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Wins in excess of a 60-point margin were recorded in the earliest years of the NFL.
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Since World War II, three teams have won by a 59-point margin in the regular season.
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In the Super Bowl, the San Francisco 49ers boast the biggest win with a 55-10 scoreline.
Thanks, in part, to the NFL being an insular league in which the least competitive teams get rewarded with the first picks of the next entry draft, great disparities can occur on the field.
When a Super Bowl favourite comes up against a team plummeting into a rebuild, many expect big wins for the former, but even in the playoffs, a team not prepared to step up that extra gear can get heavily punished.
These are the games that have seen the biggest wins in NFL history, including picks from before the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 and those that have been seen in the postseason.
Biggest Wins in Early NFL History
It was a very different time for the NFL, but as the league was officially founded in 1920, the games that took place before the modern league was formed remain in the record books.
As such, technically, the biggest win in NFL history goes to the Rochester Jeffersons, who beat Fort Porter 66-0 in a regular season matchup between an NFL team and a non-league team in 1920.
Between two teams in the NFL proper, the record for the biggest win goes to the Philadelphia Eagles, who beat the Cincinnati Reds in 1934 by a score of 64-0.
Biggest Wins in NFL History (Post-1945)
Looking at games since World War II in the regular season, we find the New England Patriots boasting the biggest win in NFL history.
On 18 October 2009, the Tom Brady-led Pats met the 0-5 Tennessee Titans in Week 6, flying to a record-breaking halftime lead of 45-0 to eventually finish the game 59-0.
This 59-point winning margin has been seen twice before in the NFL. It first occurred before the inception of the Super Bowl, on 7 November 1954, when the Cleveland Browns topped the Washington Redskins 62-3.
In the Super Bowl era, the Los Angeles Rams join the Pats with their 59-0 demolition job on the Atlanta Falcons. On 4 December 1976, the Rams held their opponents to a mere 81 total yards while their offence scored for fun.
Biggest Win in Super Bowl History
We’ve seen a few blowout victories in the Super Bowl recently, including the Buccaneers beating the Chiefs 31-9 in 2021 and the Seahawks storming to a 43-8 win over the Broncos in 2014.
However, the record for the biggest win in Super Bowl history goes to the winners of Super Bowl XXIV. Led by Joe Montana, the San Francisco 49ers obliterated the Denver Broncos at the Louisiana Superdome throughout the game.
Not only did the 49ers get the better of the early going 13-3, but in each subsequent quarter, the team scored exactly 14 points, relentlessly upping the pressure on their AFC foes until the time hit zeros for a 55-10 win.
The 49ers remain a major force in the NFC, and even after a slow, injury-ridden 4-4 start to 2024, the team is still among the favourites in the NFL odds to win Super Bowl LIX.
Biggest Win in NFL Playoff History
Looking at the NFL lines in the sports betting today, the owner of the biggest win in NFL playoff history would come as a surprise. On 15 January 2000, the Jacksonville Jaguars set this still-standing record.
The score was put up in the AFC Divisional game after the Jaguars had earned a first-round bye for conquering the AFC Central. The Miami Dolphins scraped past Seattle in the first round and were then levelled at the Alltel Stadium.
The highlight of the rout came on Fred Taylor’s imperious 90-yard touchdown run, which would set the tone for what was to come. In the end, the Jags beat the Fins 62-7 for a mighty 55-point win.
*Credit for the main photo belongs to Adobe*
