The Highest-Scoring Games In NFL Playoff History

By Tyler Maher , Henry Palattella
Editor , Editor
Mo Egger Contributor
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The Highest-Scoring Games In NFL Playoff History
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When football fans think of NFL playoff games, they often think of low-scoring battles played in frigid January weather conditions.

They’re unlikely to think of high-scoring, back-and-forth slugfests. However, NFL postseason history has had plenty of those, too.

While the Under often seems tempting in playoff games, the following games all hit the Over with plenty of room to spare.

With that in mind, let’s look at the five highest-scoring games in NFL playoff history.

  • 5: 1999 NFC Divisional Round: Minnesota Vikings vs. St. Louis Rams
  • 4: 2017 AFC Divisional Round: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
  • 3: 2013 AFC Wild Card Round: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Indianapolis Colts
  • 2: 1995 NFC Wild Card Round: Detroit Lions vs. Philadelphia Eagles
  • 1: 2009 NFC Wild Card Round: Green Bay Packers vs. Arizona Cardinals

5. 1999 NFC Divisional Round (86 Points)

Game Summary

  • Date: Jan. 16, 2000
  • Final Score: St. Louis Rams 49, Minnesota Vikings 37
  • Spread: Minnesota Vikings +7, St. Louis Rams -7
  • Total: Over/Under 52
  • Location: TWA Dome (St. Louis)

Nicknamed “The Greatest Show on Turf,” the 1999 St. Louis Rams had the best offense in football that year. Led by NFL MVP Kurt Warner, the Rams led the league in both scoring and total yardage.

Sure enough, their first playoff game was a shootout. They racked up a season-high 49 points against the Minnesota Vikings, who also had a high-octane offense (fifth in scoring, third in total yardage).

Warner shined in his postseason debut, completing 27-of-33 passes for 391 yards and five touchdowns. St. Louis also added a Marshall Faulk touchdown on the ground and another on a 95-yard kickoff return by Tony Horne.

The game wasn’t as close as the final score suggested, as the Rams led 49-17 midway through the fourth quarter. Vikings quarterback Jeff George threw three touchdown passes during the final five minutes of garbage time (including two to Randy Moss), helping make this one of the highest-scoring games in NFL playoff history.

Not surprisingly, St. Louis went on to win the Super Bowl a few weeks later.

4. 2017 AFC Divisional Round (87 Points)

Game Summary

  • Date: Jan. 14, 2018
  • Final Score: Jacksonville Jaguars 45, Pittsburgh Steelers 42
  • Spread: Jacksonville Jaguars +7, Pittsburgh Steelers -7
  • Total: Over/Under 40.5
  • Location: Heinz Field (Pittsburgh)

The Jacksonville Jaguars were a surprising playoff team with Blake Bortles under center, but they also boasted a dangerous offense. With Leonard Fournette anchoring the backfield and plenty of weapons for Bortles to throw to, the Jaguars ranked fifth in scoring and sixth in yardage.

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Steelers were a well-oiled machine. Blessed with one of the best quarterbacks (Ben Roethlisberger), running backs (Le’Veon Bell) and wideouts (Antonio Brown) in the league, the Steelers were eighth in scoring and third in yardage in the regular season.

Both teams had good defenses as well, but neither showed up for this divisional-round clash.

Jacksonville started fast on the road, scoring three touchdowns in the first 19 minutes and taking an early 21-0 lead. Pittsburgh started clawing back, helping the Over hit by halftime.

After a relatively quiet third quarter with only one total touchdown, things got wild in the fourth quarter. The final frame saw 38 points as the Steelers desperately tried to close the gap, only to lose by a field goal.

Despite a relatively quiet game from Bortles (14-for-26 passing, 214 yards, one touchdown), the Jaguars did much of their damage on the ground with four rushing touchdowns, including three from Fournette.

Meanwhile, Roethlisberger aired it out, completing 37-of-58 passes for 469 yards and five touchdowns in defeat.

2. 2013 AFC Wild Card Round (89 Points)

Game Summary

  • Date: Jan. 4, 2014
  • Final Score: Indianapolis Colts 45, Kansas City Chiefs 44
  • Spread: Kansas City Chiefs -1.5, Indianapolis Colts +1.5
  • Total: Over/Under 48
  • Location: Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis)

While the Patrick Mahomes-era Kansas City Chiefs aren’t on this list, the Alex Smith-era Chiefs are.

