Top 5 NFL Wild Card Games So Far This Decade | The Odyssey Online
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Top 5 NFL Wild Card Games So Far This Decade

We've seen some crazy games played on the first week of the NFL Playoffs, but here are five of the best since 2010.

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Top 5 NFL Wild Card Games So Far This Decade
The Fanchize

Welcome to 2017 everybody. For some of you, it's a time to work on your resolutions and work on improving everyday. For others, it's a time where the couch is your best friend because it's January and it's time for the NFL Playoffs. Since the turn of the decade, we have witnessed some incredible games, here are five of the best.

5. 2011 AFC Wild Card: Denver Broncos vs Pittsburgh Steelers 29-23 (OT)

Quarterback controversies can ultimately determine the direction a football team goes during the season. The Denver Broncos opened the 2011 season 1-4 with Kyle Orton at quarterback. The backup? A certain individual by the name of Tim Tebow. Tebow would win the starting job and run with it until the end of the season, and the result? An 8-8 record, the number four seed and most importantly -- an AFC West division title, their first since 2005.

On January 8th, 2012, in the high altitude of Denver, they'd host the 12-4 number five seeded Pittsburgh Steelers, who came in with one of the best defenses in the league at that time.

It was proving to be a mismatch early on when kicker Shaun Suisham scored two field goals to put the Steelers up 6-0 after the first quarter. However, Tebow and the Broncos would answer back with a touchdown pass to Eddie Royal to take a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter. On the next Denver drive, Tebow would score on his own, running into the end zone to make it 14-6. Two more field goals from Matt Prater would give the Broncos a 20-6 advantage heading into halftime. The upset was on.

Well, there was a second half to play. Pittsburgh started out determined and would score on a one-yard run by Mike Wallace to cut the lead to 20-13 in the third quarter. The two teams would then trade field goals to make it 23-16 Denver in the fourth quarter.

A Willis McGahee fumble gave Pittsburgh the momentum and the chance to tie. They took it as Ben Roethlisberger threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Jericho Cotchery to tie the game at 23 with less than four minutes left in the game. After that, no team could make the breakthrough, which signaled overtime. This game would be the first in NFL history to be played under the new overtime rules, meaning there would be no sudden death victory. A touchdown on the opening series of the overtime period would officially end the game.

Well, as it happened -- Denver would win the toss, Tebow would hit Demaryius Thomas for an 80-yard game-winning touchdown pass on the opening play of overtime. 29-23, Denver had pulled off the upset in the fastest overtime game in NFL History, and TebowMania was born.

4. 2013 NFC Wild Card: Philadelphia Eagles vs New Orleans Saints 24-26


Chip Kelly couldn't have dreamed of a better debut season, leaving college at Oregon to be the coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. He had silenced critics by guiding the Eagles to 10-6, first place in the NFC East and a playoff birth for the first time since 2010. With Nick Foles at quarterback and LeSean McCoy at running back, three-seeded Philly looked set to be the dark horse of the NFC.

On the other side were the 11-5 New Orleans Saints, the sixth seed in the NFC, with the always dangerous Drew Brees. On this January 4th battle in Philly, two high-flying offenses went at it.

Well, as many people thought, the first quarter was scoreless. But the scoring picked up in the second quarter as New Orleans took the lead thanks to a Shayne Graham field goal, giving them a 3-0 lead. The Eagles responded with a touchdown pass by Nick Foles to Riley Cooper to give them a 7-3 advantage. The Saints narrowed the deficit with another field goal, making it 7-6 at halftime.

The Saints took a stranglehold on the game as they would score 14 unanswered points. The first was a touchdown pass by Brees to Lance Moore to give New Orleans a 13-7 lead. The other was a Mark Ingram rushing touchdown to grow the lead to 20-7. Philadelphia would answer with their own touchdown, a LeSean McCoy score to make it 20-14 as they headed into the fourth.

