December 27.2C 1997 1997–98 NFL playoffs

at giants stadium, east rutherford, new jersey

game time: 12:30 p.m. est
game weather: 46 °f (8 °c), rain , snow
game attendance: 77,710
referee: ed hochuli
tv announcers (abc): mike patrick (play-by-play) , joe theismann (color commentator)

the 1997 playoffs notable featuring 4 teams nfc central. @ fourth place vikings, had started year promising 8-2 before losing 5 straight games , barely making postseason 9-7 record. vikings had made playoffs in 4 of last 5 seasons, had lost each time in first round. time, however, managed earn win scoring 10 points in final 90 seconds of game.

vikings quarterback randall cunningham got off rough start lost 3 first half turnovers converted 9 new york points. after each team punted start game, cunningham lost fumble recovered defensive tackle bernard holsey on vikings 23. new york ended losing yardage ensuing drive, brad daluiso kicked 43-yard field goal put them 3-0. cunningham fumbled again on next drive, , new york lineman michael strahan recovered ball on minnesota 46-yard line. quarterback danny kanell subsequently completed 27-yard pass running charles way, setting daluiso s second field goal made score 6-0.

in second quarter, new york increased lead 13-0 7-play, 56-yard scoring drive. kanell kept going 11-yard pass running tiki barber on third , 4, , hit david patten 37-yard completion vikings 2-yard line. 1 play later, threw 3-yard touchdown pass tight end aaron pierce. after teams traded punts, giants defensive jason sehorn intercepted pass cunningham , returned 36 yards vikings 47-yard line. new york drove 23 yards 41-yard field goal daluiso, making score 16-0. later on, vikings caught break when defensive duane butler recovered fumble giants receiver amani toomer on new york 26-yard line. cunningham s 19-yard completion cris carter moved ball 7, leading eddie murray s 26-yard field goal. however, ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, giving ball new york on 40. taking advantage of excellent field position, giants put 26-yard drive score on daluiso s 51-yard field goal time expired in half, giving new york 19-3 lead. giants defense held vikings offense 21 rushing yards , cunningham completed 5 of 16 passes.

early in third quarter, vikings lineman jerry ball recovered fumble barber on giants 4-yard line, setting leroy hoard s 4-yard touchdown run narrowed gap 19-10. after punt, minnesota s offense got on track, moving ball new york territory cunningham s 33-yard completion jake reed. however, murray missed 48-yard field goal attempt. still defense managed force punt, , brad maynard s short kick gave them first down on own 40. time managed drive 52 yards , score murray s 26-yard field goal, making score 19-13 going fourth quarter.

new york s offense came life in final quarter, kanell completed 6 passes on 13-play, 74-yard drive, including 18-yarder patten on third , 9, , 21-yard completion chris calloway. vikings defense halted possession on own 5, daluiso kicked fifth field goal of day there, giving giants 22-13 lead 7:22 left in regulation. vikings got ball , ran 7 plays, not scoring range , decided punt facing two-score deficit 3:51 left.

if home, have been booed on place, because people don t understand game , vikings coach dennis green said after game. persuaded green punt , keep playing defense how maligned run defenders stopping new york s running attack. green admitted cutting close. had onside kick , said. practice every day. luck when preparation meets opportunity.

green s decision paid off vikings forced punt 2:06 left, , got ball on giants 49-yard line due short maynard kick. after, scored on cunningham s 30-yard touchdown pass reed 1:30 left. murray attempted onside kick, bounced off calloway s chest , recovered vikings receiver chris walsh on minnesota 39. false start penalty , incompletion left vikings facing second , 15 34, cunningham subsequently completed passes andrew glover , carter gains of 11 , 24 yards. following 12-yard pass interference penalty on defensive phillippi sparks, robert smith ran 16-yard gain set murray s game-winning 24-yard field goal.

this game biggest comeback win road team in playoffs since 1972, , first postseason win vikings in 9 years. first playoff win of green s career, following 4 first-round playoff losses on last 5 years.

