The most intense rivalries in the NFL

Another pair of Hall of Fame coaches, John Madden retired with a slim 6-5 advantage over Chuck Noll in 11 career meetings. Although he retired after just 10 seasons and finished with winning records against Bud Grant, Don Shula and Tom Landry, Madden was just 1-3 in four AFC title matchups with Noll on the opposite sideline.

The legendary duo and their teams were involved in one of the NFL’s most memorable plays. Noll and the Steelers grabbed an improbable 13-7 win over the Raiders when Franco Harris made the Immaculate Reception during the 1972 postseason.

Madden has an impressive 112-39-7 career mark and one Vince Lombardi Trophy, while Noll coached the Steelers for 23 seasons and finished with 209 victories and a pair of Super Bowl titles.

Tom Landry vs. Joe Gibbs

The two Hall of Fame coaches battled to a draw in 16 games from 1981 to 1988. Landry, who directed the Cowboys to an NFL-best 20 consecutive winning seasons, notched three straight victories over Joe Gibbs before the Redskins beat the Cowboys, 31-17, during the 1983 season.

Washington and Dallas traded three-game winning streaks until Gibbs and the Redskins took over the series with four straight victories from Nov. 23, 1986, to Oct. 9, 1988. However, Landry knotted his career record against Gibbs at 8-8 with a 24-17 win on Dec. 11, 1988, during his final season at the helm of the Cowboys.

Gibbs won three Super Bowls with a trio of quarterbacks and compiled a 198-115 record over 16 seasons. Landry won 270 games, which is the fourth-most wins in NFL history, and took home the Vince Lombardi Trophy twice.

Troy Aikman vs. Steve Young  

A pair of Hall of Fame quarterbacks with a combined six Super Bowl rings, Aikman and Young met in the NFC Championship Game for three consecutive seasons. Green Bay upset the 49ers in the 1995 playoffs to deny the duo a fourth straight meeting in the conference title matchup.

Aikman led the Cowboys past San Francisco in back-to-back NFC Championship Game showdowns en route to Super Bowl glory in 1992 and 1993. Young and the 49ers finally dethroned Dallas in the 1994 conference title encounter before securing the Vince Lombardi Trophy with a 49-26 victory over the San Diego Chargers.

The two legendary quarterbacks have each won a Super Bowl MVP award and have been selected to the Pro Bowl a combined 13 times.

Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning

The two future Hall of Famers went head-to-head 17 times over a 16-year span from 2001 to 2016. Brady led the Patriots to 11 regular-season victories over his archrival, while Manning led the Colts and Broncos to a 3-2 playoff record against New England.

The rivalry between the two gunslingers began on shaky ground as Brady rolled to six straight wins after relieving an injured Drew Bledsoe during the 2001 season. Manning finally led Indianapolis past the Patriots in a 40-21 blowout at Gillette Stadium in 2005.

Brady lost his last three meetings against Manning with the conference title on the line. The GOAT also posted a dismal 1-3 mark against Manning-led teams in the AFC Championship Game.

Cincinnati Bengals vs. Cleveland Browns

The Bengals-Browns rivalry is a tale of three franchises that have met in the “Battle of Ohio” on 89 occasions. The original Browns relocated to Baltimore in 1995.

Cincinnati leads the all-time series with a record of 50-39 and outlasted Cleveland, 58-48, during the 2004 season. The 106 combined points made it the second-highest scoring game in NFL history.

The two intrastate rivals also posted record-setting numbers in a 2007 matchup. The Browns topped the Bengals, 51-45, in the eighth-highest-scoring contest in league history.

Both franchises have put together seven-game winning streaks in the series, but it is Cleveland who is currently on the losing end. The Browns have not beaten the Bengals since the 2014 season, but they could be on course for a winning 2018 season after losing every game last year. Perhaps Cleveland will snap its skid versus Cincinnati in Week 12 or 16.

New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The Giants and Eagles have played a staggering 172 games against each other with New York holding a narrow edge in the all-time series, 86-84-2.  

Philadelphia strung together 12 consecutive wins over the Giants from 1975 to 1981. However, New York has posted a pair of eight-game winning streaks against its NFC East rival and blasted the Eagles 56-0 in their first meeting in 1933.

