Top 5 All-Time NFL Rivalries

The NFL has long been known for historic moments since it began play in 1920. Over the years, rivalries developed for a variety of reasons stemming from franchises relocating, geography, culture, success, and of course fighting. American football is a very violent game, but rivalries that have existed in the NFL has brought out the best and worst in one another. Here are my top 5 NFL rivalries in the history of the league.....

5. Kansas City Chiefs vs Oakland Raiders

They first played one another as the AFL began play in 1960, and they have played in the same division ever since in which the Chiefs were the Dallas Texas until 1963. The rivalry didn't ignite until after a baseball move met with disdain by Kansas City took place in 1967. The Athletics moved from Kansas City to Oakland after owner Charlie Finley's repeated attempts to move the franchise. Kansas City would get another baseball team when the Royals came in as an expansion franchise. The NFL-AFL merger was in process at the time, and the two teams first clashed in the playoffs in 1968 with the Raiders winning to advance to the AFL Championship game after Oakland played for the NFL Championship the year before. The Raiders defeated the Chiefs twice during the 1969 season, but Kansas City avenged those losses by winning against Oakland in the AFL Championship that led to the Chiefs winning their first Super Bowl. The Raiders won three Super Bowls by 1983, and had a lead in the series going into the 1990s as they moved to Los Angeles. Kansas City dominated the 1990s as the Chiefs won all but three games between them during the decade which included a playoff win in 1991. The Chiefs won most games between them in the 2000s decade. Kansas City leads the series 54-46-2 against the Raiders.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers vs Cleveland Browns

A rivalry which separates the two teams by less than 150 miles, the Steelers and Browns have played against each more times than any other two AFC teams. They first played in 1950 when Cleveland entered the NFL and the Browns promptly won their first league title that inaugural season. The Browns dominated the early going of their feud as Pittsburgh only won four times in the 1950s, and garnered two more NFL Championships at the time. The Browns picked up where they left off winning another NFL Championship in 1964 while still beating Pittsburgh most of the time. It wasn't until the Steelers turned their misfortunes around in the 1970s winning four Super Bowls that they began to even up the series between the two teams. The 1980s were the only decade in which neither team had a decisive winning record against the other. The 1990s had seen the Steelers control the series again and Cleveland seize operations between the 1996-98 seasons. Since Cleveland returned in 1999, they've only won four times against the Steelers as Pittsburgh had their 12-game winning streak against the Browns snapped in 2009. The two have played in twice against one another in the playoffs during the 1994 and 2002 seasons with the Steelers winning both. The series between them still fuels bitterness, but it hasn't seen both be good teams at the time very much. The Steelers now hold a 60-56 record over Cleveland in the series which includes the two playoff meetings.

3. New York Giants vs Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles came into the league in 1933, and these two teams have clashed based on playing in the same division every year. Also, the rivalry is based upon location since which became popular during the 1950s, but it was a game in 1960 that is most remembered for how intense the feud between them is. Eagles Linebacker Chuck Bednarik cleanly knocked Giants running back Frank Gifford out of not only a game, but for a year and a half after a concussion from a vicious hit. Philadelphia won its last league title that year in 1960, and the Giants went 12-4 against them during the rest of the 1960s decade. The Eagles won a key 1978 game in which the Giants fumbled the ball late in the game only needing to take a kneel down allowing Philadelphia to eventually clinch a playoff spot. The Eagles dominated the 1970s between them only losing four times, and made their first Super Bowl appearance in 1980. However, the Giants won two Super Bowls in 1986 and 1990. The Giants won the first playoff meeting between the two in 1981, and again in 2000 in route to their third Super Bowl appearance. The Eagles made another Super Bowl appearance in 2004, and New York won another Super Bowl in which they beat the previously undefeated New England Patriots. Philadelphia has since evened up the playoff series winning against the Giants in the 2006 and 2008 NFC Playoffs. The Giants lead the series 82-71-2 over the Eagles.

2. Dallas Cowboys vs Washington Redskins

These two heated rivals first met in 1960 as the Dallas Cowboys came into the NFL as an expansion team as both have combined for 10 NFL Championships including eight Super Bowls. Since that time, both clubs have had memorable match-ups against one another - even when both teams were in down periods as franchises. Though the Cowboys were an expansion team, it didn't take long for them to rise up as an elite franchise winning the NFC East division every year between 1967 and 1971 while winning six straight in that period against Washington. The Redskins would gain a measure of revenge by beating the Cowboys in the 1972 NFC Championship as the two met for the first time in the playoffs. The Cowboys dominated the series in the early 80s, but Washington once again beat Dallas in the playoffs in route to their first Super Bowl win during the 1982 season. By that time, the Cowboys had appeared in five Super Bowls winning two of them. The Redskins would win two more by 1991 as the Cowboys endeared a low point in their history despite eliminating Washington from the playoffs two years in row in 1988-89 with key wins. The Cowboys turned things around in a big way and won three Super Bowls in four years in the early 1990s. Since that time, neither team has played in a Super Bowl although both have played each other a record 14 times on Monday Night Football. Dallas leads with rivalry series with a 59-39-2 mark against the Redskins, but Washington is 2-0 against the Cowboys in the playoffs.

1. Chicago Bears vs Green Bay Packers

With 179 meetings on the field between them and a combined 21 NFL titles, the Bears and Packers top my list here. The two clubs have combined to send over 50 players to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the have 51 playoff appearances between them. The first meeting between them came in 1921 which signified the hate for one another when Bears player John(Tarzan) Taylor broke the nose of Packers tackle Howard Buck after punching him. In 1924, the first ever ejections for fighting in a game took place when the two teams met. They've met only once in the playoffs doing so in 1941 with a one-game playoff to determine who would play for the NFL Championship resulting in a Bears win. Bears coach George Halas and Packers coach Curly Lambeau always had thoughts of punching one another rather than shaking hands after games, and the same held true later on when Vince Lombardi took over for the Packers. It was common to see players on both sides being knocked out of games due to hard hitting The rivalry was at its dirtiest in the 1980s when Mike Ditka and Forrest Gregg went at it which had seen Packers defensive end Charles Martin come from behind and separated quarterback Jim McMahon's shoulder when he body slammed him to the turf in a 1986 game. Martin received the longest suspension in league history at the time for two games, and is remembered more for that incident than anything else. Though both teams have been successful for much of their history to go along with the dislike for one another, there is a large difference as to where the play. Chicago plays in the third most populated city in the U.S. while Green Bay has the smallest market in the league. Chicago holds a 91-82-6 record over Green Bay, but the Packers have won the most total championships ever with 12.

Other rivalries I considered:

Oakland Raiders vs Denver Broncos: Another good AFC West rivalry that just misses my list
Kansas City Chiefs vs Denver Broncos: This rivalry has really picked up since the 1990s.
New York Jets vs New England Patriots: This rivalry has escalated especially since coaches have been linked to both organizations in recent years.
Miami Dolphins vs New York Jets: These two have had classic battles that has seen great comebacks and last second heroics including on Monday night.
San Francisco 49ers vs St. Louis Rams: This rivalry has gone on for a long time, but seldom have both been good at the same time.
Cleveland Browns vs Cincinnati Bengals: Classic in-state rivalry.
Green Bay Packers vs Minnesota Vikings: This is another great rivalry in the blue collar NFC North division.
Minnesota Vikings vs Chicago Bears: See Packers vs Vikings.

Sources:
Pro-Football-Reference Teams
The Football Database
NFL Touchdown: Packers vs Bears
Miracle at the Meadowlands
Philadelphia Inquirer: Chuck Bednarik
Oakland Raiders site