NFL Head to Head Rules

Every year, National Football League teams lock horns in a season ending playoff tournament, with the winners from both conferences playing in the Super Bowl. Sometimes, it is clear which teams have earned the right to battle for the championship based on their regular season records. However, sometimes the league needs to resort to tie-breakers, and that's when NFL Head to Head Rules come into play.

  1. Divisional Tiebreakers: Head to Head

    • If two or more teams in the same division have identical records, the one with the highest winning percentage against the other team(s) in head-to-head competition against or among one another.

    Divisional Tiebreakers: Winning Percentage

    • If the teams have identical head-to-head records, the next tiebreaker will be the best record within the division, followed by the best winning percentage against common opponents, then winning percentage in conference games.

    Division Tiebreakers: Schedule and Points

    • Provided two or more teams are still tied, NFL Head-to-Head Rules then call for a comparison of each club's margin of victory and strength of schedule. Finally, several different categories of points scored and/or allowed are looked at, with the final step being a coin flip, when necessary.

    Wild Card Tiebreakers: Head to Head

    • Like with division opponents, NFL Head-to-Head Rules require that ties for the two Wild Card seeds in each conference be broken first using head-to-head records, when applicable.

    Wild Card Tiebreakers: Additional Criteria

    • This is followed by win-loss percentage in the conference, then winning percentage in common games (minimum of four), then strength of victory, then strength of schedule, the various points scored and/or allowed measures, and finally as a last resort, a coin toss.