- In 1971, the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs played in the longest NFL game at 82:40.
- Two of the six longest games occurred after the turn of the century.
- All six of the longest games ended in double overtime.
You don’t see many NFL games go into overtime, and even fewer make it into a second overtime session.
Since 1962, only six games have extended into double overtime, four of which occurred between 1962 and 1987.
The other two happened after the turn of the century, in 2003 and 2013.
6 Longest Games in NFL History
| Teams | Time of Game | Score | Year |
| Miami Dolpins vs. Kansas City Chiefs | 82:40 | Dolphins 27 @ Chiefs 24 | 1971 |
| Dallas Texans vs. Houston Oilers | 77:54 | Texans 20 @ Oilers 17 | 1962 |
| Cleveland Browns vs. New York Jets | 77:02 | Browns 23 @ Jets 20 | 1986 |
| Baltimore Ravens vs. Denver Broncos | 76:42 | Ravens 38 @ Broncos 35 | 2012 |
| Oakland Raiders vs. Baltimore Colts | 75:43 | Raiders 37 @ Colts 31 | 1977 |
| Carolina Panthers vs. St. Louis Rams | 75:09 | Panthers 29 @ Rams 23 | 2004 |
NFL’s Longest Games Ever
6. Carolina Panthers vs. St. Louis Rams — Jan. 10, 2004
This NFC Divisional playoff match that spanned more than four hours saw the Carolina Panthers score the game-winning touchdown nine seconds into double overtime.
The Panthers won 29-23, securing the victory on a 69-yard touchdown pass from Jake Delhomme to Steve Smith. The game lasted 75:09.
The St. Louis Rams were the NFL odds favourites to advance and lost on home field after missing a field goal attempt prior to the Panthers’ game-winning double-overtime touchdown.
5. Oakland Raiders vs. Baltimore Colts — Dec. 24, 1977
John Madden called it “one of the all-time great games in the history of the NFL.”
It occurred on Christmas Eve in Baltimore and featured the defending Super Bowl champion Oakland Raiders and the Baltimore Colts.
The back-and-forth affair ended at the 43-second mark of the second overtime, with Raiders quarterback Ken Stabler connecting to Dave Casper on a 10-yard touchdown pass.
The Raiders outlasted the Colts 37-31.
Casper was responsible for forcing overtime, corralling an over-the-shoulder 43-yard grab to set up a game-tying field goal.
That Stabler-to-Casper play became affectionately known as the “Ghost to the Post,” as Casper’s nickname was the Ghost, and the route he ran was a post.
4. Baltimore Ravens vs. Denver Broncos — Jan. 12, 2013
The Denver Broncos hosted the Baltimore Ravens in an AFC Divisional playoff game as the football odds favourites.
That didn’t stop the Ravens from pulling off a famous upset in a game known as the “Mile High Miracle.”
Baltimore tied the game with 31 seconds remaining as quarterback Joe Flacco connected with Jacoby Jones for a 70-yard touchdown.
10 years ago today, Joe Flacco and Jacoby Jones combined for an incredible 70-yard touchdown against the Broncos in the Divisional Round, otherwise known as the Mile High Miracle
The clutch connection saved the Ravens’ eventual Super Bowl run pic.twitter.com/G0MXrkbRqN
— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) January 12, 2023
Justin Tucker nailed a 47-yard field goal at the 1:42 mark of the second overtime, securing the Ravens’ improbable 38-35 victory.
Baltimore went on to win the Super Bowl, beating the San Francisco 49ers 34-31 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
3. Cleveland Browns vs. New York Jets — Jan. 3, 1987
Known as the “Marathon by the Lake,” the Cleveland Browns vs. New York Jets AFC Divisional playoff game saw the Browns overcome a 10-point deficit late in the fourth quarter to prevail 23-20 in double overtime.
Mark Mosely, who kicked a 22-yard field goal to force overtime, connected on the game-winner at the 2:02 mark of the second extra frame.
2. Dallas Texans vs. Houston Oilers — Dec. 23, 1962
The Dallas Texans did things the hard way against the Houston Oilers in the 1962 AFL Championship, winning 20-17 late in double overtime despite throwing away a 17-point halftime lead.
The Texans won the game at the 17:54 mark of overtime on Tommy Brooker’s 25-yard field goal.
While Brooker put the final touches on the victory, the Texans’ defence, which had five interceptions and a blocked field goal, was the decisive factor.
1. Miami Dolphins vs. Kansas City Chiefs — Dec. 25, 1971
The Kansas City Chiefs had two golden opportunities to end their 1971 AFC Divisional playoff game against the Miami Dolphins.
Jan Stenerud missed a 32-yard field goal with 35 seconds remaining in regulation, which would have secured victory for the Chiefs.
Déjà vu occurred in overtime as Stenerud missed another field goal that would have ended the contest, this time seeing his kick blocked.
The Dolphins’ win was primarily thanks to running back Ed Podolak’s heroics. He had 350 all-purpose yards (100 rushing yards, 100 receiving yards, and 150 yards on punt and kickoff returns).
Miami’s Garo Yepremian made no mistake on his field goal attempt, kicking the Dolphins into the next round of the playoffs at the 7:40 mark of the second overtime period.
The Dolphins went on to the Super Bowl but lost 24-3 to the Dallas Cowboys.
