1988 New York Jets season

The 1988 New York Jets season was the 29th season for the team and the 19th in the National Football League. It began with the team trying to improve upon its 6–9 record from 1987 under head coach Joe Walton. The Jets finished the season with a record of 8–7–1. Although for the second straight year they failed to qualify for the playoffs, they would play the spoiler, as a victory over their cross-town rival New York Giants in week 16 kept the Giants out of the playoffs due to a series of tiebreakers. For the third time in his career, Ken O'Brien had the lowest rate of interceptions among quarterbacks. He had 7 interceptions in 424 passing attempts.

1988 New York Jets season
Owner	Leon Hess
Head coach	Joe Walton
Home field	The Meadowlands
Results
Record	8–7–1
Division place	4th AFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	TE Mickey Shuler WR Al Toon FS Erik McMillan

A ticket for a September 1988 game between the Jets and the Cleveland Browns.

The Jets endured a major distraction when Mark Gastineau, the team's main pass rusher who appeared to be experiencing a career-renaissance, abruptly retired in midseason to tend to ailing actress Brigitte Nielsen.

Offseason

Draft

Main article: 1988 NFL Draft

1988 New York Jets draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	8	Dave Cadigan	OT	USC
2	37	Terry Williams	DB	Bethune-Cookman
3	63	Erik McMillan	DB	Missouri
3	74	James Hasty	DB	Washington State
5	119	Mike Withycombe	OG	Fresno State
6	146	Paul Frase	DE	Syracuse
7	172	Gary Patton	RB	Eastern Michigan
8	203	Keith Neubert	TE	Nebraska
9	230	Ralph Tamm	OG	West Chester
10	257	John Booty	DB	TCU
11	287	John Galvin	LB	Boston College
12	314	Albert Goss	DT	Jackson State
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff

1988 New York Jets staff

Front office Owner – Leon Hess President/general manager – Jim Kensil Head coaches Head coach – Joe Walton Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/receivers coach – Rich Kotite Quarterbacks Coach - Zeke Bratkowski Running backs coach – Bobby Hammond Offensive line coach – Dan Radakovich

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Bud Carson Defensive line coach = Wally Chambers Linebackers coach - Jim Vechiarella Secondary - Mike Faulkner Special teams coaches Special teams coach - Larry Pasquale Quality control - Ray Callahan

Roster

1988 New York Jets roster

Quarterbacks (QB)  7 Ken O'Brien 10 Pat Ryan Running backs (RB) 31 Marion Barber 30 Nuu Faaola 34 Johnny Hector 24 Freeman McNeil 43 Roger Vick Wide receivers (WR) 84 Michael Harper 87 Kurt Sohn 88 Al Toon 83 Jo-Jo Townsell 85 Wesley Walker Tight ends (TE) 80 K. D. Dunn 81 Billy Griggs 86 Keith Neubert 82 Mickey Shuler

Offensive linemen (OL) 60 Dan Alexander G 63 Ted Banker G 61 Jeff Criswell T 79 Mike Haight G 68 Reggie McElroy T 53 Jim Sweeney C 76 Mike Withycombe G Defensive linemen (DL) 95 Tom Baldwin DE 91 Paul Frase DE 74 Mark Garalczyk DE 93 Marty Lyons DE 94 Scott Mersereau NT 77 Gerald Nichols NT

Linebackers (LB) 54 Troy Benson OLB 59 Kyle Clifton ILB 90 Robin Cole OLB 51 John Galvin ILB 55 Alex Gordon OLB 57 Kevin McArthur OLB 92 Ken Rose OLB Defensive backs (DB) 42 John Booty CB/S 40 James Hasty CB 28 Carl Howard CB 48 Bobby Humphery CB 36 Rich Miano SS 25 George Radachowsky FS 33 Terry Williams CB 38 Mike Zordich FS Special teams  5 Pat Leahy K  6 Joe Prokop P 75 Adam Schreiber LS

Reserve 64 Guy Bingham C (IR) 66 Dave Cadigan T (IR) 50 Bob Crable LB (IR) -- Bobby Curtis LB (IR) -- Glenn Dennison TE (IR) 52 Onzy Elam LB (IR) 35 Kerry Glenn CB (PUP) 89 Rocky Klever TE (IR) -- Mark Krerowicz G (IR) -- Jamie Kurisko TE (IR) 15 Kyle Mackey QB (IR) 22 Erik McMillan S (IR) 46 Mike Mitchell CB (IR) 58 Matt Monger LB (IR) -- Tim O'Malley LB (IR) 19 Bobby Riley WR (IR) -- Bill Sanders TE (IR) 67 Ralph Tamm C/G (IR) Rookies in italics 47 active, 18 reserve

