10 Biggest NFL Rivalries of All Time (Ranked)
Updated October 15, 2026
Updated October 15, 2026
Some NFL rivalries are built on decades of bad blood, while others have become legendary thanks to unforgettable playoff games, controversial moments, and players who genuinely seemed to hate each other. But which ones deserve to be called the greatest of all time?
To be fully transparent, I grew up watching football in the 2000s and 2010s, so this list leans a little more modern than some traditional rankings. That doesn't mean I'm ignoring the NFL's history, though. I also considered longevity, fan intensity, memorable moments, championship implications, and how these rivalries have helped shape the league as we know it today.
With that in mind, here are my 10 biggest NFL rivalries of all time, ranked from No. 10 to No. 1. I'm sure there will be some disagreements.
The Falcons and Saints might not have the championship history of some other teams on this list, but there's certainly no shortage of bad blood between these NFC South rivals.
It all started in 1967, when New Orleans joined the NFL just one year after Atlanta. With the two cities relatively close together and both teams spending decades fighting for bragging rights in the same division, the rivalry has only grown since.
One of their biggest games came in the 1991 playoffs, when Atlanta beat New Orleans 27–20 on a late 61-yard touchdown pass from Chris Miller to Michael Haynes.
Then, in 2006, Steve Gleason blocked a punt that the Saints recovered for a touchdown during the Superdome's reopening after Hurricane Katrina. New Orleans went on to win 23–3, and the play became one of the most memorable moments in team history.
The rivalry carried into the 2010s, with Matt Ryan and Drew Brees regularly going head-to-head in important NFC South games. And despite nearly 60 years of meetings, the all-time series is still separated by just three games.
You might not remember that the Patriots and Colts were actually AFC East rivals for 32 seasons (1970–2001), back when the Colts were still in Baltimore for part of that stretch. But the rivalry really took off in the 2000s, when Tom Brady and Peyton Manning regularly faced off in games with major playoff and Super Bowl implications.
New England dominated the early playoff meetings, eliminating Manning's Colts in back-to-back postseasons. That included the 2003 AFC Championship Game, when the Patriots intercepted Manning four times in a 24–14 win.
Manning finally got his revenge in the 2006 AFC Championship Game, leading Indianapolis back from a 21–3 deficit to win 38–34. Joseph Addai scored the winning touchdown with a minute left, and the Colts went on to win Super Bowl XLI.
There was also Bill Belichick's infamous fourth-and-2 decision in 2009, when a failed conversion deep in Patriots territory helped Manning lead a late comeback in a 35–34 Colts win. And in 2015, the rivalry made headlines again with Deflategate following New England's 45–7 AFC Championship victory over Indianapolis.
While Patriots–Colts hasn't been quite the same since Manning left Indianapolis, the Brady–Manning battles alone make it one of the most memorable NFL rivalries of the 2000s.
Few NFL rivalries have as much bad blood as Chiefs vs. Raiders. These franchises have been division rivals since the AFL's inaugural season in 1960, back when Kansas City was still the Dallas Texans. Decades of physical games, heated exchanges, and battles for AFC West supremacy have only added to the tension.
In the 1969 AFL Championship Game, Kansas City beat Oakland 17–7 before going on to win Super Bowl IV. A year later, Raiders defensive end Ben Davidson hit Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson after he was already down, sparking a bench-clearing fight. The resulting penalties erased a crucial Kansas City first down, and the game ended in a 17–17 tie.
The rivalry became even more personal in 1993 when Marcus Allen joined the Chiefs after a bitter falling-out with Raiders owner Al Davis. Allen scored a touchdown against his former team that season, adding another chapter to an already heated rivalry.
Kansas City has dominated much of the Patrick Mahomes era, although Las Vegas pulled off a memorable 20–14 upset on Christmas Day in 2023, scoring two defensive touchdowns just seven seconds apart. Even with the Chiefs holding the upper hand recently, there's still plenty of history and bad blood between these teams.
Coming in at No. 7 on my list is Packers vs. Vikings, a rivalry that dates back to Minnesota's first NFL season in 1961. These NFC North rivals have spent more than six decades battling for divisional supremacy, but some of their most memorable moments have come from the players involved.
