Ranking the Biggest NFL Rivalries in each Division in 2025

There’s only one thing better than watching your favorite NFL team win: watching your least favorite NFL team lose. There have been some truly great NFL rivalries that have stood the test of time, and some new ones have sparked as well. So here are the 8 biggest NFL rivalries in Each Division in 2025:

NFC South: Falcons vs. Saints

All Time Series: 56-56

Falcons vs. Saints is as intense as it gets when it comes to NFL rivalries, as no two professional sports teams in the Southeast hate each other more than these two teams. With both teams sitting at a dead-even 56-56 record against each other, every Falcons vs. Saints game is critical. 6 of the last nine of those games were decided by one score, as most of these games are decided by a few crucial plays in the fourth quarter.

During the 2010s, it was Drew Brees vs. Matt Ryan playing shootout games to decide the division. And in the 2020s, it’s been two mediocre teams still deciding the division. In the final game of the 2023 season, the Saints faked a kneel to score an extra touchdown while already leading 41-17, and it feels like the Saints would not have done that to any other team.

NFC East: Eagles vs. Cowboys

All-Time Series: 74-58 Cowboys

Cowboys vs. Eagles is another old rivalry that has remained strong in recent years. While these teams are not geographically close, the divisional aspect and history have been the main glue in keeping this rivalry together. And then add in the fact that Cowboys vs. Eagles games have usually decided the NFC East division champion, and you get one of the best rivalries in the NFL.

In the past 20 years, this rivalry has seen Terrell Owens switch sides, eighteen one-score games, a tight 22-20 margin record in favor of Dallas, and even former Eagles kicker David Akers roasting the Cowboys at the 2018 draft.

NFC West: Seahawks vs. 49ers

All Time Series: 31-23 Seahawks

The NFC West hasn’t had many great rivalries, but 49ers vs. Seahawks was easily one of the NFL’s best during its peak. However, there’s more to this rivalry than just 49ers vs. Seahawks; it was also Pete Carroll vs. Jim Harbaugh. The two head coaches began hating each other in college, and they brought that rivalry with them to the NFL During the early 2010s, Pete Carroll’s Seahawks and Harbaugh’s 49ers were constantly competing for the division, including countless insults or petty postgame handshakes between the two coaches.

In 2013, the rivalry reached its climax, as the Seahawks and 49ers faced each other in the NFC Championship, a winner-take-all game to go to the Super Bowl. And unsurprisingly, it came down to the final play. A last-second pass from 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick to Michael Crabtree was tipped and intercepted by Seahawks corner Richard Sherman. Sherman then produced one of the most iconic postgame interviews: “Well, I’m the best corner in the game. When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree, that’s the result you’re gonna get!”

NFC North: Packers vs. Bears

All Time Series: 108-96-6 Packers

The undisputed best NFL rivalry of all time is unsurprisingly still intense today. Chicago won their first game against the Packers after losing ten straight to them in 2024, with a 24-22 win. Through over nearly 100 years of this rivalry, the fights have not stopped, the trash talk has not stopped, and the hate has not stopped. The Packers’ 20-point fourth-quarter comeback, “I Still Own You!”, and Khalil Mack imitating Aaron Rodgers’s belt celebration are some of the most recent notable moments in this rivalry.

However, the young QBs Jordan Love and Caleb Williams will be the face of this rivalry for the next decade, and they may give us some memorable moments when they play each other. The first two matchups from Jordan Love vs. Caleb Williams in 2024 did not disappoint, with both games being decided on the final play of regulation.

AFC East: Patriots vs. Jets

All Time Series: 75-56-1 Patriots

Entertaining on-field moments, sideline switches, scandals, and controversies, the Patriots vs. Jets rivalry had all the necessary ingredients for a heated, longstanding NFL divisional rivalry. Bill Parcells, Darrelle Revis, Curtis Martin, and Pete Carroll all played or coached for the Patriots and the Jets, and of course Bill Belichick, who resigned from head coaching the Jets less than 24 hours after he was hired.

Just one year later, Jets’ linebacker Mo Lewis delivered a hit on Drew Bledsoe that knocked him out and brought Tom Brady into the game, who proceeded to post a 31-8 record against Gang Green. Seven years later, the spygate scandal added more fuel to the fire when a former Belichick assistant, Eric Mangini, accused the Patriots of using a camera to record defensive signals. Belichick was fined $500,000, the Patriots were fined $250,000, and they surrendered a 1st-round draft pick as a result.

AFC South: Texans vs. Colts

All-Time Series: 33-13-1 Colts

The AFC South is only 23 years old, so it still might take some time for a truly notable rivalry to develop. However, Texans vs. Colts could be one of the league’s biggest rivalries over the next five years. Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck routinely beat the Texans for over 15 years, but the rivalry has gotten much morecompetitive as of late.

The Texans are once again a playoff contender, and the Colts have been one of their biggest competitors in recent years. In 2023, the two teams clashed in a winner-take-all season finale game with a playoff berth on the line, ending 23-19 in Houston’s favor after a 4th-down drop by Colts’ running back Tyler Goodson. Four of the last five Texans-Colts games were decided by a single score, many of which had playoff implications, and that trend should continue in 2025.

AFC West: Raiders vs. Chiefs

All Time Series: 75-55-2 Chiefs

Raiders vs. Chiefs is undoubtedly one of the most bitter divisional rivalries in NFL history. Although the rivalry has been a little one-sided in recent years, that doesn’t erase the history behind it, and there have still been some memorable moments in the past 5 years.

The main inciting incident that sparked this rivalry was Raiders’ defender Ben Davidson putting a late helmet hit on Chiefs’ quarterback Len Dawson after he had ran for a game-sealing first down. Davidson’s cheap shot caused a brawl between the two teams, which caused personal foul penalties on both teams. The penalties offset, thus Kansas City had to replay the 3rd down play. The Chiefs did not convert, and the Raiders then tied the game and won in overtime. Davidson’s hit was legal for some reason, causing the NFL to make a rule that penalized late hits on quarterbacks.

More recently, the Raiders had the bright idea of having a team meeting on the Chiefs’ logo during the pregame of a 2021 game. It’s as if they learned nothing from previous instances of teams prancing on their opponents’ logos. And, unsurprisingly, the Chiefs scored a fumble return touchdown on the game’s first play. The 48-6 final score in favor of Kansas City shows that there is still beef with these two teams.

AFC North: Ravens vs. Steelers

All time Series: 36-27 Steelers

Similar to the Chiefs vs. Bills, the Ravens playing the Steelers is always must-see TV. Although the Ravens have generally been the better team over the years, Pittsburgh has won nine of its last ten matchups with Baltimore, and every one of those nine games was decided by a single score.

The Steelers have averaged 17 points per game during their last seven games against Baltimore, while the Ravens have averaged just 13.5, making this the most defensive and low-scoring rivalry in the NFL. There just aren’t any teams in the NFL that hate each other more than the Steelers and Ravens.