Greatest games in nfl history

The Dolphins forced three fumbles and intercepted Boomer Esiason three times in the second half, but were still down with 22 seconds left in the game. With the ball on the Jets 8-yard line and out of timeouts, Marino yelled "Clock!

The Jets defense didn't line up properly, Marino alertly noticed an opening, faked the spike and then threw the ball to Mark Ingram for the game-winning touchdown. The win helped push the Dolphins to the division title, and the loss sent Jets coach Pete Carroll back to the college ranks after the season.

Lore : This NFC divisional playoff game was a hard-fought contest through four quarters. Even before the last play, it was a game everyone thought had lived up to the hype of Brett Favre versus Donovan McNabb, both in the prime of their careers.

On fourth down with left, McNabb threw a yard slant to Freddie Mitchell as the Packers' Cover 2 scheme broke down and the Eagles got a first down that led to a game-tying field goal. Lore : The first of many Cleveland Browns playoff losses on this list, because the Browns don't just lose playoff games, they lose them in spectacular, unforgettable fashion.

In the coldest game since the Ice Bowl, the Raiders led with less than a minute remaining. In field goal range, Browns quarterback Brian Sipe called timeout. Head coach Sam Rutigliano told Sipe to "throw it into Lake Erie" if no one was open, as kicker Don Cockroft was battling a very injured back. Cockroft had missed two kicks and weather conditions made kicking even more perilous than usual. Sipe misread the Raider defense, missed the wide open Dave Logan, and threw it into traffic toward Ozzie Newsome where the ball was intercepted by Mike Davis.

Little did Cleveland fans know that this game would just be the first of many disappointments that would end up with its own moniker.

Lore : Brett Favre's father died the day before this game, but Favre elected to play anyway. Favre passed for four touchdowns in the first half, and yards in a defeat of the Raiders. Afterwards, Favre said, "I knew that my dad would have wanted me to play. Lore : In the days of real smash-mouth football, the Redskins and Rams were playing down to the last minute with the Redskins up Then Redskins quarterback Sammy Baugh threw a pass from the end zone that bounced off of the uprights of the goal posts, which were at the front of the end zones in that era.

This resulted in a safety and a Rams victory. It also resulted in a rules change that made that kind of pass ruled incomplete. The rule now is moot since the goal posts have been moved back to the rear of the end zones.

Lore : This was the year the Panthers went from to the Super Bowl. This was the year the game got overshadowed by Janet Jackson and the halftime show. By the way, this was one of the most competitive Super Bowls in history with the Patriots winning their second Super Bowl in three years.

A guy named Tom Brady was the quarterback. Lore : While the game was a divisional battle, it was the first game back in the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina. It was on Monday Night Football, and the emotion surrounding the game was incredible. The story of the game went beyond the sporting world, and New Orleans used the game to bring focus back to the city and its recovery efforts. Lore : The Miami Dolphins' perfect season almost ended on a horrible lapse in judgment by kicker Garo Yepremian.

The game was a defensive struggle, and the Dolphins led the Redskins when Yepremian's yard kick was blocked. Instead of just falling on the ball, Yepremian tried to throw a forward pass, but the ball squirted out of his hands. The play was ruled a fumble since Yepremian hadn't begun a forward motion, and Redskins cornerback Mike Bass returned it for a touchdown.

Lore : This NFC wild card matchup was a crazy game: lots of lead changes, turnovers, a Jerry Rice fumble incorrectly ruled down by contact, and Terrell Owens.

With two minutes left to play, Brett Favre threw a touchdown pass to Antonio Freeman, staking the Packers to a lead. Owens, who had dropped four passes and lost a fumble, got the game-winning touchdown with eight seconds left, and the 49ers advanced.

Lore : This divisional playoff featured the Broncos versus the wild card Jaguars, who barely squeaked into the playoffs with a record. But anything can happen on any given Sunday or Saturday, in this case , and the Jaguars went into halftime up Denver scored two touchdowns, but an extra point was blocked and a two-point conversion failed.

The Jaguars then outplayed the Broncos in the second half, and with the score , the Broncos failed to convert the onside kick, and with no timeouts, the Jaguars were able to run out the clock and advance. In the fourth quarter, with a chance to put the game away, Vikings kicker Gary Anderson missed his first field goal of the year wide left. The Falcons took the game into overtime, where Morten Anderson nailed the game-winning kick and sent Atlanta to its first Super Bowl. Lore : This wild card playoff game featured Barry Sanders running for yards, but it still wasn't enough to overcome a very young Brett Favre and the veteran Sterling Sharpe.

The score went back and forth in the fourth quarter with one big play after another, but in the end, a great throw by Favre and a miraculous catch by Sharpe gave the Packers a victory. Lore : Atlanta dominated the first half of this NFC divisional playoff game, but Dallas scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter to take a lead.

The Cowboys missed an extra point that would've forced the Falcons to score a touchdown to win the game, and Atlanta took over and began driving down the field. But they couldn't move the ball out of their own territory and turned the ball over on downs, sealing the Dallas victory. Lore : In a game noted for being a defensive battle, the final score was no surprise. But what happened during the game is what makes it memorable.

Despite the low score, the quality of the defensive play made the game a nail-biter the whole way. Then in the fourth quarter, Leonard Marshall would deliver a brutal sack to Joe Montana, knocking him out of the game. That sack would prove to be the turning point in Montana's career in San Francisco as Steve Young's rise could not be denied after that and Montana would finish his career in Kansas City.

