Major rule changes

• A standard system of two time intervals between plays are established (and would be timed using the play clock): For normal plays, the offensive team has 45 seconds to snap the ball after the previous play is signaled dead. After time outs and other administrative stoppages, the time limit is 30 seconds beginning after the Referee signals that the ball is ready to resume play.
• If a fumble occurs during an extra point
  Extra Point
  Extra Point is a twice-daily, two-minute segment on ESPN Radio that covers generic sports-related topical news and opinion. The AM edition airs Monday through Saturday at various times between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. ET, and the PM edition airs Monday through Friday between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET...
  
   attempt, only the fumbling player can recover and/or advance the ball. This change closes a loophole in the "Stabler Fumble Rule" that was enacted during the 1979 NFL season
  1979 NFL season
  The 1979 NFL season was the 60th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XIV when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Los Angeles Rams...
  
   in reaction to the Holy Roller Game.
• The penalty for "Running into the kicker" is changed from five yards and a first down to just 5 yards.
• Referees were outfitted with white hats while all other officials wore black hats, which was the standard practice in college and high school football. From 1979 through 1987, referees wore black hats while all other officials wore white hats.

Final standings

Tiebreakers

• Cincinnati was the top AFC playoff seed ahead of Buffalo based on head-to-head victory (1–0).
• Indianapolis finished ahead of New England in the AFC East based on better record against common opponents (7–5 to Patriots' 6–6).
• Cleveland finished ahead of Houston in the AFC Central based on better division record (4–2 to Oilers' 3–3).
• San Francisco was the second NFC playoff seed ahead of Philadelphia on better record against common opponents (6–3 to Eagles' 5–4).
• Philadelphia finished first in the NFC East based on head-to-head sweep of N.Y. Giants (2–0).
• Washington finished third in the NFC East based on better division record (4–4) than Phoenix (3–5).
• Detroit finished fourth in the NFC Central based on head-to-head sweep of Green Bay (2–0).
• San Francisco finished first in the NFC West based on better head-to-head record (3–1) against L.A. Rams (2–2) and New Orleans (1–3).
• L.A. Rams finished second in the NFC West based on better division record (4–2) than New Orleans (3–3), and earned the last NFC Wild Card based on better conference record (8–4) than N.Y. Giants (9–5) and New Orleans (6–6).

AFC

• Wild-Card playoff: Houston 24, CLEVELAND 23
• Divisional playoffs: CINCINNATI 21, Seattle 13; BUFFALO 17, Houston 10
• AFC Championship: CINCINNATI 21, Buffalo 10 at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
  Ohio
  Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
  
  , January 8, 1989

NFC

• Wild-Card playoff: MINNESOTA 28, L.A. Rams 17
• Divisional playoffs: CHICAGO 20, Philadelphia 12; SAN FRANCISCO 34, Minnesota 9
• NFC Championship: San Francisco 28, CHICAGO 3 at Soldier Field
  Soldier Field
  Soldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in the Near South Side. It is home to the NFL's Chicago Bears...
  
  , Chicago
  Chicago
  Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
  
  , Illinois
  Illinois
  Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
  
  , January 8, 1989

Super Bowl

• Super Bowl XXIII
  Super Bowl XXIII
  Super Bowl XXIII was an American football game played on January 22, 1989 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1988 regular season. This was the first Super Bowl hosted in the Miami area in 10 years, and the first in Miami not held...
  
  : San Francisco (NFC) 20, Cincinnati (AFC) 16, at Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami, Florida
  Miami, Florida
  Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
  
  , January 22, 1989

Awards