In 1998, rookie Randy Moss torched Green Bay for 190 receiving yards and two touchdowns in a 37–24 Vikings win at Lambeau Field. Then, in the 2004 playoffs, Moss helped Minnesota upset the Packers 31–17 and famously pretended to moon the Green Bay crowd after scoring a touchdown.
But arguably the biggest chapter came in 2009, when Brett Favre joined the Vikings after spending 16 seasons as Green Bay's starting quarterback. Favre beat his former team twice that season, including a 38–26 victory in his highly anticipated return to Lambeau Field, where he threw four touchdown passes.
There was also Adrian Peterson's 199-yard rushing performance in 2012, which helped Minnesota beat Green Bay 37–34 and clinch a playoff spot. The Packers got revenge the following week with a 24–10 Wild Card win.
Between Moss's antics, Favre switching sides, and decades of competitive divisional matchups, it's easy to see why Packers–Vikings belongs among the NFL's biggest rivalries.
The 49ers and Seahawks haven't been rivals for quite as long as some other teams on this list, but their matchups have produced plenty of bad blood, especially over the past 15 years. The rivalry really took off in the early 2010s, when Jim Harbaugh and Pete Carroll brought their coaching feud from Stanford and USC to the NFL.
Both teams had loaded defenses, with players like Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Patrick Willis, and NaVorro Bowman helping make these some of the most physical games in football. And no moment captured the rivalry better than the 2013 NFC Championship Game.
With Seattle leading 23–17 in the final seconds, Sherman tipped Colin Kaepernick's end-zone pass intended for Michael Crabtree into the hands of Malcolm Smith. The Seahawks won, and Sherman followed it up with his infamous postgame interview, calling Crabtree a "sorry receiver."
The rivalry delivered another memorable finish in 2019, when Dre Greenlaw stopped Jacob Hollister inches short of the goal line to seal a 26–21 win and the NFC West title for San Francisco.
More recently, Seattle crushed the 49ers 41–6 in the January 2026 playoffs on its way to winning the Super Bowl. San Francisco responded with a 32–29 victory in October the next season, a heated game that saw Greenlaw ejected for headbutting Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV. Clearly, there's still no love lost between these NFC West rivals.
Coming in at No. 5 is Cowboys–Eagles, a rivalry where the hatred extends well beyond the players on the field. These NFC East rivals have been going at it since 1960, with hostile crowds, controversial moments, and plenty of games with major playoff implications.
One of the ugliest chapters came during the 1989 “Bounty Bowls,” when Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson accused Eagles coach Buddy Ryan of putting bounties on Dallas players. Ryan denied the allegations, but tensions only grew when Philadelphia fans threw snowballs and other objects during the teams' second meeting that season.
The rivalry heated up again in 2006, when Terrell Owens joined the Cowboys after his messy departure from Philadelphia. Owens had helped the Eagles reach Super Bowl XXXIX just two seasons earlier, so his return to Philadelphia wearing a Dallas uniform was met with plenty of boos.
Just two years later, the Eagles embarrassed Tony Romo and the Cowboys 44–6 in the 2008 regular-season finale, a winner-take-all game for a playoff spot. Philadelphia forced five turnovers and sent its biggest rival home for the postseason.
And the rivalry has remained important in recent years, with Dallas and Philadelphia combining to win every NFC East title from 2021 through 2025.
At No. 4 in my rankings is Chiefs–Bills, a rivalry that has become one of the NFL's biggest thanks to the battles between Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen. While these franchises first met in 1960, back when Kansas City was still the Dallas Texans, it's their recent playoff history that puts this rivalry so high on my list.
The teams also have championship history dating back decades. Kansas City beat Buffalo 31–7 in the 1966 AFL Championship Game to reach the first Super Bowl. The Bills later got revenge in the early 1990s, eliminating the Chiefs twice in the playoffs, including a 30–13 victory in the 1993 AFC Championship Game.
But nothing compares to their 2021 Divisional Round matchup, better known as the "13 Seconds" game. Buffalo took a 36–33 lead with 13 seconds remaining, only for Mahomes to move Kansas City into field goal range and force overtime. The Chiefs eventually won 42–36, despite Allen throwing four touchdowns to Gabriel Davis.
