Has an NFL game ever ended 20-18?
Yes. NFL has seen a final score of 20-18 9 times. It first happened on October 18, 1936, when Green Bay Packers beat Detroit Lions, and most recently on January 4, 2026, when Cleveland Browns beat Cincinnati Bengals.
That makes 20-18 the 403rd most common final score out of 1,095 that have ever occurred in NFL. One point away, 21-18 has happened 18 times and 20-19 has happened 48 times. At one point the score disappeared for 31 years, between 1936 and 1967.
Every 20-18 in NFL history
| Date | Result | Season | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-04 | Cleveland Browns over Cincinnati Bengals | 2025 | |
| 2022-10-16 | Pittsburgh Steelers over Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2022 | |
| 2016-01-24 | Denver Broncos over New England Patriots | 2015 | Playoff |
| 2012-09-16 | Arizona Cardinals over New England Patriots | 2012 | |
| 1999-01-09 | Atlanta Falcons over San Francisco 49ers | 1998 | Playoff |
| 1998-11-29 | Seattle Seahawks over Tennessee Oilers | 1998 | |
| 1978-09-24 | New Orleans Saints over Cincinnati Bengals | 1978 | |
| 1967-11-12 | Houston Oilers over Denver Broncos | 1967 | |
| 1936-10-18 | Green Bay Packers over Detroit Lions | 1936 |