2000 NFL season

The 2000 NFL season was the 81st regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XXXV when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants.

Week 1 of the season reverted to Labor Day weekend in 2000. It would be the last NFL season to date to start Labor Day weekend.

Major rule changes

• In order to cut down on group celebrations, unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and fines will be assessed for celebrations by two or more players.
• Anyone wearing an eligible number (1–49 and 80–89) can play at quarterback without having to first report to the referee before a play.
  • This rule change resulted in the increase of trick plays teams can employ on offense.
• The "Bert Emanuel" rule was implemented. A receiver has to have possession of the ball and control of the ball. If when making a catch and falling to the ground, the ball is allowed to touch the ground and still be considered a catch if the player maintains clear control of the ball.

Uniform and logo changes

• New England Patriots – New uniforms. Shade of blue darkened considerably, blue pants introduced for road uniforms.
• Baltimore Ravens – new Ravens Shield logo on sleeve ends.
• Cincinnati Bengals – Departed from Cinergy Field to brand new Paul Brown Stadium.
• Kansas City Chiefs – red pants on road uniforms for first time since 1988.
• New Orleans Saints – returned to gold pants for road uniforms.
• New York Giants – New logo and new uniforms. Returned back the old 1960s logo but newer version.
• New York Jets & New York Giants – New Grass Field in Giants Stadium.
• Seattle Seahawks – Departed from Kingdome to Husky Stadium while their new stadium was being built.
• St. Louis Rams – New logo and new uniforms. Shades of blue and gold darkened to "New Century Blue" and "Millennium Gold".

Coaching changes

• Cincinnati Bengals – Dick LeBeau; replaced Bruce Coslet who was fired during the 2000 season.
• Dallas Cowboys – Dave Campo; replaced Chan Gailey who was fired after the 1999 season.
• Green Bay Packers – Mike Sherman; replaced Ray Rhodes who was fired after the 1999 season.
• Miami Dolphins – Dave Wannstedt; replaced Jimmy Johnson who retired after the 1999 season.
• New England Patriots – Bill Belichick; replaced Pete Carroll who was fired after the 1999 season.
• New Orleans Saints – Jim Haslett; replaced Mike Ditka who was fired after the 1999 season.
• New York Jets – Al Groh; replaced Bill Belichick who replaced Bill Parcells who retired to become the fulltime General Manager after the 1999 season. Belichick was hired by the New England Patriots shortly after he resigned the from Jets.
• St. Louis Rams – Mike Martz; replaced Dick Vermeil who retired after winning Super Bowl XXXIV.

Final regular season standings

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

Clinched playoff seeds are marked in parentheses and shaded in green. No ties occurred this year.

Tiebreakers

• Green Bay finished ahead of Detroit in the NFC Central based on better division record (5–3 to Lions' 3–5).
• New Orleans finished ahead of St. Louis in the NFC West based on better division record (7–1 to Rams' 5–3).
• Tampa Bay was the second NFC Wild Card based on head-to-head victory over St. Louis (1–0).

Playoffs

* Indicates overtime victory

Home team in capitals

AFC

• Wild-Card playoffs: MIAMI 23, Indianapolis 17 (OT); BALTIMORE 21, Denver 3
• Divisional playoffs: OAKLAND 27, Miami 0; BALTIMORE 24, Tennessee 10
• AFC Championship: BALTIMORE 16, Oakland 3 at Network Associates Coliseum, Oakland, California, January 14, 2001

NFC

• Wild-Card playoffs: NEW ORLEANS 31, St. Louis 28; PHILADELPHIA 21, Tampa Bay 3
• Divisional playoffs: MINNESOTA 34, New Orleans 16; N.Y. GIANTS 20, Philadelphia 10
• NFC Championship: N.Y. GIANTS 41, Minnesota 0 at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, January 14, 2001

Super Bowl

• Super Bowl XXXV: Baltimore (AFC) 34, N.Y. Giants (NFC) 7 at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida, January 28, 2001

Milestones

The following teams and players set all-time NFL records during the season:

Statistical leaders

Team

Individual

Awards

External links

• Football Outsiders 2000 DVOA Ratings and Commentary
• Pro Football Reference.com – 2000

Notes

References

• NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
• NFL History 1991–2000 (Last accessed October 17, 2005)
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)
• Steelers Fever – History of NFL Rules (Last accessed October 17, 2005)