The heartbreak continued in the 2023 playoffs, when Tyler Bass missed a potential game-tying field goal in a 27–24 loss. Then, in the 2024 AFC Championship Game, Kansas City escaped with another close victory, winning 32–29.
Interestingly, Buffalo has had the upper hand in recent regular-season meetings, including a 28–21 victory in November 2025. But when it matters most, Mahomes and the Chiefs have won all four playoff meetings against Allen's Bills.
Cowboys–49ers is one of the biggest playoff rivalries in NFL history. These two franchises have combined for 10 Super Bowl championships and faced each other in the NFC Championship Game six times, with several of those matchups having major championship implications.
Perhaps the most famous moment came in the 1981 NFC Championship Game, when Joe Montana found Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone for "The Catch." The touchdown gave San Francisco a 28–27 victory and helped launch the 49ers' dynasty under Bill Walsh.
The rivalry heated up again in the early 1990s, when Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, and Michael Irvin went head-to-head with Steve Young, Jerry Rice, and the 49ers. Dallas won back-to-back NFC Championship meetings in the 1992 and 1993 seasons, but San Francisco got revenge with a 38–28 victory the following year. All three winners went on to win the Super Bowl.
After nearly three decades without a playoff meeting, the rivalry picked back up in the 2021 postseason, when San Francisco beat Dallas 23–17 in a Wild Card game that ended with Dak Prescott running out of time to spike the ball. The 49ers eliminated the Cowboys again the next season, winning 19–12 in the Divisional Round.
Those recent matchups have added another chapter to a rivalry that has helped define the NFC across multiple generations.
Few NFL rivalries have been as physical as Ravens–Steelers. These AFC North rivals have been going at it since Baltimore's first season in 1996, but the rivalry really heated up in the 2000s, with two of the best defenses in the league going head-to-head.
With players like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Troy Polamalu, and James Harrison on the field, these matchups were known for hard hits, heated exchanges, and close finishes.
One of the biggest games came in the 2008 AFC Championship, when Polamalu returned a late interception 40 yards for a touchdown to seal Pittsburgh's 23–14 victory. The Steelers went on to win Super Bowl XLIII.
Another memorable moment came on Christmas Day in 2016, when Antonio Brown stretched the ball across the goal line with nine seconds left to give Pittsburgh a 31–27 win and clinch the AFC North title.
More recently, Baltimore beat Pittsburgh 28–14 in the 2024 playoffs, with Derrick Henry rushing for 186 yards and two touchdowns. But the Steelers got some revenge in the final week of the following regular season, winning 26–24 to clinch the division after Aaron Rodgers threw a late touchdown and Baltimore missed a potential game-winning field goal as time expired.
That January 2026 finish was another reminder of how often this rivalry comes down to the final few plays.
Taking the No. 1 spot on my list is Packers–Bears, the oldest and most-played rivalry in NFL history. These franchises first met in 1921, when Chicago was still known as the Staleys, and have since combined for 22 NFL championships. With more than a century of history and plenty of memorable games, it's hard to argue against this rivalry taking the top spot.
The rivalry dates back to George Halas and Curly Lambeau, who helped build their respective franchises into NFL powerhouses. One of their earliest major matchups came in the 1941 Western Division playoff, when Chicago beat Green Bay 33–14 before winning the NFL championship.
More than half a century later, the teams met in the 2010 NFC Championship, with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers winning 21–14 thanks in part to B.J. Raji's fourth-quarter interception return for a touchdown. Green Bay went on to win Super Bowl XLV.
Rodgers also gave Bears fans plenty of reasons to dislike him, going 25–5 against Chicago during his time in Green Bay. One of his biggest moments came in 2013, when he found Randall Cobb for a 48-yard touchdown on fourth-and-8 to win 33–28 and clinch the NFC North.
More recently, Chicago got some playoff revenge in January 2026, overcoming a 21–3 halftime deficit to beat Green Bay 31–27 in the Wild Card round. Caleb Williams threw the winning touchdown to DJ Moore with less than two minutes remaining, giving the Bears their first playoff victory in 15 years.
A few other NFL rivalries deserve a mention, even if they didn't make my top 10.
That wraps up my list of the biggest NFL rivalries of all time. For more football coverage, check out the ATS.io NFL hub for weekly game previews, the latest news around the league, video breakdowns, and more.