The teams would exchange field goals, with New Orleans now leading 23-17 with eight minutes remaining. Philly would answer with a touchdown from Zach Ertz, giving the Eagles a 24-23 lead with a little under five minutes remaining. The Saints had their chance, and they took it, running the clock all the way down and converting a 32-yard field goal with three seconds left to win the ball game, 26-24. It ended up being the Saints' first ever postseason win on the road, in the cold, and another heartbreaking loss for Philadelphia.


3. 2015 AFC Wild Card: Cincinnati Bengals vs Pittsburgh Steelers 16-18

Bad blood has run deep recently in this rivalry, and all you need to do is watch this game to believe it. The Cincinnati Bengals came into this one as a three seed, winning the AFC North ahead of the Baltimore Ravens and their opponents, the number six-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers. Smash-mouth football would be the order of the night on this rainy January 9th encounter.

The Bengals were without their quarterback Andy Dalton for this one, meaning backup A.J. McCarron would get the nod. For much of the game, it would be scoreless as this encounter was about as physical as it gets, a throwback to old days of defensive, bruising football. The first points of the game wouldn't come until the second quarter when kicker Chris Boswell nodded home two field goals to give the Steelers a 6-0 lead heading into halftime.

Another field goal added to Pittsburgh's 9-0 lead in the third quarter, but they weren't done. Ben Roethlisberger would hit Martavis Bryant for a touchdown to make it 15-0 after a failed 2-point conversion. All was going well for the men in black and yellow, the lead would stay at 15 until the fourth quarter.

The Bengals would score to open the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run by Jeremy Hill after a pass interference penalty went against the Steelers. The deficit was cut to 15-7. A field goal by Bengals kicker Mike Nugent cut the deficit even further, making it 15-10. And on a drive in which the Bengals would convert on a 4th-and-one, they would also score on a 25-yard touchdown grab by A.J. Green. The Bengals would follow up with a 2-point conversion that failed, but they now lead the game 16-15 with less than two minutes remaining in regulation.

It was time for the Steelers to respond. And on the first play, Vontaze Burfict would come up with an interception. That should've done; the Bengals could run out the clock and win their first playoff game since 1990. However, Jeremy Hill would be stripped on the ensuing play, and the Steelers would recover the football back. Pittsburgh would have new life.

With under 30 seconds to go, the Steelers convert a 4th-and-three as Antonio Brown caught a pass, giving Pittsburgh a shot at winning the game. On the next play, a pass to Brown was incomplete, however Cincinnati was penalized for a personal foul for a brutal hit on Brown by Burfict. The penalty was 15 yards, but that wouldn't be all. Adam "PacMan" Jones would also be penalized for a personal foul after getting into it with Steelers' assistant coach and former player, Joey Porter. Another 15 yards, so in all, 30 yards in penalties for the Bengals on one play, a play which was an incomplete pass by the Steelers.

After all that mayhem, the Steelers would kick a field goal and take an 18-16 lead with 14 seconds left in the ball game. And that would be all, Pittsburgh won a dramatic game with a fourth quarter as wild as any in recent memory. The Bengals suffered a meltdown and a loss as incredible and as heartbreaking as any in the history of Cincinnati sports.

2. 2010 NFC Wild Card: Seattle Seahawks vs New Orleans Saints 41-36

It's still incredible to this day, the reigning Super Bowl champions, the New Orleans Saints, were the fifth seed in the NFC in 2010 at 11-5 against the 7-9 NFC West division winner, the Seattle Seahawks, with new coach Pete Carroll . It was a first time an under -.500 team made the playoffs. And on January 8th in the loudest building in the league, Qwest Field in Seattle, an upset was in the cards.

The defending champions started out strong, a Garrett Hartley field goal followed by a Heath Evans touchdown grab to give the Saints an early 10-0 lead. Seattle would respond with a John Carlson touchdown grab from quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, making it 10-7 after the opening quarter.