The Eagles rallied for an improbable 38-31 victory over the Giants in 2010 after trailing 31-10 with less than eight minutes left on the clock. DeSean Jackson raced 65 yards to paydirt on a punt return to finish off the stunning comeback on the last play of the game.

Dallas Cowboys vs. San Francisco 49ers

The Cowboys and 49ers have been on opposing sidelines in seven playoff games, including six NFC Championship matchups. Dallas has a slim 18-17-1 in the all-time series but boasts five postseason wins over San Francisco.

The 49ers dealt the Cowboys one of its most crushing losses in 1981 when Joe Montana and Dwight Clark hooked up on “The Catch” to win the NFC title in dramatic fashion. But Dallas trounced San Francisco, 59-14, in 1980 to post the largest blowout in the inter-division rivalry.

The two franchises have combined to win 10 Super Bowl titles and 14 NFC championships since 1970.

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles topped the Steelers in the inaugural “Battle of Pennsylvania” in 1933. The in-state rivals have met 80 times with Philadelphia leading the all-time series with a record of 48-29-3.

Both franchises have combined to win seven Super Bowls and 11 conference championships. But Pittsburgh has captured the Vince Lombardi Trophy a record-setting six times and have collected eight AFC titles.

Due to a bizarre set of circumstances, the Eagles and Steelers actually swapped clubs in 1940. The two franchises also merged for the 1943 season, because of a shortage of players arising from World War II, and were named the Philadelphia-Pittsburgh Steagles.

Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland Raiders  

Kansas City was known as the Dallas Texans, and both clubs competed in the AFL when this rivalry was born in 1960. The Chiefs lead the all-time series 63-53-2 in 118 meetings, including playoff games.

The Chiefs racked up a whopping 16 consecutive road wins over Oakland until the Raiders snapped the streak during the 2014 season. However, Oakland tallied six straight victories on Kansas City’s home turf before the Chiefs defeated the Raiders in a 2013 AFC West showdown.

The two franchises have combined to win four AFL titles, four Super Bowls, 20 divisional championships and have earned 14 wild-card berths.   

Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers

The storied rivalry between the Bears and Packers will enter its 97th year in 2018. The two franchises have met on 196 occasions with Green Bay leading the NFL’s longest feud with a 96-94-6 card.

The Packers dominated the series with 10 consecutive wins from 1994 to 1998, and made NFL history in 2011 by defeating the Bears four times in the same calendar year. Both teams — which have a combined 48 former players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame  — have also tallied 22 NFL titles, including five Super Bowls.

The Bears notched their first win at Lambeau Field in over six years during the 2013 season with backup Josh McCown replacing an injured Jay Cutler under center. Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone early in the game, and McCown outplayed Green Bay backup quarterback Seneca Wallace in a 27-20 victory.

Denver Broncos vs. Oakland Raiders  

The Raiders and Broncos have butted heads 117 times, including the playoffs, with Oakland leading the all-time series by a margin of 63-52-2. The AFC West foes have resided in the same division for 58 years.

Denver snapped Oakland’s 17-game winning streak during the 1977 regular season, and then registered its second win over the defending Super Bowl Champion in the playoffs that same year to claim its first conference title.  

The Raiders have put together some impressive comeback victories over the Broncos. In 1988, Oakland erased a 24-0 halftime deficit en route to a 30-27 overtime win. Five years later, the Silver and Black trailed 30-13 in the 1993 season finale before rallying for another overtime victory, 33-30.

Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Redskins

Arguably the greatest rivalry in the NFL, the Cowboys lead the Redskins 70-44-2 in 116 encounters. The two franchises have combined to win eight Super Bowls and 32 division titles.

Dallas reeled off 10 straight wins from 1997 to 2002 to establish the longest winning streak in the bitter series. However, Washington boasts a perfect 2-0 postseason record against the Cowboys.

One of the most memorable games between the two rivals occurred on Thanksgiving Day in 1974. The Redskins led 16-3 in the third quarter and appeared headed for an easy win with rookie Clint Longley subbing for an injured Roger Staubach. But Longley finished off an unbelievable 24-23 comeback victory with a 50-yard bomb to Drew Pearson for the winning score.