Ranking the Coldest NFL Games That Mattered Most

With an increasing number of NFL teams opting for domed stadiums, cold-weather games may eventually become a thing of the past. We're not there yet, though, and Sunday's divisional-round game between the Los Angeles Rams and Chicago Bears, in the Windy City, could be one of the coldest in league history.

Given the stakes, it also has a chance to be one of the more memorable playoff games in recent years.

Of course, extreme weather doesn't guarantee a classic. Sometimes it produces sloppy, low-scoring football. But because so many of the coldest games in NFL history have come in the playoffs, the best of them tend to deliver moments that stick.

Here, we'll look back upon some of the all-time cold weather playoff games—all played with wind chills no warmer than 2 degrees—and rank them based on factors like stakes, entertainment value and historical significance.

10. 1996 NFC Championship Game

AP Photo/Beth A. Keiser, File

Gilbert Brown, Santana Dotson, and Doug Evans of the Green Bay Packers

Who: Carolina Panthers at Green Bay Packers

Date: January 12, 1997

Temperature at Kickoff: 3 degrees (-16 wind chill)

The 1996 NFC Championship Game between the Carolina Panthers and Green Bay Packers wasn't the most competitive of contests. The Packers went on to win 30-13. However, it holds a place in history for both franchises.

Led by coach Dom Capers and quarterback Kerry Collins, the Panthers reached the conference title game in only their second season as a franchise. The Packers, meanwhile, were in their fifth season with legendary quarterback Brett Favre as their full-time starter.

Carolina struck first when Collins found Howard Griffith for a three-yard touchdown. However, Green Bay pulled ahead by the second quarter, clearly the more comfortable team in the frigid conditions.

"It really was like another planet, but it didn't bother the Packers guys at all," Panthers security guard Ricky Robbins said, per Darin Gantt of the team's website.

Green Bay went on to defeat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI, earning Favre his only Super Bowl ring, while giving the Packers their first championship in nearly 30 years.

9. 2015 NFC Wild Card Game

AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File

Seattle Seahawks OT Russell Okung

Who: Seattle Seahawks at Minnesota Vikings

Date: January 10, 2016

Temperature at Kickoff: -6 degrees (-25 wind chill)

At the time, the 2015 wild-card game between the Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks was the third-coldest NFL game on record.

The Seahawks, still in their Legion of Boom era, were coming off their second straight Super Bowl appearance. They were looking to rebound after losing to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLIX—which was lost on Malcolm Butler's goal-line interception.

Minnesota, meanwhile, was in its second season with Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback and had just won its first NFC North title since the 2009 season.

For most of the defensively driven game, it seemed as if the Vikings would put an end to Seattle's run of NFC dominance. Three Blair Walsh field goals gave Minnesota a 9-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter. However, Russell Wilson found Doug Baldwin for a three-yard touchdown pass before Stephen Hauschka put Seattle on top with a 46-yard field goal.

Walsh then had a chance to win it for the Vikings near the end of regulation, but he hooked a 27-yard attempt wide left, and Seattle went on to lose in the divisional round.

8. 1995 AFC Divisional Game

AP Photo/Ed Zurga, File

Tony McCoy and Stephen Grant of the Indianapolis Colts

Who: Indianapolis Colts at Kansas City Chiefs

Date: January 7, 1996

Temperature at Kickoff: -11 degrees (-15 wind chill)

To be fair, the 1995 divisional-round game between the Indianapolis Colts and Kansas City Chiefs wasn't a masterpiece of football cinema. Indy won 10-7 after Cary Blanchard provided the game's final points on a 30-yard, third-quarter field goal.

The game also featured two missed field-goal attempts by Blanchard and three missed attempts by Chiefs kicker Lin Elliott.

However, the game was very memorable for its shock value. Kansas City, led by Steve Bono, Marcus Allen and the NFL's top scoring defense, carried a league-best 13-3 record into the playoffs.

The nine-win Colts were massive underdogs who hadn't reached the playoffs since the 1987 season.

"We're ragamuffins," quarterback Jim Harbaugh said after the win, per Barry Winter of the Associated Press.

Harbaugh, Marshall Faulk and the Colts went on to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game. While Pittsburgh advanced to Super Bowl XXX, which it lost to the Dallas Cowboys, Indy gave the Steelers all they could handle in the conference title game.

If not for conditions that made kicking difficult, this monumental playoff upside might not have unfolded.

7. 2003 AFC Divisional Game

AP Photo/Jim Rogash

New England Patriots RB Kevin Faulk

Who: Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots

Date: January 10, 2004

Temperature at Kickoff: -4 degrees (-10 wind chill)

The 2003 divisional-round matchup between the Patriots and Tennessee Titans was another historic playoff showdown.

