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As the 2023 NFL regular season has ended, attention now turns to the playoffs. Super Wild Card Weekend kicks off on January 13, with six matchups sure to whet the appetite of all NFL fans across the globe.
The Wild Card round is often the most unpredictable part of the playoffs, as many underdogs come up against powerhouses and often go toe-to-toe with them.
Fans will be hoping for more of the same this weekend, but which have been the best Wild Card playoff games in NFL history? Here is our selection of the top five NFL Wild Card playoff games.
Read our guide on how to watch the NFL playoffs here.
Best NFL Wild Card playoff games
#5 2023: Jacksonville Jaguars 31, Los Angeles Chargers 30
Last season produced one of the most epic games in NFL history. The Jacksonville Jaguars mounted a 27-point comeback to overcome the Los Angeles Chargers on Wild Card Weekend.
The Chargers raced to a 27-0 lead with :28 left in the second quarter. Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence had thrown four interceptions till then. Jacksonville stormed back in the second half, and K Riley Patterson booted a 36-yard field goal through the uprights to send the Chargers home.
#4 2013: Indianapolis Colts 45, Kansas City Chiefs 44
Speaking of huge comebacks, Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts came back from 28 points behind to take down the Chiefs in 2013.
The Colts were down 38-10 midway through the third quarter, but then scored five touchdowns whilst conceding just two field goals.
Luck recovered his own fumble to score on a crazy play, before finding T.Y. Hilton for a 64-yard bomb to win the game for Indianapolis.
Best NFL Wild Card playoff games
#3 2010: Seattle Seahawks 41, New Orleans Saints 36
The game famously dubbed the 'Beast Quake' was one of the best Wild Card playoff matchups of all time.
The Seahawks came into the game as underdogs after winning the NFC West with a dire 7-9 record. They were facing a Saints team that finished 11-5 and had won the Super Bowl the previous season.
Drew Brees and the Saints battled back from 34-20 down to 34-30. But Lynch's 'Beast Quake' run capped off an excellent Wild Card result for an up-and-coming Seattle Seahawks team.
#2 1999: Tennessee Titans 22, Buffalo Bills 16
The 'Music City Miracle' of 1999 gave us arguably the most dramatic ending to an NFL game in league history.
In this Wild Card matchup, the Titans went 12-0 up before Buffalo scored 13 straight points of their own. Both teams exchanged field goals giving the Bills a 16-15 lead with just 16 seconds left.
Buffalo kicked off to Tennessee, and FB Lorenzo Neal handed the ball off to TE Frank Wycheck, who threw the ball to an open Kevin Dyson. The latter ran the ball all the way back for a touchdown as time expired. The pass was ruled a lateral and the score was allowed to stand, and the 'Music City Miracle' was born.
#1 - 1992: Buffalo Bills 41, Houston Oilers 38
A game simply known as 'The Comeback' lands at the top of the list of best Wild Card games ever.
The Buffalo Bills were down 28-3 to the Houston Oilers back in 1992. But when Bubba McDowell scored a pick-six for the Oilers in the third quarter, this game looked all but done.
However, Buffalo mounted a monumental comeback scoring 35 unanswered points - including star WR Andre Reed scoring three touchdowns. Houston managed a field goal to send the game to OT, but Bills K Steve Christie won it with a 32-yard kick.
The 35-point comeback is the most in playoff history. It was the biggest comeback in league history until the Minnesota Vikings came back from 33-0 down to beat the Indianapolis Colts 39-36 in 2022.
