1988 NFL season

Quarterback Warren Moon (left) and running back Mike Rozier (right) of the Houston Oilers were among the league's top passers and rushers, respectively.

The 1988 NFL season was the 69th regular season of the National Football League. The Cardinals relocated from St. Louis, Missouri to the Phoenix, Arizona area becoming the Phoenix Cardinals but remained in the NFC East division. Playoff races came down to the season's final day, with the Seattle Seahawks winning the AFC West by one game, and the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers winning their respective divisions in a five-way tie, with the New Orleans Saints and New York Giants losing the NFC Wild Card berth to the Los Angeles Rams on tiebreakers.

This season marked the final coaching season for the legendary Tom Landry.

The season ended with Super Bowl XXIII when the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 20-16 at the Joe Robbie Stadium in Florida.

Major rule changes

• A standard system of two time intervals between plays are established (and would be timed using the play clock): For normal plays, the offensive team has 45 seconds to snap the ball after the previous play is signaled dead. After time outs and other administrative stoppages, the time limit is 30 seconds beginning after the Referee signals that the ball is ready to resume play.
• If a fumble occurs during an extra point attempt, only the fumbling player can recover and/or advance the ball. This change closes a loophole in the "Stabler Fumble Rule" that was enacted during the 1979 NFL season in reaction to the Holy Roller Game.
• The penalty for "Running into the kicker" is changed from five yards and a first down to just 5 yards.
• Referees were outfitted with white hats while all other officials wore black hats, which was the standard practice in college and high school football. From 1979 through 1987, referees wore black hats while all other officials wore white hats.

Final standings

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

AFC East
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(2) Buffalo Bills	12	4	0	.750	329	237
Indianapolis Colts	9	7	0	.563	354	315
New England Patriots	9	7	0	.563	250	284
New York Jets	8	7	1	.531	372	354
Miami Dolphins	6	10	0	.375	319	380
AFC Central
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(1) Cincinnati Bengals	12	4	0	.750	448	329
(4) Cleveland Browns	10	6	0	.625	304	288
(5) Houston Oilers	10	6	0	.625	424	365
Pittsburgh Steelers	5	11	0	.313	336	421
AFC West
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(3) Seattle Seahawks	9	7	0	.563	339	329
Denver Broncos	8	8	0	.500	327	352
Los Angeles Raiders	7	9	0	.438	325	369
San Diego Chargers	6	10	0	.375	231	332
Kansas City Chiefs	4	11	1	.281	254	320

NFC East
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(3) Philadelphia Eagles	10	6	0	.625	379	319
New York Giants	10	6	0	.625	359	304
Washington Redskins	7	9	0	.438	345	387
Phoenix Cardinals	7	9	0	.438	344	398
Dallas Cowboys	3	13	0	.188	265	381
NFC Central
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(1) Chicago Bears	12	4	0	.750	312	215
(4) Minnesota Vikings	11	5	0	.688	406	233
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	5	11	0	.313	261	350
Detroit Lions	4	12	0	.250	220	313
Green Bay Packers	4	12	0	.250	240	315
NFC West
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
(2) San Francisco 49ers	10	6	0	.625	369	294
(5) Los Angeles Rams	10	6	0	.625	407	293
New Orleans Saints	10	6	0	.625	312	283
Atlanta Falcons	5	11	0	.313	244	315

Tiebreakers

• Cincinnati was the top AFC playoff seed ahead of Buffalo based on head-to-head victory (1–0).
• Indianapolis finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on better record against common opponents (7–5 to Patriots' 6–6).
• Cleveland finished ahead of Houston in the AFC Central based on better division record (4–2 to Oilers' 3–3).
• San Francisco was the second NFC playoff seed ahead of Philadelphia on better record against common opponents (6–3 to Eagles' 5–4).
• Philadelphia finished first in the NFC East based on head-to-head sweep of the N.Y. Giants (2–0).
• Washington finished third in the NFC East based on better division record (4–4) than Phoenix (3–5).
• Detroit finished fourth in the NFC Central based on head-to-head sweep of Green Bay (2–0).
• San Francisco finished first in the NFC West based on better head-to-head record (3–1) against the L.A. Rams (2–2) and New Orleans (1–3).
• The L.A. Rams finished second in the NFC West based on better division record (4–2) than New Orleans (3–3), and earned the last NFC Wild Card based on better conference record (8–4) than the N.Y. Giants (9–5) and New Orleans (6–6).

Playoffs

Main article: 1988–89 NFL playoffs

						Divisional Playoffs
						Jan. 1 – Rich Stadium
	AFC Wild Card Game										AFC Championship
						5	Houston	10
	Dec. 24 – Cleveland Stadium										Jan. 8 – Riverfront Stadium
						2*	Buffalo	17
	5	Houston	24								2	Buffalo	10
						Dec. 31 – Riverfront Stadium
	4	Cleveland	23								1	Cincinnati	21			Super Bowl XXIII
						3	Seattle	13
																Jan. 22 – Joe Robbie Stadium
						1*	Cincinnati	21
																A1	Cincinnati	16
						Jan. 1 – Candlestick Park
	NFC Wild Card Game										NFC Championship					N2	San Francisco	20
						4	Minnesota	9
	Dec. 26 – Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome										Jan. 8 – Soldier Field
						2*	San Francisco	34
	5	L.A. Rams	17								2	San Francisco	28
						Dec. 31 – Soldier Field
	4	Minnesota	28								1	Chicago	3
						3	Philadelphia	12
						1*	Chicago	20

Statistical leaders

Team

Points scored	Cincinnati Bengals (448)
Total yards gained	Cincinnati Bengals (6,057)
Yards rushing	Cincinnati Bengals (2,710)
Yards passing	Miami Dolphins (4,516)
Fewest points allowed	Chicago Bears (215)
Fewest total yards allowed	Minnesota Vikings (4,091)
Fewest rushing yards allowed	Chicago Bears (1,326)
Fewest passing yards allowed	Kansas City Chiefs (2,434)

Awards

Most Valuable Player	Boomer Esiason, Quarterback, Cincinnati
Coach of the Year	Mike Ditka, Chicago
Offensive Player of the Year	Roger Craig, Running Back, San Francisco
Defensive Player of the Year	Mike Singletary, Linebacker, Chicago
Offensive Rookie of the Year	John Stephens, Running Back, New England
Defensive Rookie of the Year	Erik McMillan, Safety, N.Y. Jets

References

• NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
• NFL History 1981–1990 (Last accessed December 4, 2005)
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)