The 25 Most Fantastic Finishes in NFL Playoff History

The level of football is always stepped up a notch when the NFL playoffs roll around.  That makes the finishes that much more dramatic, and it seems like every dramatic finish ends up with a nickname.

Click through to see the most dramatic finishes in football, from the Ice Bowl and the Immaculate Reception to the Music City Miracle.

Jan. 10, 1982: NFC Championship Game, San Francisco 49ers vs. Dallas Cowboys

This game is what gave us "The Catch." Joe Montana was the king of the comeback, and he struck again in this one. He scrambled out and found Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone, and he made a leaping catch over defenders.

This victory was the transition from the Cowboy dynasty of the '70s to the 49er dynasty of the '80s.

Jan. 8, 2000: AFC Wild Card Playoffs, Tennessee Titans vs. Buffalo Bills

Everyone remembers this game as the Music City Miracle game. The Titans were down 16-15 with just 16 seconds left on the clock. Lorenzo Neal fielded the kickoff from Steve Christie. He tossed the ball to Frank Wycheck, who threw it across the field to Kevin Dyson. Dyson then ran past a wall of blockers for a touchdown.

Jan. 3, 1993: AFC Wild Card Playoffs, Buffalo Bills vs. Houston Oilers

This game had a fantastic second half. The Oilers took a 35-3 lead in the third quarter. They looked to be headed to the divisional round of the playoffs before Frank Reich took the game over. He led the greatest comeback in the history of the NFL.

The Bills scored 35 unanswered points to take a 38-35 lead. The Oilers would tie the game in regulation to force overtime, but Reich led a drive to set up the game-winner from Steve Christie in overtime.

Jan. 30, 2000: Super Bowl XXXIV, Tennessee Titans vs. St. Louis Rams

This was arguably the greatest Super Bowl finish of all time. The Titans had the ball down seven after Kurt Warner had found Isaac Bruce for a long touchdown. They needed to go the length of the field, and Steve McNair led a drive that most people will never forget.

Tennessee's bid for a comeback was stopped a yard short when Kevin Dyson could not break the tackle of Mike Jones at the goal line.

Feb. 3, 2002: Super Bowl XXXVI, St. Louis Rams vs. New England Patriots

This was the start of the Patriots' domination. On this night Tom Brady and the Patriots met up with Kurt Warner and the Greatest Show on Turf. The result was a fantastic game.

New England dominated the first three quarters. It took a 17-3 lead into the fourth quarter. That was when Warner went to work. He led two touchdown drives. The second came with just 1:30 left on the clock.

Brady put together a quick drive that set up an Adam Vinatieri game-winning field goal with no time remaining on the clock.

Feb. 1, 2004: Super Bowl XXXVIII, Carolina Panthers vs. New England Patriots

The final score in this game was 32-29, but only 14 points were scored before the fourth quarter. All 14 of those points were scored by the Patriots.

The two teams traded scoring drives back and forth until Jake Delhomme found Ricky Proehl for a 12-yard touchdown catch with 1:08 left to play.

That was too much time to give Tom Brady, and it did not help any that John Kasay kicked the ball out of bounds on the ensuing kickoff. Just a few plays later Adam Vinatieri kicked another game-winning field goal to give the Patriots the title.

Feb. 6, 2005: Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Another year with another dramatic Super Bowl win by the Patriots. This time their opponent was Donovan McNabb and the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles had finally made the Super Bowl after years of coming up just short in the NFC championship game.

The Eagles made a valiant attempt to come back at the end of the game, but their final drive was ended when Rodney Harrison picked off a McNabb pass with nine seconds left. That sealed the deal for the Patriots.

Feb. 3, 2008: Super Bowl XLII, New York Giants vs. New England Patriots

The Patriots got a taste of their own medicine in this one. They came into the game having gone undefeated in the regular season. They had beaten the Giants just a few weeks earlier. It looked like they were destined to become just the second team in NFL history to have an undefeated season.

Eli Manning, David Tyree and Plaxico Burress had another idea. Tyree made "The Catch Part II" late in the fourth quarter to set up a touchdown pass from Manning to Burress that gave the Giants the lead with 35 seconds left.

This time Tom Brady did not have any magic left in the tank, and the Giants won the game.

Feb. 1, 2009: Super Bowl XLIII, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Arizona Cardinals

This was another Super Bowl where most of the action took place in the fourth quarter. The Cardinals took a lead late in the fourth quarter when Kurt Warner found Larry Fitzgerald for a 64-yard touchdown catch.

That was when Ben Roethlisberger went to work. He led a drive that ended with a touchdown when he found Santonio Holmes in the back corner of the end zone with 35 seconds left. The play was reviewed and upheld, as Holmes barely dragged his toes inbounds.

Dec. 23, 1972: AFC Divisional Playoffs, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Oakland Raiders

The "Immaculate Reception" is one of the most famous plays in the history of football. The play came with 22 seconds left in a divisional playoff game between the Steelers and Raiders.

Terry Bradshaw's pass intended for John Fuqua was deflected backwards into the arms of Franco Harris. Harris caught the ball and ran 45 yards for the game-winning touchdown.

There was plenty of controversy surrounding the play, but it is one of the most memorable in the history of the sport.

Jan. 27, 1991: Super Bowl XXV, Buffalo Bills vs. New York Giants

Super Bowl XXV was the first of four consecutive Super Bowl appearances for the Bills. It was the closest they would come to winning one.

With eight seconds left Scott Norwood lined up for a 47-yard field goal that would have given the Bills a win. Norwood pushed the ball wide right, and the Giants held on for a 20-19 win.