Starters

POS	Name	GS
QB	7 Ken O'Brien	12
RB	24 Freeman McNeil	16
FB	43 Roger Vick	12
WR	88 Al Toon	15
WR	85 Wesley Walker	10
TE	82 Mickey Shuler	15
LT	61 Jeff Criswell	12
LG	79 Mike Haight	9
C	53 Jim Sweeney	16
RG	60 Dan Alexander	13
RT	68 Reggie McElroy	16

POS	Name	GS
LDE	99 Mark Gastineau	7
NT	94 Scott Mersereau	15
RDE	93 Marty Lyons	16
LOLB	55 Alex Gordon	13
LILB	54 Troy Benson	16
RILB	59 Kyle Clifton	15
ROLB	57 Kevin McArthur	16
LCB	48 Bobby Humphery	16
RCB	40 James Hasty	15
SS	36 Rich Miano	16
FS	22 Erik McMillan	13

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 4	at New England Patriots	L 3–28	0–1	Sullivan Stadium	44,027
2	September 11	at Cleveland Browns	W 23–3	1–1	Cleveland Municipal Stadium	74,434
3	September 18	Houston Oilers	W 45–3	2–1	Giants Stadium	64,483
4	September 25	at Detroit Lions	W 17–10	3–1	Pontiac Silverdome	29,250
5	October 2	Kansas City Chiefs	T 17–17 (OT)	3–1–1	Giants Stadium	66,110
6	October 9	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 19–36	3–2–1	Riverfront Stadium	57,482
7	October 17	Buffalo Bills	L 14–37	3–3–1	Giants Stadium	70,218
8	October 23	at Miami Dolphins	W 44–30	4–3–1	Joe Robbie Stadium	68,292
9	October 30	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 24–20	5–3–1	Giants Stadium	64,862
10	November 6	at Indianapolis Colts	L 14–38	5–4–1	Hoosier Dome	59,233
11	November 13	New England Patriots	L 13–14	5–5–1	Giants Stadium	48,358
12	November 20	at Buffalo Bills	L 6–9 (OT)	5–6–1	Rich Stadium	78,389
13	November 27	Miami Dolphins	W 38–34	6–6–1	Giants Stadium	52,752
14	December 4	at Kansas City Chiefs	L 34–38	6–7–1	Arrowhead Stadium	30,059
15	December 10	Indianapolis Colts	W 34–16	7–7–1	Giants Stadium	46,284
16	December 18	New York Giants	W 27–21	8–7–1	Giants Stadium	69,770
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 3 0 0 0 3 • Patriots 3 3 10 12 28 Date: September 4 Location: Sullivan Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: 63 °F (17.2 °C), wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn)

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total • Jets 3 3 3 14 23 Browns 3 0 0 0 3 Date: September 11 Location: Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: 65 °F (18.3 °C) • wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h; 4.3 kn) Referee: Tom Dooley TV announcers (NBC): Mel Proctor and Al DeRogatis

Scoring summary 1 NYJ Pat Leahy 22 yard field goal Jets 3–0 1 CLE Matt Bahr 47 yard field goal Tie 3–3 2 NYJ Pat Leahy 29 yard field goal Jets 6–3 3 NYJ Pat Leahy 23 yard field goal Jets 9–3 4 NYJ Roger Vick 1 yard run (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 16–3 4 NYJ Roger Vick 3 yard run (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 23–3

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total Oilers 3 0 0 0 3 • Jets 14 14 3 14 45 Date: September 18 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 67 °F (19.4 °C), wind 12 miles per hour (19 km/h; 10 kn) Referee: Bob McElwee Television network: NBC

Week 4

1 2 3 4 Total • Jets 3 7 0 7 17 Lions 3 0 7 0 10 Date: September 25 Location: Pontiac Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan Game weather: indoors (dome) Referee: Gordon McCarter TV announcers (NBC): Merle Harmon and Joe Namath

Week 5

1 2 3 4 OT Total Chiefs 0 0 3 14 0 17 Jets 3 7 0 7 0 17 Date: October 2 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: 70 °F (21.1 °C), wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn) Referee: Ben Dreith Television network: NBC

Week 6

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 9 3 7 0 19 • Bengals 6 13 7 0 26 Date: October 9 Location: Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 51 °F (10.6 °C), wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn) Referee: Dick Hantak TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total • Bills 17 14 3 3 37 Jets 0 7 7 0 14 Date: October 17 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 63 °F (17.2 °C), wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn) Referee: Dick Jorgensen TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Al Michaels, and Dan Dierdorf

