In 2006, the NFL created a schedule that would allow a game of playoff importance, ideally a win-and-in or a division title scenario, to be flexed to the final Sunday night game. Prior to that, the season would often end on a meaningless Monday night game, but a crucial game would be buried in regional afternoon coverage.
Since 1978, the regular season has ended on one final primetime game. The following is a list of what was at stake at kickoff of those games and any noteworthy occurrences in the footnotes. In the Result column, a superscript number indicates the seed that was attained in that game, and does not include seeds that were clinched prior to the game.
Sunday night final regular season games
Year | Matchup | Division | Implications | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | MIA-BUF | AFC East | Division or wild card; BUF clinched playoff berth on prior results | |
2022 | DET-GB | NFC North | Play-in game for GB; DET eliminated by SEA overtime win earlier | DET 20-16 (7SEA) |
2021 | LAC-LV | AFC West | Play-in game; both teams in with a tie1Colts loss to the 2-14 Jaguars opened up the tie game possibility for the Chargers and Raiders, with some suggesting an all-kneeldown scoreless tie. Game ended on the expiration of overtime. | 5LV 35-32 (OT) |
2020 | WAS-PHI | NFC East | Division for WAS (or NYG with loss); PHI already eliminated (and played like it); tied for worst record to claim a division or playoff seed (non-strike season) at 7-9 | 4WAS 20-14 |
2019 | SF-SEA | NFC West | Division or wild card; home-field advantage for SF | 1SF 26-21 (5SEA) |
2018 | IND-TEN | AFC South | Play-in game; both eliminated with tie (division or out moot by HOU win earlier) | 6IND 33-17 |
2017 | No game | — | No compelling matchup without giving a team a competitive advantage; avoided a low-rated New Year’s Eve game encroaching on east coast midnight | |
2016 | GB-DET | NFC North | Division or wild card | 4GB 31-24 (6DET) |
2015 | MIN-GB | NFC North | Division or wild card | 3MIN 20-13 (5GB) |
2014 | CIN-PIT | AFC North | Division only, both teams had clinched a playoff berth2GB-DET, a game for the NFC North between 11-4 teams, went unselected due to NFC/Fox games being flexed 4 straight years | 3PIT 27-17 (5CIN) |
2013 | PHI-DAL | NFC East | Division or out | 3PHI 24-22 |
2012 | DAL-WAS | NFC East | Division or out (WAS wild card moot because of prior results) | 4WAS 28-18 |
2011 | DAL-NYG | NFC East | Division or out | 4NYG 31-14 |
2010 | STLRams-SEA | NFC West | Division or out; worst record to date to claim a division or a playoff seed (non-strike season) | 4SEA 16-6 |
2009 | CIN-NYJ | Interdivisional | Play-in for NYJ, seed position for CIN | 5NYJ 37-0 (4CIN) |
2008 | DEN-SD | AFC West | Division or out | 4SD 52-21 |
2007 | TEN-IND | AFC South | Play-in for TEN, IND had clinched #2 | 6TEN 16-10 |
2006 | CHI-GB | NFC North | None (play-in for GB moot because of prior results, CHI had clinched #1). 3One of the first “Brett Favre’s last game before retirement.” | GB 26-7 |
2005 | STLRams-DAL | Interdivisional* | None (DAL play-in moot just before kickoff) | STL 20-10 |
2004 | DAL-NYG | NFC East* | None4Eli Manning’s first win as starter. | NYG 28-24 |
2003 | PIT-BAL | AFC North* | None (PIT out, BAL had clinched #4) | BAL 13-10 (OT) |
*-Flex game option was not available prior to 2006.
Monday Night final regular season games
Note: The only pseudo-flexible matchup in this set is the 1982 season, when the NFL attempted to recover an additional week’s worth of games from the scheduled games that were not played due to the players’ strike.
