1998 NFC Championship Game
The 1998 NFC Championship Game was the 29th title game of the National Football Conference (NFC). This National Football League (NFL) playoff game was played on January 17, 1999, to determine the NFC champion for the 1998 NFL season. The visiting Atlanta Falcons defeated the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings 30–27 in sudden death overtime to win their first conference championship and advance to the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance. As a result of their loss, the Vikings were eliminated from the playoffs and became the first team in the history of the NFL to compile a regular season record of 15–1 and not win the Super Bowl.
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, the site of the game | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | January 17, 1999 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Stadium | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Vikings by 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Walt Coleman | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 64,060 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Hall of Famers | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Falcons: Morten Andersen Vikings: Cris Carter, Randall McDaniel, Randy Moss, John Randle | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| TV in the United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | Fox | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Pat Summerall and John Madden | |||||||||||||||||||||
The game is considered one of the most memorable conference championship games in NFL history. Entering the playoffs, the Vikings were the favorite to win the Super Bowl, as they had set the NFL record for most points scored by a team in a single season. They had gone undefeated in their home stadium, the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, during the regular season, and their placekicker, Gary Anderson, had become the first kicker in NFL history to convert every field goal and extra point attempt in a season. At a critical moment late in the game, Anderson missed a field goal for the first time that year, which, if converted, would have given the Vikings a nearly insurmountable 10-point lead. Instead, the Falcons scored a touchdown to tie the game on their ensuing drive and subsequently won by a field goal in overtime. Due to its impact on the game's outcome, Anderson's missed field goal has since become the focal point of the loss.
The Falcons lost 34–19 to the Denver Broncos two weeks later in Super Bowl XXXIII. The Falcons would not return to the Super Bowl until the 2016 NFL season, when the Falcons lost in overtime to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI. Although the game long stood as the proudest moment in the history of the Falcons franchise, the 1998 NFC Championship Game has been remembered for the effect it had on the Vikings players and their fan base, as it is seen by some sportswriters as one of the most devastating losses in NFL history.