New Orleans would start the second quarter the same way they did the first, with a score as they'd extend their lead to 17-7 thanks to a Julius Jones rushing touchdown. Seattle would respond as Carlson grabbed his second touchdown of the game, making it 17-14. They would then add a field goal to tie the game at 17 halfway into the second stanza. The Seahawks would then take the lead thanks to a Brandon Stokley touchdown catch, making it 24-17 to the home team. 17 unanswered points for Seattle in case you lost track, you are forgiven. The Saints would end the high-scoring quarter on a field goal, making it 24-20 Seattle heading into the break. The upset was still on the cards as Seattle had much of the momentum.

And the Seahawks would continue to ride that momentum as they'd extend their lead thanks to a Mike Williams touchdown grab, making the score 31-20. Seattle would then add a field goal as they held the Saints scoreless in the third quarter, making it 34-20 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Saints, down two touchdowns, mounted a comeback. It started with a short-yard Julius Jones rushing touchdown, his second of the game, cutting the deficit to 34-27. They'd then add a field goal to cut the lead to within four, 34-30. But with a little over three minutes remaining in the game, Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch would come up with one of the most memorable plays in playoff history.

A 67-yard run, with at least four or five broken tackles -- including one memorable stiff arm -- that gave the Seahawks a 41-30 lead. The run would be known as "Beast Quake" as it shook the stadium, making it feel similar to an actual earthquake happening. The Saints would respond with a Devery Henderson touchdown and a failed 2-point conversion, making it 41-36 and it'd be too late.

The Seattle Seahawks would recover an onside kick, and finish the game with a shocking upset! They also became the first under -.500 team to win a playoff game, not to mention it was against the defending Super Bowl champions.

1. 2013 AFC Wild Card: Indianapolis Colts vs Kansas City Chiefs 45-44

Andy Reid had just been dumped by Philadelphia after more than a decade of being their head coach. In his first season with the Kansas City Chiefs, they went 11-5 also winning the fifth seed in the AFC. Their opposition would be the fourth-seeded AFC South champs, the Indianapolis Colts, also 11-5 under coach Chuck Pagano, who dealt with leukemia the season before. This January 4th encounter can be summed up in one word: chaos.

The two teams started the first quarter out trading punches until the Chiefs scored the first big blow, as Dwayne Bowe scored on a touchdown pass from Alex Smith, winning 7-0. The Colts answered back after star receiver T.Y. Hilton grabbed a touchdown pass from Andrew Luck to tie the game at seven. Kansas City kicker Ryan Succop would add a field goal to put his side up 10-7 at the end of an eventful first quarter.

The Chiefs didn't stop there as in the second quarter, Donnie Avery caught a long 79-yard touchdown pass to put them up 17-7. Moments later, full-back Anthony Sherman also caught a touchdown pass, Smith's third of the first half, to increase the lead to 24-7. The Colts trimmed the deficit with a field goal, but the deficit was still large at 24-10. But Kansas City would land another haymaker as running back Knile Davis scored, making it 31-10 at the end of the half.

Kansas City started the second half with the ball and would score again as Davis would find the endzone once again, his second touchdown -- off a pass from Smith, his fourth of the game, the lead was now 38-10 in the third quarter. But the Colts would answer back with a pair of touchdowns as running back Donald Brown caught and ran for scores, making it 38-24. Succop would add another field goal to make it 41-24. Colts tight end Coby Fleener caught a pass and scored making it 41-31. The comeback was well and truly on, with the Colts establishing great momentum heading into the fourth quarter.

The Colts had the ball at 5-yard line ready to score, Andrew Luck takes the snap, fumbles, recovers his own fumble and scores a touchdown, it's now 41-38 in the fourth quarter. Succop would then add another field goal to make 44-38 with just over five minutes remaining in regulation. But the Colts had one last answer in them, as Hilton would catch his second touchdown of the game to put the Colts up 45-44. The Chiefs would be stopped on a 4th-and-11, giving the Colts an improbable 28-point comeback victory.

The 28-point comeback was the 2nd-largest in NFL Postseason history, making this game a classic that'll never be forgotten!! Just goes to show, that you can never miss out on these wild, Wildcard playoff games!

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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