Year | Matchup | Division | Implications | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2002 | SF-STLRams | NFC West | None (STL out, SF had clinched #4) | STL 31-20 |
2001 | MIN-BAL | Interconference | None; BAL had clinched #5 by virtue of SEA winning by fewer than 44 points (otherwise it would have been a play-in game for BAL)5Rescheduled Week 2 game was postponed after Sept. 11 attacks. The original Week 17 finale was Sunday night WAS-NO (moved MNF to avoid New Year’s Eve) | BAL 19-3 |
2000 | DAL-TEN | Interconference | Division or wild card for TEN | 1TEN 31-0 |
1999 | SF-ATL | NFC West | None | ATL 34-29 |
1998 | PIT-JAX | AFC Central | None (JAX had clinched division and #3) | JAX 21-3 |
1997 | NE-MIA | AFC East | Division or wild card; winner to host loser in wild card round | 3NE 14-12 (6MIA) |
1996 | DET-SF | Interdivisional | None (SF had clinched #4) | SF 24-14 |
1995 | DAL-ARI | NFC East | Home-field advantage for DAL6Setting for 1996 film Jerry Maguire, except the movie Cardinals were playing for a playoff berth | 1DAL 37-13 |
1994 | SF-MIN | Interdivisional | Division or wild card for MIN, SF had clinched home-field advantage | 3MIN 21-14 |
1993 | PHI-SF | Interdivisional | None (SF had clinched #2)7Overtime was extended by an untimed down due to a roughing the kicker foul | PHI 37-34 (OT) |
1992 | DET-SF | Interdivisional | None (SF had clinched home-field advantage)8Joe Montana, coming back from 2 years off, played the second half in his last game as a 49er | SF 24-6 |
1991 | CHI-SF | Interdivisonal | Division and first-round bye for CHI; SF already out on tiebreakers | SF 52-14 (4CHI) |
1990 | LARams-NO | NFC West | Play-in for NO | 6NO 20-17 |
1989 | CIN-MIN | Interconference | Play-in for CIN, division or out for MIN; Christmas Day | 3MIN 29-21 |
1988 | CHI-MIN | NFC Central | Home wild card game for MIN, CHI had clinched home-field advantage | 4MIN 28-27 |
1987 | NE-MIA | AFC East | None (both teams eliminated with IND win day before) | NE 24-10 |
1986 | NE-MIA | AFC East | Division or out for NE | 3NE 34-27 |
1985 | LARaiders-LARams | Interconference | Home-field advantage for Raiders, Rams had clinched #29Marcus Allen wins rushing title, breaks Eric Dickerson’s season record for yards from scrimmage | 1RAI 16-6 |
1984 | DAL-MIA | Interconference | Home-field advantage for MIA, play-in game for DAL10Dan Marino sets season records for yards, completions; Mark Clayton sets season record for TD catches | 1MIA 28-21 |
1983 | DAL-SF | Interdivisional | Division and first-round bye or wild card for SF; DAL had clinched wild card | 2SF 42-17 |
1982 | DAL-MIN | Interdivisional | First-round home game for MIN in 8-team NFC Super Bowl Tournament; DAL had clinched #211Strike season, blizzard four days earlier caused hole in Metrodome roof leading to rush repairs, Tony Dorsett touchdown run for “99 yards and a half” | 4MIN 31-27 |
1981 | OAK-SD | AFC West | Division or out for SD | 3SD 23-10 |
1980 | PIT-SD | Interdivisional | Division and home-field advantage or out for SD; PIT already out on tiebreakers | 1SD 26-17 |
1979 | DEN-SD | AFC West | For division title or wild card, SD also for home-field advantage | 1SD 17-7 (5DEN) |
1978 | NE-MIA | AFC East | Home wild card game for MIA; NE had clinched #212Patriots coach Chuck Fairbanks suspended for game by owner Billy Sullivan because Fairbanks told the team that he would be quitting after the season for the University of Colorado job | 4MIA 23-3 |
[mfnerences /]
Re: Note 2 — Favre’s last season in GB was 2007.
Yup. Sarcastic air quotes about Favre’s retirement were lost in editing.
Errors/omissions:
In 2002, it was SF that had clinched, not STL.
In 2014, the note should also mention CAR-ATL which was a direct play in for the 4 seed and was unselected.
In 2016, a tie would not have forced a rematch in the wild card round, as GB and DET would be the 4 and 6 seeds by record alone.
Thanks. Fixed. As for the 2014 matchup, although CAR-ATL was a play-in scenario for the #4 seed, both teams only won 6 games, making the WC/division/bye scenario in the NFC North the compelling choice for primetime. The game that was selected was inferior (to decide home-field wild card), and the purpose of the note is to reflect a specific reason why.