Blowouts are a fact of life in any sport. The NFL is all about parity in this era, but every fan understands not every game is going to be competitive -- every fan except those who started watching at the start of wild-card weekend this year, that is.
The NFL's wild-card playoff games continue to deliver in 2026, with each of the first four contests coming down to the wire and featuring go-ahead drives in the fourth quarter.
What fans have witnessed so far isn't the norm. The NFL has already set a new record for fourth quarter lead changes in one postseason, despite so much of the playoffs still ahead.
Here's a look at how these NFL playoffs have made history early on.
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Most 4th quarter lead changes in one postseason
The NFL is highly entertaining more often than not, but these playoffs have taken entertainment to a new level.
The 12 lead changes between the first four games set an all-time playoff record, even with nine games still remaining. That means the first four games averaged three lead changes in the fourth quarter, led by a record-tying four fourth-quarter lead changes in the playoff opener between the Los Angeles Rams and Carolina Panthers and Sunday's contest between the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Three of the first four games featured road teams winning despite trailing in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter, something that didn't happen in any of the previous six seasons. The only one that didn't was the Chicago Bears' win over the Green Bay Packers, which required an 18-point comeback.
Through 4 games of the 2025 #NFLPlayoffs, 3 road teams have won after trailing in the final 3 minutes of the 4th quarter.
— John Todd (@JohnToddNFL) January 12, 2026
Zero road teams did so in any postseason from 2019-2024 combined
Here's a look at how many fourth-quarter lead changes each game included:
| Matchup | 4Q lead changes | Winner |
| Rams vs. Panthers | 4 | Rams, 34-31 |
| Packers vs. Bears | 1 | Bears, 31-27 |
| Bills vs. Jaguars | 4 | Bills, 27-24 |
| 49ers at Eagles | 3 | 49ers, 23-19 |
That the most chaotic finish of the weekend's first four games might have been the game with the fewest fourth-quarter lead changes sums up how dramatic wild-card weekend has been. Rams vs. Panthers and Bills vs. Jaguars both tied playoff records with four fourth-quarter lead changes, while the lead changed hands three times when the defending-champion Philadelphia Eagles fell on Sunday.
None of the first four wild-card weekend games were decided by more than four points.
MORE: How A.J. Brown's drops cost Eagles in loss to 49ers
Is this the wildest NFL playoffs ever?
It might be hard to find a better start to wild-card weekend than this season's, but the 2025-26 playoffs likely have a long way to go to rank among the best in NFL history.
In modern times, the 2021-22 playoffs are considered the greatest ever. While wild-card weekend featured a few blowouts in addition to two games decided in the final minute, divisional weekend featured three games that came down to the final minute and one that went to overtime: a thriller between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs, which ranks among the greatest playoff games ever.
Championship weekend also featured a pair of games decided by three points, including the Cincinnati Bengals' upset of the Chiefs, and the Los Angeles Rams won Super Bowl 56 on a late touchdown drive.
With that in mind, it's going to take some competitive games in the next three rounds for the current NFL playoffs to rival that kind of entertainment. The breathtaking start, however, is undeniable.