008.
  35. ↑ Carpenter, Les (January 8, 2008). "Joe Gibbs Resigns as Redskins Head Coach". Washington Post. Retrieved January 8, 2008.
  36. ↑ McCarthy, Michael (August 31, 2007). "NFL to revamp shield with redesigned logo". USA Today. Retrieved December 24, 2007.
  37. ↑ "Lucas Oil: Lucas Oil Stadium". LucasOil.com. Archived from the original on December 29, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  38. ↑ "Cowboys Build For The Future By Honoring The Past". DallasCowboys.com. December 12, 2006. Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
  39. ↑ "Gonzalez sets NFL record for yards receiving by tight end". ESPN.com. October 5, 2008. Archived from the original on October 7, 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2008.
  40. ↑ "Cowboys rally in fourth, but blocked punt gives Cards OT win". ESPN.com. October 12, 2008. Archived from the original on October 14, 2008. Retrieved October 12, 2008.
  41. ↑ "Longest FG in OT history". Pro Football Hall of Fame.com. October 20, 2008. Retrieved October 20, 2008.
  42. ↑ "Patriots vs. Bills game notes". Patriots.com. November 9, 2008. Retrieved November 9, 2008.
  43. ↑ "Reed rumbles 108 yards". Pro Football Hall of Fame.com. November 24, 2008. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2008.
  44. 1 2 3 "NFL Team Records: Games Lost". NFL.com. Archived from the original on December 25, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  45. ↑ "NFL Team Records: Defense Records – Sacks". NFL.com. November 20, 1966. Archived from the original on January 16, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  46. ↑ Brandt, Gil. Wild finish to thrilling regular season sets the stage for playoffs. NFL.com. December 30, 2008.
  47. ↑ Only two teams had ever made the playoffs with losing records, both of them being in the strike-shortened 1982 season, when two teams with 4–5 records made it into an expanded 16-team playoff field.
  48. ↑ "NFL Stats: Team". NFL.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  49. ↑ "NFL Stats: Player". NFL.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  50. ↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com: 2008 NFL Standings, Team & Offensive Statistics
  51. ↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com: 2008 NFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics
  52. ↑ "Ravens-Texans game postponed; Bengals also affected". NFL.com. September 13, 2009. Retrieved September 14, 2009.
  53. ↑ Bell, Jarrett (September 25, 2008). "Odd formations could become latest fad across NFL". USA Today. Retrieved February 17, 2009.
  54. 1 2 Rand, Jonathan (December 2, 2008). "A copycat game". Kansas City Chiefs. Archived from the original on December 6, 2008. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  55. 1 2 Can't-Miss Plays: Best trick plays of 2008. NFL.com. January 24, 2009.
  56. ↑ Carucci, Vic. What rebuilding project? Dolphins focus on winning now. NFL.com. December 5, 2008.
  57. ↑ "Former Rams owner Frontiere dies.". MSNBC. Archived from the original on January 20, 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
  58. ↑ Lamar Hunt patch becomes a permanent part of the Chiefs’ uniform KCChiefs.com, January 28, 2008,
  59. ↑ "NFL players to wear uniform patch this season in honor of Upshaw". ESPN.com. September 1, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  60. ↑ Sep 2, 6:06 pm EDT (January 7, 2009). "NFL honors Upshaw at all 16 games". Sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  61. 1 2 Fitzpatrick, Dan (July 11, 2008). "Investor confirms talks with 5 Rooneys". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  62. ↑ "Steelers Ownership Transition". PittsburghSteelers.com. July 7, 2008. Archived from the original on July 13, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  63. ↑ "Rooneys look to restructure Steelers ownership". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. July 7, 2008. Archived from the original on July 13, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  64. ↑ Dulac, Gerry (July 8, 2008). "Steelers ownership in turmoil". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on July 13, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  65. ↑ Fitzpatrick, Dan (July 9, 2008). "Steelers suitor Druckenmiller 'loves Pittsburgh'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on July 13, 2008. Retrieved July 13, 2008.
  66. ↑ Bouchette, Ed (July 23, 2008). "Tomlin says ownership situation a potential distraction". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 24, 2008.
  67. ↑ Dulac, Gerry (September 18, 2008). "Druckenmiller withdraws name from Steelers sale". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved September 19, 2008.
  68. ↑ "NFL approves Rooney's ownership plan". ESPN.com. December 18, 2008. Archived from the original on December 19, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  69. ↑ "Official site of the Pittsburgh Steelers – Product Display". Steelers.com. June 27, 2008. Archived from the original on January 27, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
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