10 Biggest NFL Rivalries of All Time

So you want to know who the biggest NFL rivalries are. These rivalries were created from the uneasiness of geographical closeness, the rights to a song, or Vontaze Burfict. More on Burfict a little later.

Football is by far America’s most popular sport with 37% of people voting for it as their favorite. The rivalry games play a part in that and the hatred between the teams we go through below is what keeps the adrenaline flowing until the next Sunday.

Who are the Biggest NFL Rivalries?

We’re talking life and death when games are known as “Bounty Bowl”, or the “Body Bag Game”. Let’s take a look below as we rank the top 10 biggest NFL rivalries of all time:

10. Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants

Despite being bitter rivals since way back in 1933 the Eagles and Giants are remarkably close head-to-head. Setting the scene is the fact New York and Philadelphia are less than 100 miles apart. The two teams are divisional NFC East rivals, and both sets of fans see each other as unruly and miserable. 

These four key moments all helped fuel the Eagles-Giants rivalry: 

• The Hit: Eagles linebacker Chuck Bednarik hit Giants running back Frank Gifford with one of the most vicious tackles in history, hospitalizing him for 10 days. 
• Miracle at the Meadowlands: In a 1978 game the Giants failed to run out the clock, fumbling the ball and losing the unlosable.
• 2006 NFC Wild Card Game: David Akers kicked a 38-yard field goal for the Eagles as time expired to beat the Giants 23-20.
• Miracle at the New Meadowlands: The Eagles beat the Giants 38-31 thanks to a game winning punt-return as time expired. The Eagles trailed the Giants by 21 points with just over eight minutes remaining. 

9. New York Jets vs. New England Patriots

Jets fans had to watch on as the Patriots won six Super Bowls during the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era. Despite New England’s domination on the field, the Jets-Patriots rivalry has become one of the biggest in the NFL thanks to their back offices and these key events:

• Tampering for Bill Parcells: In 1997 the Jets were accused of tampering in order to sign Patriots head coach Bill Parcells.
• Bill Belichick Jets Resignation: Belichick was announced as Jets head coach in January 2000, but resigned barely 24 hours later to take up the head coach role with the Patriots.
• Spygate: Jets coach and former Patriots assistant Eric Mangini exposed New England’s tactics of illegally videotaping the Jets offensive and defensive signals in September 2007.

8. Kansas City Chiefs vs. Las Vegas Raiders

During the 1960s and 70s the Chiefs and Raiders continually destroyed each others playoff hopes. A history of bench-clearing brawls, the domination of the AFC West by the Chiefs, and irritating Raiders fans has stoked the flame in the fiery Chiefs-Raiders rivalry. 

In 2020 after the Raiders beat the Chiefs, the team deliberately drove around the Arrowhead Stadium car park on a victory lap in the team bus. The following year the Chiefs got their revenge and blasted “The Wheels on the Bus” song through the Arrowhead Stadium speakers. 

Oh, and the Chiefs used the Raiders’ locker room at Allegiant Stadium during Super Bowl LVIII. Cheeky. 

“There’s a different attitude and different mentality to these games against the Raiders”

Patrick Mahomes in 2021

7. Green Bay Packers vs. Minnesota Vikings

Skol Vikings! Go Pack Go! 

Ever since Minnesota joined the NFL in 1961 the Packers-Vikings rivalry has divided the allegiances of friends and families in western Wisconsin. The two bitter rivals often decide the NFC North, which also says a bit about the Lions and Bears.  

Remember in 2005 when Randy Moss “mooned” Green Bay fans? He did so after scoring a touchdown during the first ever Packers-Vikings playoff game. Crazy.

But nothing says more about the Packers and Vikings rivalry than the ultimate betrayal by Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre. A Packers legend and Super Bowls winner, Favre played his final two years in Minnesota, a middle-finger to his 16 seasons in Green Bay.

6. Washington Commanders vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The “Body Bag Game” is the one you’ve been waiting for. In 1990 the two teams faced off in a much anticipated game as Eagles coach Buddy Ryan boasted pre-game that Washington players would “have to be carted off in body bags”. 

Lo and behold, Philadelphia ended up knocking out nine Washington players, and both teams lost their starting and backup quarterbacks.

Philadelphia’s all-time passing yards leader Donovan McNabb played for both Washington and Philadelphia, as did Carson Wentz and DeSean Jackson. Geographically the Commanders and Steelers are less than 130 miles apart, the major catalyst for the hatred between these bitter NFC East rivals.

5. Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Commanders

The Cowboys-Commanders bitter rivalry began back in 1958 over a song. Washington was almost sold to Dallas oil tycoon Clint Murchison Jr. before owner George Preston Marshall backed out of the deal. 

Murchison Jr. wasn’t happy about it. Out of spite he bought the rights to the music from the “Hail to the Redskins” fight song and held it to ransom. If the Washington franchise didn’t support the NFL’s expansion into Dallas, Washington would be banned from using the song. 

In 1961 the two teams were placed in the NFC East to become divisional rivals, at a time when many DC fans refused to support their local team because Marshall openly supported racial segregation. 

The Commanders became the last team to integrate African-Americans on their roster in 1962, a reason why there are many Cowboys fans in Washington. One fan even estimated 80% of FedExField were Cowboys fans in a game against the Commanders. 

Fun Fact: Washington dropped the Redskins name in 2020. Potential new names included Armada, Brigade, Defenders, Presidents, Red Hogs and the RedWolves, before settling on the Commanders.

4. Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Fourth on our list of biggest NFL rivalries are the Cowboys-Eagles. Bitter NFC East enemies, the matchup has frequently featured on Sunday Night Football. The hatred for each other intensified in the 80’s and peaked with a pair of games known as the “Bounty Bowl” in 1989.

Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson accused the Eagles of placing bounties on Cowboys players following a loss at Texas Stadium. Eagles fans responded two weeks later by throwing beer, ice and snowballs at Cowboys players and coaches.

A decade later during another game, Cowboys’ all-time great and three-time Super Bowl winning wide receiver Michael Irvin went down with a career-ending neck injury. As trainers and paramedics strapped Irvin and stretchered him off the field, Eagles fans erupted with cheers. Wow.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens

When the steel industry collapsed in Pittsburgh it forced many Steelers fans to relocate across the country. Between 1970 and 1990, 30% of Pittsburgh residents left the city and their Steelers behind. Many of those moved to Baltimore, and the Ravens joined the NFL in 1996.

A rivalry was born.

Ravens-Steelers ranks as the third biggest rivalry in the NFL. The hits are violent, the fans are loud, and the matchups are legendary. Here are five of our favorites:

• Joe Flacco vs. Ben Roethlisberger
• Ed Reed vs. Troy Polamalu
• Terrell Suggs vs. Hines Ward
• Ray Lewis vs. Jerome Bettis
• John Harbaugh vs. Mike Tomlin

Remember when Mike Tomlin interfered on Jacoby Jones’ kickoff return? Well he got fined $100,000 for that.

2. Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Vontaze Burfict.

He’s the reason the Steelers and Bengals are the second biggest rivalry in the NFL. Yes, the Steelers-Bengals have been divisional rivals since 1970 but while other rivalries have simmered since their heydey, Burfict escalated this rivalry into an all-out war: 

• Jan. 9, 2016: Burfict violently knocks out Antonio Brown in a hit so vicious, it possibly gave him CTE.
• Dec. 4, 2017: JuJu Smith-Schuster gets revenge with an illegal block that knocked Burfict out cold.
• Oct. 14, 2018: Burfict gets fined for unnecessary roughness on Antonio Brown and James Connor. 

Burfict’s recklessness and violence is what the Steelers-Bengals rivalry has become. Although the Steelers have dominated the matchup the Bengals have never backed down and continue to be a nuisance much like a bratty little brother.

1. Chicago Bears vs. Green Bay Packers

The Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers have the biggest rivalry in the NFL. These two teams share a state border with Chicago only a 30-minute drive away from the Wisconsin border. The Bears have been owned by billionaires with their fans looking down on the “Cheeseheads” from Green Bay. 

Green Bay on the other hand is owned by the community and they have a strong hatred for Chicago fans who they often refer to as “fishtabs”. I’ll leave it to Urban Dictionary to tell you exactly what a fishtab is…

Green Bay and Chicago have been bitter rivals since 1921 and it took the Packers until 2017 to overtake the Bears in overall head-to-head. Bears fans have long been suffering. Between 1992 and 2020 they’ve had 15 different quarterbacks. The Packers? Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. 

Green Bay has dominated football’s biggest rivalry in recent times, but could we see a changing of the guard with Bears’ number one draft pick Caleb Williams?