NFL – When the impossible becomes real: the 10 greatest NFL miracles

Gridiron miracles: when the little guys knock over the NFL mountain

The North American league is not just about the crushing rule of endless dynasties. It is also home to outrageous robberies, madcap runs and turnarounds that make a mockery of logic. From patched-up regular-season teams to backup quarterbacks who suddenly look untouchable, lightning sometimes strikes where the bookmakers never saw it coming, wrecking the safest predictions. Here are the mythic tales where true underdog NFL teams flattened Goliath in brutal fashion. Whether you are a seasoned bettor or just someone who loves a wild story, these feats prove that no game is ever done before the whistle.

Buffalo Bills (1992): the impossible comeback

Down 35-3 in the third quarter against the fearsome Houston Oilers, Marv Levy’s men looked dead and buried, thrashed by an imperial Warren Moon. Then Frank Reich, the backup quarterback, took over and staged the most jaw-dropping turnaround the NFL had ever seen that Sunday. In front of a frozen but electrified crowd, Buffalo’s offence rattled off touchdowns at a furious clip and dragged the game into an unlikely overtime. Simply known as “The Comeback”, this playoff game is still living proof that a steel-trap mindset can move mountains of numbers.

Baltimore Ravens (2012): a glorious final stand

Scraping into the postseason with a modest record and a defence widely seen as past its best, the Ravens tore up every prediction going. The news that charismatic linebacker Ray Lewis was nearing retirement hit the locker room like a thunderclap. Led by Joe Flacco, who was basically untouchable through the winter months, with a staggering 11 touchdown passes and no interceptions in the playoffs, this group took on the heavyweights of the NFL and never blinked. From the “Mile High Miracle” in the Denver cold to the final coronation in New Orleans, they gave their legend one last ring to remember.

Kansas City Chiefs (1969): pride of a rebel league

Facing the terrifying Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV, Hank Stram’s side was up against a wall the press box had already written off as impossible to climb. Back then, the upstart rival league, the AFL, still carried a massive inferiority complex. But a steel-wall defence forcing turnovers and boldly inventive play-calling from quarterback Len Dawson shattered the balance of power. Winning 23-7 in style, Kansas City showed the world that the AFL could go toe to toe with the old giants of the NFL and beat them.

Arizona Cardinals (2008): a desert fairy tale

They finished the regular season with just nine wins, so these birds looked like easy prey, barely worthy of the stage. But as a perfect underdog NFL story, they turned the playoffs into a full-blown offensive ride. Carried by the rebirth of veteran Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald’s hands of gold, the desert side fought off adversity with swagger. They fell just short against Pittsburgh in the dying seconds of a memorable Super Bowl XLIII, but their run still ranks as one of the wildest of the decade.

New York Giants (2011): controlled chaos

On the brink in December and staring at elimination after a messy 9-7 season, the New York outfit completely changed shape in January. The defence, led by the monstrous Jason Pierre-Paul, found its teeth at exactly the right time. Eli Manning, meanwhile, slipped back into winter-killer mode, firing surgical passes under pressure. Against all odds, “Big Blue” ripped the title from the grip of a red-hot New England machine that was terrorising the NFL at the time.

St. Louis Rams (1999): from nowhere to the top

The cruel loss of their field general Trent Green, badly hurt in the preseason, looked set to drag long-suffering Missouri fans through another miserable year. Then the impossible happened. A former supermarket stock clerk named Kurt Warner came out of nowhere and started dropping darts with ridiculous precision. Surrounded by explosive targets like Marshall Faulk and Isaac Bruce, he drove the “Greatest Show on Turf” and turned a dead franchise into the NFL’s most electric offence. It ended like a Hollywood script, with a thumping Super Bowl XXXIV win.

Philadelphia Eagles (2017): the dog-mask triumph

Watching Carson Wentz, then the clear MVP favourite, blow out his knee late in the year should have killed their title hopes stone dead. Instead, backup Nick Foles grabbed the wheel with unnerving calm. The team wore its ignored underdog NFL label with pride, complete with those now-famous German shepherd masks in the press conference room. Sparked by the “Philly Special”, a gutsy trick play that left the Patriots defence twisted in knots, the Eagles produced an all-timer to hand the city of brotherly love the trophy it had craved for ages.

New York Jets (1968): Broadway Joe’s promise

The Baltimore Colts headed into Super Bowl III as heavy favourites, with Las Vegas handing them an 18-point edge. On paper, it looked hopeless for a New York side from a league the establishment still treated like a second-rate outfit against the all-powerful NFL. But the charming, mouthy Joe Namath publicly guaranteed victory in front of a stunned room of reporters. He backed it up too, carving up the defence with icy control and producing one of the most important shocks in American sports history.

New England Patriots (2001): the start of an empire

Long before they became the most hated, feared and decorated machine on the NFL map, Bill Belichick’s men were the perfect Cinderella story. A nobody sixth-round pick, thrown in to replace the injured starter Drew Bledsoe, had to face St. Louis and its supposedly unstoppable offence. Refusing to sit back and settle for overtime, the kid drove the team downfield with brutal calm and set up Adam Vinatieri’s winning kick. The rest became gold-plated Tom Brady legend.

New York Giants (2007): sand in the perfect machine

Bill Belichick’s side arrived at Super Bowl XLII with a terrifying spotless record of 18 wins and no defeats. History was ready to hand them the greatest-team-ever label. Instead, a choking defensive front spent the night battering Tom Brady and stopping him from getting anything going through the air. Then came Eli Manning’s ridiculous escape and David Tyree’s miracle catch pinned against his helmet. A majestic smash-and-grab that sent the most iconic underdog NFL story of the modern era straight into the sporting hall of fame.

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