Jan. 17, 1999: NFC Championship Game, Minnesota Vikings vs. Atlanta Falcons

Gary Anderson was perfect for the 1998 Minnesota Vikings. There was a lot of confidence when Anderson lined up for a 38-yard field-goal attempt late in the fourth quarter of the NFC championship game between the Vikings and Falcons.

Anderson missed the field goal, and the Falcons would go on to win the game in overtime.

Dec. 31, 1967: NFL Championship Game, Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers

The Ice Bowl is one of the greatest playoff games in the history of the NFL, and it had a fantastic finish. Bart Starr led the Green Bay Packers on a game-winning drive that was capped off by a QB sneak for a touchdown on fourth down.

The game is called the Ice Bowl because the game-time temperature was minus-13 degrees. Lambeau Field had a heating system in place to keep the field from freezing, but it malfunctioned before this game. That made the field an ice rink.

Jan. 11, 1987: AFC Championship Game, Cleveland Browns vs. Denver Broncos

This is the game that featured "The Drive." John Elway and the Broncos were down 20-13 with 5:43 left in the game. They had the ball on the Browns' 2-yard line.

Elway went on to put together one of the most impressive drives in the history of the NFL. He completed six of nine passes for 78 yards. The drive was capped off by a five-yard touchdown pass from Elway to Mark Jackson.

That drive tied the game with 37 seconds left. The Broncos went on to win the game in overtime.

Jan. 17, 1988: AFC Championship Game, Cleveland Browns vs. Denver Broncos

Another game between the Browns and the Broncos that is known by a nickname. This game featured "The Fumble."

The Browns were down 38-31 late in the game. They had taken the ball all the way down to the Denver 8-yard line, and then it happened. Earnest Byner got the ball and looked to have a good shot at the end zone. Unfortunately for Cleveland fans, the ball was knocked loose and recovered by the Broncos.

Jan. 5, 2003: NFC Wild Card Playoffs, New York Giants vs. San Francisco 49ers

What a crazy game this one was. The 49ers were down 38-14 at one point in the game but stormed back to take a 39-38 lead.

The Giants still had a chance to win the game with basically no time left on the clock. They lined up for a 41-yard field goal, but the snap was bad. Pass interference should have been called on the last play but was not, and the 49ers won the game.

Jan. 19, 2002: AFC Divisional Playoffs, Oakland Raiders vs. New England Patriots

Here we have another Patriots game on the list. This game will forever be known as the Tuck Rule Game. Tom Brady was putting the ball away after a fake when it was knocked out. It looked like a fumble but was ruled an incomplete pass because of the tuck rule.

The game was won in overtime by an Adam Vinatieri 23-yard field goal.

Dec. 28, 1958: NFL Championship Game, Baltimore Colts vs. New York Giants

Some people consider this the greatest football game ever played.

The Baltimore Colts kicked a 20-yard field goal with seven seconds left in the game to send the game to overtime. Some players had never heard of overtime before the game, according to Wikipedia.

Baltimore would not give the Giants a chance to have the ball in overtime. It received the opening kickoff of the extra period and marched right down the field for a touchdown.

Dec. 21, 1974: AFC Divisional Playoffs, Oakland Raiders vs. Miami Dolphins

This game is known as the "Sea of Hands" because Clarence Davis caught the game-winning touchdown pass with 24 seconds left against three Dolphins defenders.

This game not only had a great ending but was also tight throughout the game with the teams trading scoring drives.

Jan. 8, 1994: NFC Wild Card Playoffs, Green Bay Packers vs. Detroit Lions

This game will always be remembered for Brett Favre's final drive that was capped by a 40-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Sharpe. That pass put the Packers ahead 28-24.

Lost in the late-game heroics from Favre was the fact that Barry Sanders had one of the best games of his career. He finished the game with 167 yards rushing.

Jan. 3, 1999 NFC Wild Card Playoffs, Green Bay Packers vs. San Francisco 49ers

This game featured two of the greatest quarterbacks of all time in Brett Favre and Steve Young, but it was Terrell Owens who was the hero in the end.

Owens had done what he always did in this game: He had made some big plays but dropped some big passes. He came up big at the end, though, when he hung on to a pass from Young with eight seconds left in the game. It was an impressive catch, as he was hit hard from both sides.

Jan. 4, 2004: NFC Wild Card Playoffs, Seattle Seahawks vs. Green Bay Packers

This game is forever remembered for Matt Hasselbeck saying, "We want the ball and we're going to score."

Unfortunately for Hasselbeck, it did not end that way. He threw an interception on the Seahawks' second possession in overtime that was returned for a touchdown. The Packers won the game 33-27.

Jan. 7, 1996: AFC Divisional Playoffs, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Indianapolis Colts

This game came down to missed field goals by Lin Elliott. He had two chances to tie the game in the fourth quarter but missed both times. The second miss came with 37 seconds left and would have forced overtime.

Jan. 14, 1996: AFC Championship Game, Indianapolis Colts vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

This game came down to a Hail Mary in the final seconds of the game. It looked for a second like it would be hauled in by Colts receiver Aaron Bailey, but the ball was jarred loose when he hit the ground.

The win gave the Steelers a trip to the Super Bowl to take on the Dallas Cowboys.

Jan. 3, 2004: AFC Wild Card Playoffs, Tennessee Titans vs. Baltimore Ravens

Gary Anderson was on the happy end of this one. He gave the Titans a 20-17 win over the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore in 2004.

This win avenged the Titans' loss to the Ravens in the 2000 playoffs that Tennessee entered as the No. 1 seed.

The Titans would lose to the Patriots in New England the next week.