In the National Football League (NFL), a tied game occurs when a regular season game ends with both teams having an equal score after one 10-minute overtime period.[1][2] Ties have counted as a half-win and half-loss in league standings since 1972; before that, ties were not counted in the standings at all.[3] NFL teams rarely play for ties. In general, tied games in the NFL are frowned upon by both teams and fans.[4] Tied games in the NFL were fairly common until a 1974 rule change added one 15-minute sudden death overtime period to regular-season games if they were tied after regulation.[5] Under the original overtime rules, any score by either team in overtime would win the game.[6][7][8] The rules were modified in 2012 to prevent a field goal from the team that won the kickoff from ending the game,[9] and in 2017 to shorten the extra period from 15 minutes to 10 minutes for preseason and regular season games.[10][11]
Tie games were once frequent in the NFL, but have become increasingly uncommon due to a rule change in 1974 that extended the existing sudden-death overtime for post-season games into the regular season.[5] Unlike in soccer, where teams routinely play for ties due to the benefit of a point in the standings, NFL teams never play for ties; ties are most often the result of mishaps or mistakes from the teams involved. Tied games are considered to be the least desired outcome a football game can produce.[4] From 1920 to 1973, there were a total of 256 tied games. Only three seasons prior to the rule change (1934, 1950, 1952) went without a tied game, while five seasons (1920, 1923, 1926, 1929, 1932) had at least ten ties. The most ties, 17, occurred in the 1920 season.[12] Since overtime was introduced in 1974, there have been 29 tied games. Five seasons (1986, 1997, 2016, 2018, and 2022) have two ties since the introduction of overtime. The most recent tie game occurred on December 4, 2022, when the New York Giants and Washington Commanders played to a 20–20 draw.[13]
Tied games (1920–1973)
National Football League
| Season | No. of ties |
|---|---|
| 1920[A][12] | 17 |
| 1921 | 7 |
| 1922 | 9 |
| 1923 | 13 |
| 1924 | 7 |
| 1925 | 9 |
| 1926 | 14 |
| 1927 | 6 |
| 1928 | 6 |
| 1929 | 10 |
| 1930 | 7 |
| 1931 | 3 |
| 1932 | 10 |
| 1933 | 5 |
| 1934 | 0 |
| 1935 | 4 |
| 1936 | 2 |
| 1937 | 3 |
| 1938 | 3 |
| 1939 | 3 |
| 1940 | 4 |
| 1941 | 2 |
| 1942 | 1 |
| 1943 | 3 |
| 1944 | 3 |
| 1945 | 1 |
| 1946 | 3 |
| 1947 | 2 |
| 1948 | 1 |
| 1949 | 3 |
| 1950 | 0 |
| 1951 | 3 |
| 1952 | 0 |
| 1953 | 3 |
| 1954 | 2 |
| 1955 | 3 |
| 1956 | 2 |
| 1957 | 1 |
| 1958 | 3 |
| 1959 | 1 |
| 1960[B] | 5 |
| 1961 | 3 |
| 1962 | 4 |
| 1963 | 5 |
| 1964 | 6 |
| 1965 | 2 |
| 1966 | 5 |
| 1967 | 9 |
| 1968 | 4 |
| 1969 | 5 |
| 1970 | 9 |
| 1971 | 8 |
| 1972 | 5 |
| 1973 | 7 |
American Football League (1960–1969)
| Season | No. of ties |
|---|---|
| 1960 | 1 |
| 1961 | 1 |
| 1962 | 1 |
| 1963 | 3 |
| 1964 | 3 |
| 1965 | 5 |
| 1966 | 4 |
| 1967 | 2 |
| 1968 | 1 |
| 1969 | 3 |
Tied games (1974–2011)
In 1974, the NFL introduced a single sudden death 15-minute overtime period for all games that were tied at the end of regulation. During these seasons, a total of 494 regular season games went to overtime, 17 (3.4%) of which ended in ties.[15]
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Team (#) | Denotes the number of times the team has tied a game since 1974. |
| No. | Date | Away team | Home team | Score | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 22, 1974 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Denver Broncos | 35–35 | First regular-season overtime game in NFL history. As of 2024 it remains the most recent tie recorded by a team (the Steelers) that went on to win the Super Bowl.[16] |
| 2 | September 19, 1976 | Los Angeles Rams | Minnesota Vikings | 10–10 | With about a minute left in overtime, Vikings quarterback Fran Tarkenton's pass was intercepted by Rams linebacker Rick Kay at the Los Angeles 1-yard line. The Rams then conceded the tie with the ball deep in their own territory.[17] |
