The Biggest Comebacks In NFL History, In Honor Of The New York Giants Blowing An 18-Point Lead With 6 Minutes Left

Not only did the New York Giants blow an 18-point lead to the Denver Broncos with just over 5 minutes left in regulation yesterday. Not only did they blow a game in when ESPN's stupid "win probability chart" (which absolutely cannot be backed by legitimate numbers, but in this case might have actually made sense), gave them a 99.8% chance of winning. Not only did the New York Giants give up 33 points in the 4th quarter. They also managed to score 13 points of their own. Which to me, somehow makes the whole thing even worse. The Giants let up 33 points in the 4th quarter, and still found time to squeeze in two 60+ yard touchdown drives of their own. Remarkable stuff, New York. At least you have Daniel Jones leading the Colts to the best record in the NFL.

In honor of the absurd 4th quarter of football we witness yesterday evening, here are some of the greatest, most improbable, most embarrassing comebacks in NFL history. 

2010 - New York Giants vs Philadelphia Eagles (Giants Blow 21-Point Lead to Miss Playoffs)

Numbers-wise, this comeback isn't quite up there with the most improbable, or most absurd comebacks in the history of the game. In fact, it's the only game on this list that isn't strictly numbers-based. But it features the Giants. And considering the stakes - a Week 17 winner makes the playoffs, loser goes home game between Eli Manning's Giants and Michael Vick's Eagles... this is probably my favorite game I've ever watched that I didn't have a rooting interest in. That Andy Reid Eagles offense with post-prison Mike Vick, LeSean McCoy, Desean Jackson, pre-mystery illness Jeremy Maclin, and pre-slur Riley Cooper... that team was something else. 

The Giants scored a touchdown to take a 31-10 lead in the 4th quarter with 8 minutes to go in the game. Then the Giants let up a 75-yard TD to a white tight end. The Eagles get an onside kick. Mike Vick scrambles the entire next drive for another touchdown. The Giants punt. Mike Vick scrambles another 50+ yards. Eagles score again. By all accounts the game should have headed to OT. All Giants punter Matt Dodge has to do is NOT give Desean Jackson a chance to return his punt. Instead he duck hooks it right to him. To Matt Dodge's credit, Desean Jackson didn't catch it. It was a tricky little punt he hit there. But then Desean Jackson turned it into one of the greatest punt returns TD's you'll ever see. 

2022 - Minnesota Vikings vs Indianapolis Colts (Colts Blow 33-0 Lead)

The 2022 Indianapolis Colts turned in one of the stupidest seasons of football in NFL history. After opening with a Week 1 tie vs the Houston Texasns, the Colts (and I barely even remember this happening) briefly found their footing with Matt Ryan under center. They found themselves with a 3-2-1 record headed into Week 7. But then they rattled off 3-straight losses. Then they fired Head Coach Frank Reich. And despite a number of viable (but still kinda hilarious) interim HC options, including Jim Bob Cooter, Reggie Wayne, and long-haired punter turned special teams coach Bubba Ventrone…

Jim Irsay opted to hire Jeff Saturday. A man with a grand total of none NFL coaching experience. Plucked him right off the set of NFL Live. As you might recall, it did not go well. After opening with a win over the Raiders, Jeff Saturday rattled off 7 straight losses to end the season. None more spectacular than his Week 15 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Colts took a 33-0 lead headed into halftime. They proceeded to lose the game 39-36 (OT). Despite that literally being the biggest blown lead in the history of NFL football, as a Colts fan, it didn't even feel like it. At no point was I comfortable with the Colts lead. Once that train got rolling downhill, there wasn't a chance in hell Jeff Saturday was stopping it.

1992 (AFC Wild Card) - Buffalo Bills vs Houston Oilers (Oilers Blow 32-Point Lead)

I don't remember this. I was not born yet. But before the Colts blew their 33-point lead to the Vikings, this game stood as the NFL's biggest comeback ever. Oddly enough, the man who's firing started the chain of events that led to the Colts blowing the largest lead in NFL history (Frank Reich) is the QB who stepped in for an injured Jim Kelly and led the Bills back from 32-points down in the 1991 AFC Wild Card Game vs the Houston Oilers. 

Even more oddly, this was barley the biggest comeback of Frank Reich's career. In college, Frank Reich played QB at Maryland, where in 1984 he overcame a 31-0 halftime deficit to the #6 Miami Hurricanes. His unranked Maryland Terrapins went on to win that game 42-40.

2013 (AFC Wild Card) - Indianapolis Colts vs Kansas City Chiefs (Chiefs Blew 28-Point Lead)

I apologize for this turning into a Colts blog. For whatever reason, the Colts seem to be involved in a lot of these. In the pre-Patrick Mahomes era, back when Andy Reid's Chiefs featured the likes of Alex Smith and Jamaal Charles. Back when Andrew Luck was supposed to still be early on in his long prosperous career as an Indianapolis Colt. The Colts and Chiefs squared off in the 2013 Wild Card game. It couldn't have started worse for Indy. The Chiefs offense was hot. Alex Smith was cosplaying Mike Vick. He was throwing shovel passes to fullbacks. Colts' running back Trent Richardson (yep) was fumbling footballs. Andrew Luck threw interceptions on both the final drive of the half, AND the first drive of the 2nd half. The Chiefs had a 38-10 lead. It was all but over. 