Kansas City was sixth in scoring but 21st in yards, while the Indianapolis Colts were middle of the pack in both categories.

It’s somewhat surprising, then, that a shootout between Smith and Andrew Luck ensued. Both teams scored in every quarter, combining for 89 points and 1,049 total yards.

Smith led the Chiefs to a 38-10 lead early in the fourth quarter, only to watch his defense squander it and lose by one point in horrific fashion. With 378 passing yards and four touchdowns on 30-of-46 passing, he wasn’t the reason for his team’s collapse.

Luck threw three interceptions but came up big when it mattered, finishing 29-of-45 passing for 443 yards and four touchdowns. With just over four minutes remaining, he found T.Y. Hilton for a go-ahead 64-yard bomb to win one of the wildest playoff games in recent memory.

2. 1995 NFC Wild Card Round (95 Points)

Game Summary

  • Date: Dec. 30, 1995
  • Final Score: Philadelphia Eagles 58, Detroit Lions 37
  • Spread: Detroit Lions -3, Philadelphia Eagles +3
  • Total: Over/Under 42
  • Location: Veterans Stadium (Philadelphia)

The Detroit Lions have endured a lot of playoff heartbreak over the years (they’ve still never been to a Super Bowl), much of which occurred during their six postseason exits in the 1990s.

This loss was arguably their ugliest, as they saw their seven-game winning streak come to an end in what was then the highest-scoring playoff game of all time.

The Lions just couldn’t take care of the ball, throwing six interceptions (two were returned for touchdowns) and losing a fumble. Starting quarterback Scott Mitchell threw four picks before getting benched midway through the third quarter for Don Majkowski, who threw a pair of interceptions in relief.

Majkowski also threw three touchdowns, but the damage had been done. The Philadelphia Eagles scored 44 unanswered points during the second and third quarters, building an insurmountable 51-7 lead. Detroit made a late push with 30 points in the second half, but it was too little, too late.

Nearly 30 years later, this is still the highest-scoring NFL playoff game that didn’t go to overtime.

1. 2009 NFC Wild Card Round (96 Points)

Game Summary

  • Date: Jan. 10, 2010
  • Final Score: Arizona Cardinals 51, Green Bay Packers 45
  • Spread: Green Bay Packers -2.5, Arizona Cardinals +2.5
  • Total: Over/Under 48
  • Location: University of Phoenix Stadium (Glendale, AZ)

This was Aaron Rodgers’ first career playoff start, and it was a doozy.

The future Super Bowl champ immediately proved he could handle the big stage, completing 28-of-42 passes for 423 yards and four touchdowns, including a game-tying touchdown pass in the final minutes to force overtime.

Unfortunately for Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers, he made a game-ending mistake in overtime. On the fourth play of the Packers’ drive, he was strip-sacked by Michael Adams. Karlos Dansby recovered the fumble and returned it 17 yards for the walk-off touchdown.

Rodgers also wasn’t able to outduel Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner in the final win of his legendary career. Warner threw for 379 yards and had more touchdown passes (five) than incompletions (four) in one of the most efficient postseason performances ever.

In addition to setting an NFL playoff record with 96 points (62 of which came after halftime), this game also featured 1,024 total yards.

Some historical odds are from sportsoddshistory.com.

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Tyler Maher
Tyler Maher Editor

Tyler is the Deputy Editor of Forbes Betting, helping expand the vertical since its launch in 2022. Before joining Forbes, he worked for MLB.com, The Game Day and Minute Media. Originally from the Boston area, he graduated from Tufts University in 2015 and currently lives in Providence, RI.

Henry Palattella
Henry Palattella Editor

Henry Palattella is a writer and editor based in Cleveland, Ohio, where he can usually be found ranting to his cat about how injuries robbed Grady Sizemore of a Hall of Fame career. He also works as a writer for MLB.com along with freelancing for numerous publications in Northeast Ohio. A native of Erie, Pennsylvania, he is a graduate of Kent State University, where he graduated the same year that Julian Edelman completed his degree.

Mo Egger
Mo Egger Contributor