NFL
What's the record for most penalties in a NFL game?
Seeing those flags can really frustrate coaches, players and fans, especially when it dominates the flow of a game.
You may remember the 2021 Thanksgiving game between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Dallas Cowboys, which saw an excessive number of yellow flags, but it doesn’t come close to the league record. Interestingly, professional football’s highest number of penalties was nearly 72 years before that matchup.
The Cowboys’ heartbreaking 36-33 loss to the Raiders was riddled with infractions, with 14 being called for each team. The 28 penalties for 276 yards set some records, but they were not league-high numbers.
Most penalties: Bears vs Browns 1951
On Nov. 25, 1951, the Cleveland Browns demolished the Chicago Bears 42-21, and the game set two records along the way. The Bears received 16 penalties for 165 yards, while the Browns got 21 for 209.
The combined number of 37 is the record for penalties in a single professional football game, and so was the total of 374 yards.
Most penalized game: Seahawks vs Bucs 1976
However, there is another record worthy of note. The most penalized game in modern NFL history, marked by the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, was held on Oct. 17, 1976, between the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The referees called a total of 39 penalties for 310 yards, but two of the penalties were declined, and two others offset each other. The official tally at the end of the game was 35 penalties- 20 for the Buccaneers and 15 for the Seahawks.
Flag-throwing spree for the Raiders
The Buccaneers were also part of another record-setting game for penalties. On Oct. 30, 2016, the Bucs lost 30-24 in overtime to the Oakland Raiders, who set the record for the most penalties (23 for 200 yards) by one team in a single game.