The National Football Conference (NFC) Championship Game is one of the two semi-final playoff matches of the National Football League, the largest professional American football league in the United States. The game is played on the penultimate Sunday in January and determines the champion of the National Football Conference. The winner of this game will face the AFC champion in the Super Bowl. To get to the the NFC championship game the two teams must have beaten a team in the Divisonal round or if they were a wild card, the wild card round.
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Playoff structure[edit | edit source]
- For more details on this topic, see NFL playoffs.
At the end of each football season, a series of playoff games involving the top six teams in the NFC are conducted, consisting of the four division champions and two wild card teams. The two teams remaining play in the NFC Championship game.
List of Championship Games[edit | edit source]
^ a: Sudden-death overtime.
NFC Championship Game appearances 1970-present[edit | edit source]
| Num | Team | W | L | PCT | PF | PA | Last appearance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 8 | 6 | .571 | 317 | 264 | 1995 |
| 14 | San Francisco 49ers | 6 | 8 | .429 | 272 | 245 | 2012 |
| 9 | Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams | 3 | 6 | .333 | 82 | 187 | 2001 |
| 8 | Minnesota Vikings | 3 | 5 | .375 | 136 | 175 | 2009 |
| 6 | Washington Redskins | 5 | 1 | .833 | 139 | 78 | 1991 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Eagles | 2 | 4 | .300 | 109 | 119 | 2008 |
| 5 | Green Bay Packers | 3 | 2 | .600 | 121 | 98 | 2010 |
| 5 | Chicago Bears | 2 | 3 | .500 | 80 | 86 | 2010 |
| 5 | New York Giants | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | 119 | 50 | 2011 |
| 4 | Carolina Panthers | 2 | 2 | .333 | 41 | 67 | 2015 |
| 3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1 | 2 | .333 | 33 | 30 | 2002 |
| 3 | Atlanta Falcons | 1 | 2 | .333 | 64 | 92 | 2012 |
| 3 | Seattle Seahawks b[›] | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | 34 | 14 | 2014 |
| 2 | New Orleans Saints | 1 | 1 | .500 | 45 | 67 | 2009 |
| 2 | Arizona Cardinals | 1 | 1 | 1.000 | 32 | 25 | 2015 |
| 1 | Detroit Lions | 0 | 1 | .000 | 10 | 41 | 1991 |
^ b: The Seattle Seahawks were members of the AFC from 1977 until 2002, and hold a combined 1-1 record between both Conference Championship Games.
NFC Championship Game records[edit | edit source]
- Most Victories: 8 - Dallas Cowboys (1970, 1971, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1992, 1993, 1995)
- Most Appearances: 14 - Dallas Cowboys (1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995), San Francisco 49ers (1970, 1971, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997, 2011, 2012)
- Most Consecutive Appearances: 4 - Dallas Cowboys twice (1970, 1971, 1972, 1973), (1992, 1993, 1994, 1995) Philadelphia Eagles (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004)
- Most Victories Without a Loss: 5 - New York Giants (1987, 1991, 2001, 2008, 2011)
- Most NFC Championships hosted: 9 - San Francisco 49ers (1970, 1981, 1984, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1997, 2011)
- Most points scored: 41 - Washington Redskins (1991), New York Giants (2000)
- Fewest points scored, winning team: 9*[›] - Los Angeles Rams (1979)
- Most points scored, losing team: 28 - Dallas Cowboys (1994)
- Most aggregate points scored: 66 - San Francisco 49ers (38) vs. Dallas Cowboys (28) (1994)
- Fewest aggregate points scored: 9* - Los Angeles Rams (9) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0) (1979)
- Current NFC teams which have never appeared in an NFC Championship Game: 0
- Current NFC teams which have never won an NFC Championship Game: Detroit Lions (0-1)
^ *: Conference Championship record
See also[edit | edit source]
NFC Championship logo, 2001-2005
References[edit | edit source]
- Time Almanac 2004