| 3 | November 26, 1978 | Minnesota Vikings (2) | Green Bay Packers | 10–10 | Both teams finished the season with an 8–7–1 record. The Vikings won the NFC Central over the Packers by virtue of a 1–0–1 head-to-head record.[4] |
| 4 | October 12, 1980 | Green Bay Packers (2) | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 14–14 | |
| 5 | October 4, 1981 | New York Jets | Miami Dolphins | 28–28 | Jets kicker Pat Leahy missed a 48-yard field goal as time expired in overtime.[18] |
| 6 | December 19, 1982 | Green Bay Packers (3) | Baltimore Colts | 20–20 | The Colts, who eventually finished their season at 0–8–1,[C] overcame a 20–6 fourth-quarter deficit. Packers kicker Jan Stenerud missed wide right from 47 yards with 2:00 remaining.[20] |
| 7 | October 24, 1983 | New York Giants | St. Louis Cardinals | 20–20 | Only overtime tie to date on Monday Night Football.[21] Cardinals kicker Neil O'Donoghue missed three field-goal attempts in the extra period from 45, 20 and 42 yards, the last two in the final 66 seconds.[22] |
| 8 | November 4, 1984 | Philadelphia Eagles | Detroit Lions | 23–23 | |
| 9 | October 19, 1986 | San Francisco 49ers | Atlanta Falcons | 10–10 | |
| 10 | December 7, 1986 | St. Louis Cardinals (2) | Philadelphia Eagles (2) | 10–10 | |
| 11 | September 20, 1987 | Denver Broncos (2) | Green Bay Packers (4) | 17–17 | Game played in Milwaukee. |
| 12 | October 2, 1988 | Kansas City Chiefs | New York Jets (2) | 17–17 | Jets running back Freeman McNeil lost a fumble at the Chiefs' 15 yard line in the final minute of overtime.[23] |
| 13 | November 19, 1989 | Kansas City Chiefs (2) | Cleveland Browns | 10–10 | Chiefs kicker Nick Lowery, one of the most accurate kickers during the 1989 season, played poorly on the sloppy turf of Cleveland Municipal Stadium. He missed a 45-yard field goal that would have won it for the Chiefs with four seconds left in regulation. In overtime, he had a chance to win the game on a 47-yard attempt with 3 seconds left, but missed that one as well.[24] |
| 14 | November 16, 1997 | Philadelphia Eagles (3) | Baltimore Ravens | 10–10 | Each team had an unsuccessful field-goal attempt in overtime; Ravens kicker Matt Stover missed wide right from 53 yards with 2:21 remaining, Eagles kicker Chris Boniol also missed wide right from 40 yards on the last play of the game.[25] |
| 15 | November 23, 1997 | New York Giants (2) | Washington Redskins | 7–7 | First overtime tie in the league's Sunday Night Football slot. Redskins quarterback Gus Frerotte injured himself by headbutting a stadium wall while celebrating his team's lone touchdown.[26] |
| 16 | November 10, 2002 | Atlanta Falcons (2) | Pittsburgh Steelers (2) | 34–34 | Atlanta mounted a 17-point comeback to force overtime. Steelers wide receiver Plaxico Burress was stopped one yard short of the end zone on the final play of overtime.[27] |
| 17 | November 16, 2008 | Philadelphia Eagles (4) | Cincinnati Bengals | 13–13 | Bengals kicker Shayne Graham missed a 47-yard field goal with seven seconds left in overtime. At the post-game press conference, Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb said that he did not know games could end tied.[28] |
Tied games (2012–2016)
In 2012, the league instituted a modified sudden death overtime system. A total of 83 regular season games went to overtime during these seasons, 5 (6.0%) of which ended in a tie.[29]
| No. | Date | Away team | Home team | Score | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | November 11, 2012 | St. Louis Rams (2) | San Francisco 49ers (2) | 24–24 | The Rams had a game-winning field goal taken away because of a penalty. Both teams missed field goal attempts in overtime.[30] |