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total • Jets 6 24 7 7 44 Dolphins 7 3 13 7 30 Date: October 23 Location: Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami, Florida Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: 77 °F (25 °C), wind 11 miles per hour (18 km/h; 9.6 kn) Referee: Bob McElwee TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 10 0 0 10 20 • Jets 0 10 7 7 24 Date: October 30 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 46 °F (7.8 °C), wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn) Referee: Tom Dooley Television network: NBC

Scoring summary 1 PIT Gary Anderson 25 yard field goal Steelers 3–0 1 PIT Rodney Carter 24 yard pass from Bubby Brister (Gary Anderson kick) Steelers 10–0 2 NYJ Pat Leahy 41 yard field goal Steelers 10–3 2 NYJ Mickey Shuler 2 yard pass from Ken O'Brien (Pat Leahy kick) Tie 10–10 3 NYJ Johnny Hector 2 yard run (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 17–10 4 PIT Gary Anderson 21 yard field goal Jets 17–13 4 NYJ Freeman McNeil 5 yard run (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 24–13 4 PIT Earnest Jackson 17 yard run (Gary Anderson kick) Jets 24–20

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 0 14 0 0 14 • Colts 7 3 21 7 38 Date: November 6 Location: Hoosier Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana Game start: 4:00 p.m. Game weather: indoors (dome)

Week 11

1 2 3 4 Total • Patriots 0 0 7 7 14 Jets 0 3 3 7 13 Date: November 13 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C), wind 18 miles per hour (29 km/h; 16 kn)

Week 12

1 2 3 4 OT Total Jets 0 3 0 3 0 6 • Bills 0 0 3 3 3 9 Date: November 20 Location: Rich Stadium • Orchard Park, New York Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 78,389 Game weather: 43 °F (6.1 °C) • wind 10 miles per hour (16 km/h; 8.7 kn)

Scoring summary 2 NYJ Pat Leahy 23 yard field goal Jets 3–0 3 BUF Scott Norwood 25 yard field goal Tie 3–3 4 BUF Scott Norwood 26 yard field goal Bills 6–3 4 NYJ Pat Leahy 40 yard field goal Tie 6–6 OT BUF Scott Norwood 30 yard field goal Bills 9–6

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total Dolphins 7 7 20 0 34 • Jets 7 17 0 14 38 Date: November 27 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 54 °F (12.2 °C), wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn) Referee: Jerry Seeman TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total Jets 10 10 7 7 34 • Chiefs 14 7 0 17 38 Date: December 4 Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Game start: 3:00 p.m. Game weather: 35 °F (1.7 °C), wind 11 miles per hour (18 km/h; 9.6 kn)

Week 15

1 2 3 4 Total Colts 6 7 3 0 16 • Jets 10 0 21 3 34 Date: December 10 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 12:30 p.m. Game weather: 31 °F (−0.6 °C), wind 14 miles per hour (23 km/h; 12 kn) Referee: Johnny Grier TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Week 16

1 2 3 4 Total Giants 0 7 7 7 21 • Jets 10 3 7 7 27 Date: December 18 Location: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game weather: 25 °F (−3.9 °C), wind 15 miles per hour (24 km/h; 13 kn) Referee: Gordon McCarter TV announcers (CBS): Verne Lundquist and Terry Bradshaw

Scoring summary 1 NYJ Pat Leahy 41 yard field goal Jets 3–0 1 NYJ Mickey Shuler 5 yard pass from Ken O'Brien (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 10–0 2 NYJ Pat Leahy 20 yard field goal Jets 13–0 2 NYG Stephen Baker 5 yard pass from Phil Simms (Paul McFadden kick) Jets 13–7 3 NYJ Freeman McNeil 6 yard run (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 20–7 3 NYG Stephen Baker 9 yard pass from Phil Simms (Paul McFadden kick) Jets 20–14 4 NYG Lionel Manuel 9 yard pass from Phil Simms (Paul McFadden kick) Giants 21–20 4 :37 NYJ Al Toon 5 yard pass from Ken O'Brien (Pat Leahy kick) Jets 27–21

Standings

AFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Buffalo Bills(2)	12	4	0	.750	7–1	10–2	329	237	L1
Indianapolis Colts	9	7	0	.563	5–3	7–5	354	315	W1
New England Patriots	9	7	0	.563	5–3	7–5	250	284	L1
New York Jets	8	7	1	.531	3–5	6–7–1	372	354	W2
Miami Dolphins	6	10	0	.375	0–8	3–9	319	380	L1

External links

• 1988 New York Jets at Pro-Football-Reference.com