The Divisional Round of the 2025 NFL Playoffs features games with unusually high point spreads. Of the four games scheduled to take place this weekend, three of them have betting margins of 6 or more points, including a 9.5-point spread for the game between the Lions and Commanders. But do they come anywhere close to the largest point spreads in Divisional Round history?
The Largest Point Spreads In NFL Divisional Round History
The second round of the postseason generally features longer odds than most, mostly due to one obvious factor. When a team that finished at the top of their conference is awarded a bye week for Wild Card Weekend, they sometimes have the pleasure of playing against a team that pulled off an upset the week before. That team is typically drained from their efforts, and often limp into the second round and are given little chance to take down the more dominant team. This historically results in some of the highest point spreads of any round of the postseason.
Here are the three largest spreads that we have seen in the history of the NFL Divisional Round:
1. January 7th, 1995 – 49ers (-17.5) over Bears
Final: 49ers 44, Bears 15
The 49ers were dominant in 1994. Led by Steve Young and Jerry Rice and coached by George Seifert, San Francisco posted an NFL-best record of 13-3 during the regular season. They were listed as the favorites to win the Super Bowl before the season even started, and entered the playoffs as the team to beat, both in the NFC and overall. They had suffered back-to-back NFC Championship losses in consecutive seasons leading up to ‘94, and were out to avenge those disappointments during the playoffs in January 1995.
The Bears were one of the teams standing in their way. Chicago snuck into the playoffs thanks to their 9-7 record, but lacked the talent to be considered one of the championship contenders that year. Dave Wannstedt was the coach, and the team alternated between Erik Kramer and Steve Walsh at the quarterback position. They pulled off an upset during Wild Card Weekend in which they defeated the Vikings after being 6-point underdogs, but their reward was a matchup in San Francisco.
The talent disparity between the two sides showed up in the point spread, and eventually on the field. The 49ers entered the game listed as 17.5 point favorites, making up the biggest point spread that we have seen in the history of the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs. They ended up covering, as well, winning 44-15 in a rout after their bye week. San Francisco scored 38+ points in each of their playoff games that year, including a 49-26 demolition of the San Diego Chargers in the Super Bowl.
2. January 10th, 1999 – Vikings (-16.5) over Cardinals
Final: Vikings 41, Cardinals 21
It looked as though the Minnesota Vikings were headed for their first Super Bowl appearance since 1976. They finished with an NFL best 15-1 record in 1998, their only loss coming by a three point margin, and had the best offense in the league behind Randall Cunningham, Randy Moss, and Chris Carter. For their first postseason game that year, they were set to meet with the Arizona Cardinals, and the game featured the second-largest spread of any second round game ever.
Arizona was led by second-year quarterback Jake Plummer, and were the 6th and final seed in the NFC after posting a 9-7 regular season record. They were able to pull off an upset of the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card Round after being listed as 7-point underdogs, and headed into a game against Minnesota that no one really gave them a chance to win. The Vikings were listed as 16.5 point favorites, and were able to cover the large spread thanks to a dominant performance. A 24-7 halftime lead turned into a 41-21 victory for Minnesota, and they would easily advance to the NFC Championship Game. They lost that game to the Falcons despite being listed as 11-point favorites.
3. January 14th, 2017 – Patriots (-16) over Texans
Final: Patriots 34, Texans 16
The most recent example of a 16+ point spread in the Divisional Round happened during the 2016 NFL season. Tom Brady and the Patriots were at the peak of their powers that year, finishing the regular season with a 14-2 record and were obvious favorites to make a Super Bowl appearance. They were ranked in the top-10 in both offense and defense, and had held their last three regular season opponents to a total of 20 points.
Their first postseason meeting was against the Houston Texans, who snuck into the playoffs after starting the regular season with a 6-6 record. But they won three of their final four, and got past the Oakland Raiders in the first round, who were without their starting quarterback. It proved to be a lopsided affair, both in the point spread and the final result. The Patriots entered as 16-point favorites for the Divisional Round matchup, and wound up winning by an 18-point margin.
