NFL Tiebreakers Explained

When two or more NFL teams finish with the same record, the league applies tiebreakers in a fixed order. Division ties are settled first, then wild card ties. The first step that separates the teams ends the process.

Division tiebreakers (two teams)

  1. Head-to-head record
  2. Record within the division
  3. Record in common games
  4. Record within the conference
  5. Strength of victory (combined record of teams beaten)
  6. Strength of schedule (combined record of all opponents)
  7. Combined ranking in points scored and points allowed among conference teams
  8. Combined ranking in points scored and points allowed among all teams
  9. Net points in common games
  10. Net points in all games
  11. Net touchdowns in all games
  12. Coin toss

Division tiebreakers (three or more teams)

The same list applies, but head-to-head means the combined record in games among the tied teams. If one team is eliminated at any step, the process restarts with the remaining teams from step one.

Wild card tiebreakers

If the tied teams are from the same division, the division tiebreaker is used first. Otherwise:

  1. Head-to-head, if the teams have played
  2. Record within the conference
  3. Record in common games (minimum four)
  4. Strength of victory
  5. Strength of schedule
  6. Combined ranking in points scored and allowed among conference teams
  7. Combined ranking in points scored and allowed among all teams
  8. Net points in conference games
  9. Net points in all games
  10. Net touchdowns in all games
  11. Coin toss

Why it matters

A division title is worth a home playoff game even with a worse record than a wild card team. Late in the season, one head-to-head result or a conference win can decide who hosts and who travels. The DIV and CONF columns in our standings tables show the records used in the first steps.

Updated