Highest Scoring NFL Game: What Really Happened on That Wild 1966 Sunday

Football is usually a game of inches. Sometimes, it’s a game of absolute, unmitigated chaos.

You’ve probably seen some high-scoring track meets lately. Maybe you remember the 2018 Rams and Chiefs lighting up the scoreboard on Monday Night Football, or that time the Dolphins hung 70 on Denver in 2023. But even those modern explosions don't touch the actual record.

The highest scoring NFL game in the history of the league happened way back on November 27, 1966. It was a matchup between the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants. By the time the dust settled at D.C. Stadium, the two teams had combined for a staggering 113 points.

Final score: Washington 72, New York 41.

If that sounds like a typo, I promise you it isn't. It remains the only time in nearly a century of NFL football that a team has crossed the 70-point mark while the opponent also managed to put up a respectable 40. Honestly, the box score looks more like a college basketball game than a pro football contest from the era of "three yards and a cloud of dust."

The Day Defense Died: Breaking Down the 113-Point Thriller

So, how does a game get that out of hand? Usually, when you see a score like 72-41, you assume the quarterbacks were throwing for 600 yards each. Not really.

Washington’s legendary Sonny Jurgensen only threw for 145 yards. That’s the first weird fact. The Redskins actually got outgained by the Giants in total yardage—389 to 341. You’d think the team with more yards would at least keep it closer, but the game turned into a comedy of errors for New York and a highlight reel for Washington’s special teams and defense.

New York turned the ball over six times. Washington turned those mistakes into immediate points. Brig Owens, a rookie defensive back for Washington, had the game of a lifetime. He returned a fumble 62 yards for a touchdown and then added a 62-yard interception return for another score. When your defense is outscoring some modern offenses by itself, you're going to have a historic afternoon.

The scoring was relentless. Washington put up:

• 13 points in the first quarter.
• 21 in the second.
• 14 in the third.
• 24 in the fourth.

They never took their foot off the gas. Even in the final seconds, with the game long decided, Washington’s head coach Otto Graham made a choice that still riles up Giants fans today.

Practice Makes... Petty?

With only seven seconds left on the clock, New York’s backup quarterback Tom Kennedy—who was basically shell-shocked at this point—lost track of the downs. He threw the ball out of bounds on fourth down, thinking it was third. Washington took over at the Giants' 23-yard line.

Instead of taking a knee to end the misery, Graham sent out kicker Charlie Gogolak for a field goal.

Why? Graham later claimed he wanted the "practice" because Gogolak had missed two kicks the week before. The kick went through. Those final three points pushed the total from 69 to 72 and cemented the record for the highest scoring NFL game ever. It was the ultimate "rubbing it in" moment.

The Literal Cost of High Scoring

Back in 1966, the NFL didn't have those giant nets behind the goalposts to catch balls after extra points or field goals.

Every time Washington scored—which was ten touchdowns and a field goal—the ball sailed into the stands. The fans kept them. The Redskins reportedly lost 14 footballs that day. At $22.50 a pop, the team "lost" about $315 worth of equipment.

That doesn't sound like much today, but in 1966, that was a decent chunk of change for a Sunday afternoon.

Other Games That Came Close (But No Cigar)

While the 1966 shootout sits on the throne, a few modern games have flirted with the century mark.

On November 28, 2004, the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns combined for 106 points. The Bengals won 58-48. This one was a bit more "modern" in its execution. Carson Palmer threw four touchdowns, and Kelly Holcomb for the Browns threw five. It was a pure shootout where nobody could stop a nosebleed.

Then there’s the famous 2018 Monday night clash between the Los Angeles Rams and the Kansas City Chiefs. That game finished 54-51 (105 total points). It’s widely considered the greatest regular-season game ever played. Unlike the 1966 blowout, this was two heavyweights at the peak of their powers trading haymakers. It remains the only game in NFL history where both teams scored over 50 points.

Here is how the top of the list shakes out:

1. Washington 72, NY Giants 41 (1966) – 113 points
2. Cincinnati 58, Cleveland 48 (2004) – 106 points
3. LA Rams 54, Kansas City 51 (2018) – 105 points
4. San Francisco 63, Brooklyn Dodgers 40 (1948) – 103 points
5. New Orleans 52, NY Giants 49 (2015) – 101 points (tie)
6. Oakland 52, Houston 49 (1963) – 101 points (tie)

Why Don't We See This More Often?

You’d think with the way the rules favor offenses now—roughing the passer calls, defenseless receiver protections, and the emphasis on the deep ball—that 113 points would be broken every other weekend.

But modern football is actually too "efficient" for this.

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In the highest scoring NFL game, a lot of the points came from defensive returns and short fields. Modern coaches are obsessed with clock management. If a team gets up by 30 points today, they start running the ball to get the game over with. They want to avoid injuries. They want to go home.

In 1966, Otto Graham had a grudge, and the Giants' defense basically quit. That combination of spite and total defensive collapse is rare. Even the 2023 Dolphins, when they had a chance to break the single-team scoring record against the Broncos, chose to take a knee rather than kick a field goal for 73 points.

The 113-point record is safe mostly because of "unwritten rules" and the fact that modern defenses, as much as we complain about them, are lightyears ahead of what the 1966 Giants were doing.

Actionable Insights for Football History Buffs

If you want to dive deeper into the anomalies of NFL scoring, there are a few things you should check out to get the full picture of how the game has evolved.

• Watch the highlights: The Pro Football Hall of Fame and NFL Throwback YouTube channels have condensed footage of the 1966 game. Seeing the "practice" field goal at the end puts the saltiness of the era into perspective.
• Compare the "Scorer" brothers: The 1966 game featured two brothers as kickers on opposite sides. Charlie Gogolak (Washington) and Pete Gogolak (Giants). Pete was actually the first soccer-style kicker in pro football history.
• Check the 1940 Championship: While the 1966 game is the highest combined score, the 1940 NFL Championship holds the record for the most points by one team. The Chicago Bears beat Washington 73-0.
• Follow scoring trends: Keep an eye on the "Over/Under" lines in modern betting markets. Whenever you see a total over 54, you’re looking at a game that Vegas thinks has "historic" potential.

The 113-point mark is a relic of a different time—a Sunday where everything that could go wrong for a defense did, and a winning coach decided that "mercy" wasn't in his vocabulary.