The Titans were looking to rebound after losing the 2002 AFC title game to the then-Oakland Raiders. Tom Brady helped the Patriots win the Super Bowl following the 2001 season, but New England missed the playoffs in 2002.

These two early-2000s powerhouses faced off in what was the coldest game in Patriots history.

There wasn't a ton of scoring in this one, but the game went down to the wire. New England took a 14-7 lead into halftime, but the Titans tied it in the third quarter on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Steve McNair to Derrick Mason.

A 46-yard Adam Vinatieri field goal broke the stalemate late in the fourth quarter, and the Patriots held on to win when their defense broke up a fourth-down pass intended for Drew Bennett.

New England went on to defeat the Colts in the AFC title game before defeating the Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII. And with their second Lombardi in three seasons, the Patriots' dynasty was underway.

6. 1981 AFC Championship Game

AP Photo

Bengals QB Ken Anderson meets Chargers QB Dan Fouts following the 1981 AFC Championship Game

Who: San Diego Chargers at Cincinnati Bengals

Date: January 10, 1982

Temperature at Kickoff: -9 degrees (-32 wind chill)

The 1981 AFC Championship Game, forever known as "The Freezer Bowl," was far more memorable for its glacial conditions than the competitive nature of the game. The Cincinnati Bengals rolled the then-San Diego Chargers 27-7 in a contest that was never really close.

Cincinnati jumped out to a 10-0 first-quarter lead after a Jim Breech field goal and an eight-yard touchdown pass from Ken Anderson to M.L. Harris. From there, the Bengals never looked back.

Those conditions, though, were historic.

"I was as cold today as I've ever been," Bengals coach Forrest Gregg said after the game, per Christopher Klein of History.com.

Gregg would certainly know about the cold, having played offensive tackle for the Green Bay Packers in the 1967 NFL Championship Game—which will appear later on this list.

The league can't control the weather, of course, but it never felt like a fair situation for the Chargers. A week earlier, they had endured a lengthy overtime game against the Miami Dolphins in balmy 76 degree heat.

Cincinnati survived both the cold and the Chargers, moving on to its first Super Bowl in franchise history. The Bengals fell to Joe Montana's San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XVI, but they went further than they ever had before.

5. 1993 AFC Divisional Game

AP Photo/Bill Skies

Buffalo Bills QB Jim Kelly

Who: Los Angeles Raiders at Buffalo Bills

Date: January 15, 1994

Temperature at Kickoff: 0 degrees (-14 wind chill)

The 1993 divisional game between the Raiders and the Buffalo Bills was a memorable one for a few reasons. For starters, it was a rematch of a December regular-season battle, which Los Angeles won 25-24 in an upset.

Another Raiders upset would prevent the Bills from getting to their fourth straight Super Bowl.

The game was also the coldest to ever be played at what was then known as Rich Stadium (now Highmark Stadium).

The game was a back-and-forth affair that threatened to mirror the regular-season contest. L.A. won that game after Jeff Hostetler found Tim Brown for a late 29-yard touchdown before the defense forced a Thurman Thomas fumble in Raiders territory.

In the January rematch, Hostetler found Brown for an 86-yard touchdown and the lead late in the third quarter. However, Jim Kelly later found Bill Brooks for a 29-23 lead that would hold.

Buffalo defeated the Chiefs in the AFC title game before losing Super Bowl XXVIII to the Cowboys. While this game didn't propel the Bills to a championship, it did help deliver their unbelievable run of four straight Super Bowl appearances.

4. 1980 AFC Divisional Round

AP Photo

Oakland Raiders coach Tom Flores talks over a play with QB Jim Plunkett on Jan. 4, 1981

Who: Oakland Raiders at Cleveland Browns

Date: January 4, 1981

Temperature at Kickoff: 2 degrees (-20 wind chill)

For Cleveland Browns fans, the phrase "Red Right 88" is akin to profanity. For Raiders fans, it's the stuff of championship lore.

Red Right 88 refers to the play call—officially, Red Slot Right, Halfback Stay, 88—that doomed Cleveland's playoff hopes years before John Elway and the Denver Broncos made a habit of it.

Played in wintry, windy Cleveland conditions, the Browns and Raiders traded blows in a defensive battle. The game saw Oakland take a 14-12 fourth-quarter lead on a Mark van Eeghen touchdown run, but the Browns still had time to mount a comeback.

After a couple of fruitless possessions, Brian Sipe managed to lead Cleveland to the Raiders' 13-yard line with less than a minute remaining. Instead of running the clock and giving Don Crockroft a shot at a walk-off field goal—Crockroft had already missed two kicks in the game—Browns coach Sam Rutigliano called for the now-infamous pass play.

Sipe missed Ozzie Newsome in the end zone, Raiders defensive back Mike Davis snagged the interception, and in doing so, he sent Oakland to the AFC title game.

The Raiders defeated the Chargers in the AFC Championship before beating the Philadelphia Eagles 27-10 in Super Bowl VX.