Then the game ramped up. It wasn't like the Chiefs just totally stopped moving the ball either. The Colts were far from perfect the rest of the game. Andrew Luck threw a third interception. It turned into a game of backyard football. At one point Alex Smith missed a wide open TD along the sideline. At another point, Colts' Donald Brown fumbled a ball on the goal line directly into Andrew Luck's hands, and Andrew Luck dove in for a TD. But in a game of backyard football, I'll take a healthy gunslinging Andrew Luck over Alex Smith every day of the week. Andrew Luck played like the Hall of Fame QB he should have grown into in that second half… (and by some miracle of god the Colts defense became the first NFL defense to ever stop an offense in a 2-minute drill from getting into field goal range in a 1-point game)

2022 (AFC Wild Card) - Los Angeles Chargers vs Jacksonville Jaguars (Chargers Blow 27-Point Lead)

There are 2 things I always think of when I think of this game. Neither are game related. For starters, I personally jinxed the Chargers into this loss. Didn't even have a bet on the game. Just wanted to see if I could do it. 

Secondly, as incredible as that comeback was, perhaps the #1 story coming out of it was how completely lifeless Al Michaels and Tony Dungy were on the call. The Jaguars made that whole ass comeback, and not a single sentence uttered by either of them could have been in good conscience punctuated with an exclamation mark!

Anyways, there's maybe no team in all of sports more synonymous with choking leads away in recent memory than the Chargers. When I looked up "biggest NFL comebacks ever", I was surprised to see it wasn't just a long list of Chargers games. But this game was the Brandon Staley Chargers' magnum opus. It's one thing to blow a lead to the likes of Patrick Mahomes or Tom Brady. But to piss away a 27-point advantage vs Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars… That's a whole different, much more difficult pill to swallow.

I really thought this was going to be the start of Trevor Lawrence establishing himself as an elite NFL QB. It almost did too. The Jaguars came out next season and started 8-3. Then they finished 1-5 and missed the playoffs. The next season, Trevor Lawrence started 2-7. Then he hurt his shoulder. Then he came back to face the Texans where he had the pleasure of being murdered on a football field. 

But this year he seems to be back? Kind of? But not really? Trevor Lawrence might just be destined to play his entire career right on the precipice of breaking through to that next level, but never being able to get over the hump. He's the NFL QB version of the Sisyphus guy who's eternally doomed to never quite push that boulder over the hill.

Shutterstock Images.

For the Chargers though… at least this blown lead was a step towards getting Jim Harbaugh to town. Which I think the football world still collectively believes is a good thing for them (and all of the NFL).

1987 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs St. Louis Cardinals (Bucs Blew 25-Point 4th Quarter Lead)

The largest 4th quarter comeback in NFL history. I just learned about it today. How about that story of Bucs coach Ray Perkins? He blew a 20-point lead to the Bears just two weeks earlier. Then a few years later, Ray Perkins (who previously coached at the University of Alabama for 4 years) went back to college and coached Arkansas State. He coached there for 1 season, and went 1-10. But that same year, Gene Stallings, the Cardinals coach who Ray Perkins blew that 25-point 4th quarter lead to… Gene Stallings won the National Championship with Alabama… Ray's former team. Tough beat, Ray. 

Super Bowl 51 (2017) - New England Patriots vs Atlanta Falcons (28-3 game)

Last one I'll write about before throwing in some honorable mentions. 

I'm not sure what I could possibly say about the New England Patriots 28-3 comeback over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl 51 that hasn't been hammered to death by Barstool Sports already. Outside of Boston, of all the amazing comebacks we've witness in the NFL, this one must have been the most "unwelcomed" of them all. It was the height of the New England Patriots being the villain of the NFL. Everybody without a serious rooting (or gambling) interest wanted to see Matt Ryan and the Falcons slay the dragon.

But once the comeback started happening… the way I remember it… it barely felt like a "comeback" at all. Once the Patriots pulled within 3 scores with a couple minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, knowing what I knew about Tom Brady, the game might as well have been tied. At bare minimum it was going to come down to the wire. There was minute there when Julio Jones made that insane catch along the sidelines where I thought the Falcons might be able to do it. Only for them to punt the ball back to New England, and for Julian Edelman to immediately one up Julio Jones with the most improbably catch I've ever seen. There wasn't even a need for OT. Everybody watching knew how that script ended. 

Honorable Mentions

1980 - San Francisco 49ers vs New Orleans Saints (Saints Blew 28-Point Lead) 

This was Joe Montana's first real season taking over as the 49ers starting QB. Turns out he'd go on to play in a few more important games in his career than this.

1997 - Indianapolis Colts vs Buffalo Bills (Colts Blew 28-Point Lead)

These old Chris Berman narrated highlights are the best. Shoutout to Jim Harbaugh on the Colts. Tough game for ol' Jim. The Colts ended up going 3-13 that season. Finished last place. Drafted Peyton Manning with the first pick in the 1998 draft. Thank god they blew that lead, or else it would have been a 5-way tie for worst record.

2014 - Cleveland Browns vs Tennessee Titans (Titans Blew 25-Point Lead)

I saw someone tweet a video of an angry Cleveland sports radio host saying, "THE CLEVELAND BROWNS HAVE BECOME A LAUGHING STOCK!!!". Bad news my man, people have been laughing at the Browns for well over a decade now. But you did go 7-6 with Bryan Hoyer as the starter in that 2014 season before Johnny Football took over. 

Cutting it off here. I hope you enjoyed the nostalgia.