| 2 | November 24, 2013 | Minnesota Vikings (3) | Green Bay Packers (5) | 26–26 | The Packers scored 16 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to force overtime. Both teams scored a field goal in the overtime period.[31] |
| 3 | October 12, 2014 | Carolina Panthers | Cincinnati Bengals (2) | 37–37 | Both teams scored a field goal in the overtime period. Bengals kicker Mike Nugent missed a 36-yard field goal attempt as time expired in overtime.[32] |
| 4 | October 23, 2016 | Seattle Seahawks | Arizona Cardinals (3) | 6–6 | Cardinals kicker Chandler Catanzaro and Seahawks kicker Steven Hauschka missed consecutive field goals from short distances late in overtime after having each made one earlier in the period. Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer threw a Hail Mary pass that was knocked out of the endzone at the end of overtime.[33] |
| 5 | October 30, 2016 | Washington Redskins (2) | Cincinnati Bengals (3) | 27–27 | First overtime game played at Wembley Stadium in London, and the first tie game played outside the United States.[34] Neither team scored in the overtime period. Redskins kicker Dustin Hopkins missed a 34-yard field goal in overtime which would have won the game. |
Tied games (2017–present)
In 2017, the NFL shortened overtime from 15 minutes to 10 minutes for regular season games with the intent of reducing the risk of injury.[35][36] Through the 2023 season, a total of 101 regular season games went to overtime under these rules, 7 (6.9%) of which ended in a tie.
| No. | Date | Away team | Home team | Score | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 9, 2018 | Pittsburgh Steelers (3) | Cleveland Browns (2) | 21–21 | Both Steelers kicker Chris Boswell and Browns kicker Zane Gonzalez missed field goals in the final two minutes of overtime. This was the first Week 1 tie since 1971. This tie ended a 17-game losing streak for the Browns that dated back to the 2016 season.[37] |
| 2 | September 16, 2018 | Minnesota Vikings (4) | Green Bay Packers (6) | 29–29 | Packers kicker Mason Crosby made what would have been a game-winning field goal as time expired in regulation, but the Vikings called timeout before the play and Crosby missed his second attempt, sending the game to overtime. Vikings kicker Daniel Carlson missed two field goals in overtime, one as time expired, and was waived by the team the next day.[38] |
| 3 | September 8, 2019 | Detroit Lions (2) | Arizona Cardinals (4) | 27–27 | The Cardinals trailed by 18 points during the fourth quarter. Both teams kicked a field goal in the extra period. Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford threw an incomplete pass that nearly resulted in an interception for Cardinals cornerback Tramaine Brock with 5 seconds remaining, ensuring the tie.[39] |
| 4 | September 27, 2020 | Cincinnati Bengals (4) | Philadelphia Eagles (5) | 23–23 | |
| 5 | November 14, 2021 | Detroit Lions (3) | Pittsburgh Steelers (4) | 16–16 | This tie ended a 12-game losing streak for the Lions dating back to 2020. The Steelers lost two fumbles in Detroit territory during the overtime period. Steelers running back Najee Harris noted in the postgame press conference that he did not know an NFL game could end in a tie.[40] |
| 6 | September 11, 2022 | Indianapolis Colts (2) | Houston Texans | 20–20 | Indianapolis scored 17 unanswered points in the final 11 minutes of regulation. Neither team scored in the extra period.[41] Indianapolis released kicker Rodrigo Blankenship after missing a potential game-winning field goal in overtime.[42] |
| 7 | December 4, 2022 | Washington Commanders (3) | New York Giants (3) | 20–20 | New York kicker Graham Gano missed a 58-yard field goal as time expired.[13] |
Notes
- Notes
- Footnotes
General references
- "Past Standings (1920–2013)" (PDF). National Football League. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
- Sessler, Mike (November 11, 2012). "Rams-49ers play to tie in game fueled by weirdness". National Football League. Retrieved February 25, 2013.