Lore : The 49ers, down in the fourth quarter, rallied back to tie the game. The Redskins then went on a play, yard drive that took more than six minutes off the clock and were helped along by two controversial penalties.

Joe Montana then got the ball back and was driving down the field for what would've been the winning score, but was intercepted on the last play of the game, giving the Redskins a win and advancing to the Super Bowl. Lore : While John Elway had been to the Super Bowl three times before this, he'd never won any of them. The game was close, with neither team getting any kind of real lead.

In the fourth quarter, the Broncos faced second and goal with left in the game and the Packers had two timeouts remaining with the score tied at Head coach Mike Holmgren conceded the touchdown in order to give his team more time to come back and tie the game again. However, on third down, a wide open Antonio Freeman dropped the pass that would've moved the chains, and Favre's fourth down pass was broken up and the game was over.

Lore : This game is the reason "60 Minutes" is delayed on the East Coast. With the Jets leading and 65 seconds left in a game that had everything you could ever want to see in a regular season matchup, NBC cut to its scheduled telecast of "Heidi. There was a lot of offense, fights, and drama in the game right up to the cutaway to "Heidi. Fans on the Eastern Seaboard didn't miss much, only the Raiders scoring 14 points in those 65 seconds.

As a result of the fiasco, television network rules were changed, mandating all sporting contests be aired to their conclusion.

The Miami Dolphins were the two-time defending Super Bowl champions, and had a record of over the past three seasons, including their undefeated season in The Raiders were over that same period. The game was very close, and at the end, Stabler threw the game-winning touchdown into a "Sea Of Hands" consisting mainly of Dolphins defenders, and somehow Raiders receiver Clarence Davis emerged from the pile with the ball and the Raiders advanced.

Lore : This was the first NFL playoff game in history, and was the result of a tie in the standings between the Spartans and the Bears. Both teams had played each other to a tie twice during the regular season and ties didn't count in the standings at the time.

The game, originally scheduled at Wrigley Field, was moved indoors to Chicago Stadium due to a blizzard. Special rules were adopted for the game, and it included an yard field goal.

Today marks the year anniversary of Demaryius Thomas' yard walk-off touchdown in overtime. After falling behind in the first quarter, Tebow and Co. The second half was all Pittsburgh, though, as the team outscored Denver over the final 30 minutes to force overtime. The extra period was over in the blink of an eye. Tebow hit Thomas over the middle on the first play, and the receiver fended off cornerback Ike Taylor on his way to an yard, game-winning touchdown.

WildCardWeekend packers pic. It was a back-and-forth contest throughout the day at Lambeau Field. Shaun Alexander had three one-yard touchdown runs in the second half, while Ahman Green had two from the same distance. Seattle called heads for the OT coin toss and won. Neither the Seahawks nor the Packers scored on their first possession, giving Hasselbeck another chance. It was Al Harris who seized the opportunity, though, jumping a third-and pass and running it back for a yard, game-winning pick-six.

In the largest comeback in franchise history, Andrew Luck and the Colts erased a point deficit against the Chiefs in the Wild Card round! Indy fell behind in the third quarter before their former No. Andrew Luck threw a pair of touchdowns in the frame to help bring the deficit down to He then made it a three-point game in the fourth quarter after a fumble fell into his arms and he dove into the end zone.

Still, the Colts needed a touchdown with under five minutes to play, and they got it when Luck uncorked a yard dime to T. Hilton for the game-winning score. The game stands as the second-biggest comeback in playoff history.

Coming in at No. Aaron Rodgers and Co. He tossed four touchdown passes in the final 30 minutes of regulation, including an yard connection to Spencer Havner right after the two-minute warning that tied the game at Instead, Rodgers fumbled the ball two plays later and Karlos Dansby returned it for a game-winning Cardinals touchdown.

Neither the Seahawks nor the Packers scored on their first possession, giving Hasselbeck another chance. It was Al Harris who seized the opportunity, though, jumping a third-and pass and running it back for a yard, game-winning pick-six. In the largest comeback in franchise history, Andrew Luck and the Colts erased a point deficit against the Chiefs in the Wild Card round!

Indy fell behind in the third quarter before their former No. Andrew Luck threw a pair of touchdowns in the frame to help bring the deficit down to He then made it a three-point game in the fourth quarter after a fumble fell into his arms and he dove into the end zone. Still, the Colts needed a touchdown with under five minutes to play, and they got it when Luck uncorked a yard dime to T.

Hilton for the game-winning score. The game stands as the second-biggest comeback in playoff history. Coming in at No. Aaron Rodgers and Co. He tossed four touchdown passes in the final 30 minutes of regulation, including an yard connection to Spencer Havner right after the two-minute warning that tied the game at Instead, Rodgers fumbled the ball two plays later and Karlos Dansby returned it for a game-winning Cardinals touchdown. Teammate Matt Allen, the San Francisco 49ers and the referees had other plans, though.

The Giants took a lead late in the third quarter and had a lead when Strahan told Terrell Owens — who finished with nine receptions, yards and two touchdowns — to check the clock. San Francisco wound up going ahead with a minute left, but New York was able to get the ball into field goal range with a chance at a win.

From 41 yards out, Allen botched the snap on the attempt before lofting a pass towards the end zone. While the Giants clamored for pass interference, the team was flagged for an ineligible man downfield, sending San Francisco to the next round. Exactly a decade ago today, Marshawn Lynch caused a Beast Quake.

One of the most memorable runs in NFL history. Rewinding back a bit, the Seahawks squeaked out an NFC West title with a record and earned the chance to host the New Orleans Saints in the wild card round.