afc: denver broncos 42, jacksonville jaguars 17

at mile high stadium, denver, colorado

game time: 4:00 p.m. est/2:00 p.m. mst
game weather: 42 °f (6 °c), clear
game attendance: 74,481
referee: bernie kukar
tv announcers (abc): al michaels (play-by-play), frank gifford, , dan dierdorf (color commentators)

denver compiled 310 rushing yards , 511 total yards of offense, , held ball 40:59 in 42–17 win, avenging playoff loss jaguars year before. broncos dominated early, converting first 9 third downs , scoring touchdowns on first 3 drives. first, converted 4 third downs drove 72 yards in 7:21, featuring 25-yard reception ed mccaffrey on third , 15, , scored on 2-yard touchdown run terrell davis. jacksonville forced three-and-out on next drive, , bryan barker s punt went 24 yards denver 40-yard line. broncos drove 60 yards , increased lead 14-0 43-yard touchdown pass john elway rod smith on third down , 4 2:37 left in first quarter. reggie barlow returned ensuing kickoff 37 yards midfield, , jacksonville subsequently drove denver 40, stopped there , had punt. barker s kick pinned broncos @ own 8, still drove 92 yards make score 21-0 on davis 5-yard touchdown run. key play of drive 40-yard completion elway smith on third down , 6 own 12-yard line. later in drive, elway completed 16-yard pass smith on third down , 13 jags 26. point, elway had completed 6 of passes 156 yards on third down plays.

jacksonville responded driving 79 yards, aided 16-yard reception jimmy smith , 34-yard pass interference penalty on defensive darrien gordon, score on 2-yard touchdown run natrone means, cutting score 21-7 on 5 minutes left in second quarter. final score of first half next 3 drives end in punts.

barlow returned second half kickoff 58 yards broncos 27, setting jags kicker mike hollis 38-yard field goal cut score 21-10. 4 minutes later, safety travis davis blocked punt denver s tom rouen , returned 29 yards touchdown, bringing jacksonville within 21-17. despite 51-yard kickoff return vaughn hebron, things seemed better jacksonville on ensuing possession when safety chris hudson forced fumble elway recovered defensive end renaldo wynn. jacksonville quarterback mark brunell s subsequent 37-yard completion tight end damon jones gave them first down on broncos 16-yard line. on next play, brunell lost fumble of own recovered linebacker allen aldridge. denver drove jacksonville 15, featuring 59-yard run davis, elway lost fumble recovered cornerback dave thomas , score remained 21-17 going fourth quarter.

in final quarter, denver took on game. jacksonville forced punt after elway s second fumble, , barker s 27-yard kick gave denver first down on jacksonville 48. there took 2 plays score, 23-yard completion elway tight end shannon sharpe , 25-yard touchdown run derek loville, making score 28-17. jaguars made 1 last spirited comeback attempt, gordon put end intercepting pass brunell in end zone. denver drove 80 yards in 10 plays, 8 of them carries loville (including 44-yard run), starting in place of injured davis. on last play, 8-yard touchdown run gave denver 35-17 lead. in desperate situation, brunell attempted convert fourth , 10 on jaguars next drive, gordon sacked him 10-yard loss, while 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on receiver keenan mccardell gave broncos first down on jacksonville 15-yard line. few plays later, hebron finished off scoring on 6-yard touchdown run 1:16 left in game.

davis rushed 184 yards , 2 touchdowns, while catching 4 passes 11 yards. loville, rushed 124 yards during regular season, had 103 yards , 2 touchdowns on 11 carries , 10-yard reception. elway completed 16 of 24 passes 223 yards , touchdown. rod smith top receiver of game 3 receptions 99 yards , touchdown. hebron had 6 carries 23 yards , touchdown, along 3 kickoff returns 87 yards. barlow returned 3 kickoffs 118 yards , punt 5 yards. jags lineman clyde simmons had 2 sacks.