New York Jets: Team loses to the Denver Broncos in the 1998 AFC title game

Looking back at one of the biggest games of New York Jets Kevin Mawae’s career, the 1998 AFC Championship game.

For anyone who didn’t already know, the New York Jets have selected the newest inductee into their ring of honor. The selection was Kevin Mawae, former center that spent eight years in New York before he gave way to Nick Mangold. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in six of the eight years in green and white and was a leader of the offensive line.

That induction takes place this week during the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. With that, we are going to throw it back this Thursday to one of the most important games of Mawae’s career in New York. That’s right, we are looking back at the 1998 AFC Championship game.

The date was January 17, 1999. It was Bill Parcells second season leading the Jets. We had all see the big turnaround in 1997 from 1-15 to 9-7. In 1998, the team took the next step, taking the league by storm on their way to a 12-4 record, winning the AFC East. A win over the Jacksonville Jaguars the previous week led them to this date with destiny. Win and the Jets are in the Super Bowl for the first time since Super Bowl III. Lose and it is back to the drawing board once again.

These two teams entered the game prolific scorers, with the Jets averaging 26 points per game and the Broncos averaging 31. However, it took nearly the first 30 minutes for either team to lodge points. The Jets scored first when John Hall connected on a 32 yard field goal as time expired in the first half.

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Jets fans, I don’t know how you felt, but I know how I did. The Jets were winning the title game at halftime! It was only three points, but they were winning. It was an exciting time. There were turnovers in the first half by they got through it. Curtis Martin actually fumbled but a goal line stand kept the game scoreless. Was this the Jets day?

Early in the second half, it even seemed more possible that it was the Jets time. They block a punt by Tom Rouen and Fred Baxter recovers it at the one yard line of Denver. Curtis Martin takes it in to make it 10-0 New York. Is it Super Bowl time?

On the ensuing drive, the Broncos take the momentum right back. John Elway hit Ed McCaffrey for a 47 yard completion. A 93 second drive ended with a Howard Griffith 11 yard touchdown reception. A fumble on the kickoff led to a field goal from 44 yards out by Jason Elam to tie the score at 10. Late in the quarter, Elam hit again from 48 yards out. The Broncos surged to a 13-10 lead and never looked back. With just second left in the quarter, Terrell David applied the backbreaker, taking it home from 31 yards out and increasing the Broncos lead to 20-10.

A late field goal ended the Jets Super Bowl dreams by the score of 23-10.

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It was arguably the biggest game the Jets played since Super Bowl III. The Tuna had them within one game of the Super Bowl. Really they were within one half of the Suiper Bowl, and Kevin Mawae was there, leading the offensive line. Although the season ended one game too early, we remember the great center, Kevin Mawae, as he is welcomed into the ring of honor on Sunday afternoon.

Information sourced from the New York Times and the Football Database.

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