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NFL

What are the most points scored in a half in an NFL game?

The Minnesota Vikings allowed the 4-8-1 Indianapolis Colts to score 33 unanswered points in the first half. Despite the huge lead, the Colts lost after alloweing the Vikings to score 36 points in the second half.

Joseph McMahon
Joseph McMahon
jmcmahonztown
Update:
The Minnesota Vikings allowed the 4-8-1 Indianapolis Colts to score 33 unanswered points in the first half. Despite the huge lead, the Colts allowed the Vikings to score 36 points in the second half.
Stephen MaturenGetty

The Vikings disastrous first half against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday was bad, but it wasn’t record-breaking. The 10-3 Vikings were playing at home and were shut out 33-0 by the Indianapolis Colts. Giving up 33 points in the first half is ugly, but it’s not as bad as giving up 36, which happened in the same game! 36 points in a half is a lot, but it’s not the worst performance in modern NFL history.

Minnesota went on to win in overtime and the game will go down in history books as the greatest comeback ever in NFL history. Indianapolis fans would probably consider it the greatest ever choke by their team after amassing such a huge lead at halftime.

Record setting first half performances

On September 8, 2019 the Baltimore Ravens scored 42 points against the Miami Dolphins in the first half and then went on to win 59-10. The Ravens were led by second-year QB Lamar Jackson who passed for 210 yards and four touchdowns in the first half. In 2019 The Dolphins managed to score 10 points in the second quarter, but were then shut out in the third and fourth quarters against John Harbaugh’s team.

But the record goes to the New England Patriots, who beat the Tennessee Titans 59-0 on Oct. 18, 2009. By halftime the Patriots, led by Tom Brady, had scored 45 points! New England didn’t score on its first drive that snowy day, but then scored on their next nine possessions. The score was 35-0 after 15 minutes!

Previous NFL first half scoring record

Back in 1948 The Chicago Cardinals also scored 42 points against the New York Giants in the first half, which stood as the National Football League record for over 60 years.