Photo by WikiMedia, CC by 2.0
The NFL is cherished for his high-scoring action and adrenaline-fueled drama. Sometimes, however, the excitement falls flat, and teams struggle to get the scoreboard going.
Across the long history of the NFL, there have been 73 games that ended in a 0-0 tie. But we didn’t get to see any since 1943, when the Giants and Lions failed to score. Just five games have ever ended 2-0, and the most recent came in 1938, when the Bears edged the Packers.
Since the NFL entered the Super Bowl era following the AFL-NFL merger, seven matches have ended with a 3-0 scoreline. We’ll revisit six of the lowest scoring NFL games of all time, including the most recent from the 2023 season.
Atlanta Falcons 0 Buffalo Bills 3 – 16 October 1977
Buffalo had lost their opening four games of the 1977 season despite the services of star running-back OJ Simpson.
He rushed for 136 yards in their clash with the Falcons, which was settled in the Bills’ favour by Neil O’Donoghue’s 30-year field goal in the second quarter.
Atlanta’s Scott Hunter and Buffalo’s Joe Ferguson completed just 17 of 50 pass attempts between them so it is not difficult to see where the problems stemmed from.
Kansas City Chiefs 0 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 3 – 16 December 1979
Remarkably, O’Donoghue was also the hero in another 3-0 match just over two years later after he moved to play for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs were having a few wobbles as they looked to claim their first NFC Central division title and the mood was not good when a monsoon struck Florida.
The rain was falling down the steps in the stadium and those who braved the elements were hardly rewarded by a great game as passing became virtually impossible.
O’Donoghue had seen a snap dropped on a previous attempt and had had four efforts blocked in a defeat to Minnesota a few weeks earlier, but he kept his nerve to knock over a 19-yard effort in the final quarter.
Miami Dolphins 0 New England Patriots 3 – 12 December 1982
The most controversial 3-0 match was undoubtedly the Snowplow game at Foxborough in the strike-hit season of 1982 when New England beat Miami.
This was another game where the weather played a huge role.
The artificial surface was soaked by rain the day before the match and then froze overnight, but the real problems occurred when the match was hit by a snowstorm.
Tractors were used to clear the lines on the pitch, but Patriots coach Ron Meyer got ground staff to clear an area for kicker John Smith to use when he knocked over the winning score.
The Dolphins were left fuming and legendary coach Don Shula’s protestations that the result should be overturned fell on deaf ears.
They did gain revenge though when they beat the Patriots in the wildcard round before they lost to Washington in the Super Bowl.
New York Jets 3 Washington Redskins 0 – 11 December 1993
Sometimes a team can dominate a game but it’s not reflected in the scoreline, just as the Jets did when they won 3-0 in Washington in 1993.
Cary Blanchard’s 45-yarder in the first quarter put them in the driving seat, but they were unable to press it home.
It was a good job that Washington were unable to make much progress themselves.
The home side produced just 39 yards from 15 rushing attempts and their total yards measured a pretty miserable 150.
Miami Dolphins 0 Pittsburgh Steelers 3 – 26 November 2007
The most recent of the lowest scoring NFL games of all time took place on November 26th 2007 at Heinz Field when the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Miami Dolphins by a score of just 3 to 0.
The three points were scored from a field goal by kicker Jeff Reed in the fourth quarter.
Monday Night Football viewers may have anticipated a decent game between the Steelers and the Dolphins at Heinz Field in 2007 but that was not what materialised.
It became known as the Mud Bowl due to the state of the field in Pennsylvania and both teams struggled.
A pointless regulation-time clash looked a real possibility but Pittsburgh fans were finally rewarded with just 17 seconds remaining when Jeff Reed made the vital score from 24 yards.
Las Vegas Raiders 0 Minnesota Vikings 3 – 11 December 2023
Greg Joseph’s 36-yard field goal with just under two minutes remaining secured a 3-0 win for the Vikings and prevented the game from becoming the NFL’s first scoreless tie in 80 years.
Minnesota hadn’t posted a shutout since a 16-0 win over Green Bay in December 2017, while Las Vegas hadn’t been drawing blanks since falling 24-0 to New Orleans in October 2022.
Scoring opportunities came and went for both teams. Joseph hooked a 49-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter, and Hunter Renfrow coughed up the ball at the Vikings’ 20-yard line.
This was uncharted territory for the Raiders, who had never before played in a game that ended 3-0. For the Vikings, it was a rare repeat, their only other 3-0 victory came against the Packers on November 14, 1971.