3. 1975 AFC Championship Game

AP Photo

Pittsburgh Steelers RB Franco Harris runs against the Oakland Raiders on Jan. 4, 1976

Who: Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers

Date: January 4, 1976

Temperature at Kickoff: 18 degrees (2-degree wind chill)

Compared to some other games on this list, the double-digit temperatures of the 1975 AFC Championship Game may seem mild. However, the wind chill made the environment nearly as chilly as the ongoing postseason rivalry between the Raiders and Steelers.

The rivalry was forged during the 1972 divisional round when the "Immaculate Reception" gave Pittsburgh a 13-7 win over Oakland. The 1976 meeting marked the fourth straight year in which the Steelers and Raiders did battle in the playoffs and their second straight grudge match in the AFC title game.

Pittsburgh was coming off its first-ever Super Bowl win, while Oakland wanted revenge for the 24-13 loss it suffered against the Steelers in the previous conference championship. Unsurprisingly, a defensive battle ensued—one that saw Ken Stabler and Terry Bradshaw combine for five interceptions.

A Roy Gerela field goal gave Pittsburgh a 3-0 second-quarter lead and proved to be the only points scored before the final frame. The Steelers then took a 16-7 fourth-quarter lead before a George Blanda field goal set up a fantastic finish.

Blanda's kick pulled the Raiders within six points, and the ensuing and successful onside kick gave them life with nine seconds remaining. However, Pittsburgh's defense held, the Steelers went on to win Super Bowl X, and the "Steel Curtain" dynasty of the '70s became official.

2. 2007 NFC Championship Game

AP Photo/David Duprey, File

New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin

Who: New York Giants at Green Bay Packers

Date: January 20, 2008

Temperature at Kickoff: -1 degrees (-23 wind chill)

Fans who remember the 2007 playoffs tend to remember two things: the fact that the Patriots went into Super Bowl XLII with a shot at a perfect season, and the incredible helmet catch by David Tyree that helped the New York Giants pull off the championship upset.

While the preceding NFC Championship Game wasn't quite as memorable as Super Bowl XLII, it was close.

Eli Manning and the Giants battled Brett Favre and the Packers in a thrilling back-and-forth battle on a frozen Lambeau Field. New York carried a 20-17 lead into the fourth quarter, but a Mason Crosby field goal tied the game before an exciting, if wild, finish.

Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes missed two field goals in the final frame, including a 36-yarder at the end of regulation. However, Favre was intercepted on the second play from scrimmage in overtime, and Tynes found redemption with a 47-yard walk-off score.

"I just didn't get it out far enough. It's too bad," Favre said, per ESPN's Rob Demovsky.

The Giants went on to stun the Patriots 17-14 in the Super Bowl, while that pick proved to be the final pass of Favre's Packers career. He briefly retired before spending the 2008 season with the New York Jets and finishing his career with Minnesota.

In 2008, the Packers ushered in the Aaron Rodgers era.

1. 1967 NFL Championship Game

AP Photo/File

Green Bay Packers QB Bart Starr signals before a play against the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 31, 1967

Who: Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers

Date: December 31, 1967

Temperature at Kickoff: -13 degrees (-23 wind chill)

The 1967 NFL Championship Game, colloquially known as "The Ice Bowl," was not only one of the coldest games in NFL history. It was also one of the greatest.

Coming before the official merger of the NFL and AFL in 1970, this matchup between the Cowboys and Packers was played for a trip to Super Bowl II. It also featured a legendary showdown between Green Bay coach Vince Lombardi and Dallas Coach Tom Landry.

Lombardi and Landry, both future Hall of Famers, had previously coached together with the Giants. Green Bay was also looking to win its second straight Super Bowl, while Dallas sought redemption after losing to the Packers in the 1966 NFL title game.

According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, more than 50,000 fans braved sub-zero temperatures to witness the rematch.

Bart Starr tossed a pair of touchdown passes to Boyd Dowler to give Green Bay an early 14-point lead, but Dallas battled back to take the lead on the first play of the fourth quarter. After taking the handoff from Don Meredith, halfback Dan Reeves found a streaking Lance Rentzel, who took it 50 yards for a touchdown.

The Packers began their final drive with less than five minutes in regulation, and they marched to the Dallas 1-yard line before facing a pivotal decision. Facing 3rd-and-goal with 16 seconds remaining and no timeouts, Green Bay could either go for the win or play it safe and set up a game-tying field-goal attempt—a failed run likely would have ended the game.

Lombardi went for the victory, and after Starr ran it up the middle, Green Bay was again an NFL champion.

"We gambled, and we won," Lombardi said, according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Ice Bowl victory marked the third straight NFL championship for the Packers, who went on to win Super Bowl II over the Raiders.

*Gameday weather information from Pro Football Reference.