Best pair of games between division opponents in same season

[JWL]

SF/Rams '89, top that!

That MNF game was the best I've ever seen.

But a pair of games that might have been even better?
How about the 1967 Colts/Rams match ups?
Remember, both teams ended the season 11-1-2 and the .917 Colts didn't make the playoffs based on the results of their two games with the Rams.

1967 Season: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/y ... /index.htm

Game 1, a 24-24 tie: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/b ... 150clt.htm

Game 2, last day of the season with the winner advancing to the playoffs:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/b ... 170ram.htm

I hesitate to say it but... Top that?

I would eliminate it from consideration here because the thread starter indicated "best pair of games" as opposed to something else like "most important".

If you combine importance with quality of the games and impact on division title, I think it is tough to top San Francisco vs New Orleans in 1987. The 49ers finished 13-2. The Saints were 12-3. The 49ers won in New Orleans by a score of 24-22. Later in the season the Saints won in San Francisco 26-24.

[Rupert Patrick]

The 49ers and Saints had a pair of great regular season games in 1987,

[JuggernautJ]

"JuggernautJ"

That MNF game was the best I've ever seen.

But a pair of games that might have been even better?
How about the 1967 Colts/Rams match ups?
Remember, both teams ended the season 11-1-2 and the .917 Colts didn't make the playoffs based on the results of their two games with the Rams.

1967 Season: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/y ... /index.htm

Game 1, a 24-24 tie: http://www.pro-football-reference.com/b ... 150clt.htm

Game 2, last day of the season with the winner advancing to the playoffs:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/b ... 170ram.htm

I hesitate to say it but... Top that?

I would eliminate it from consideration here because the thread starter indicated "best pair of games" as opposed to something else like "most important".

If you combine importance with quality of the games and impact on division title, I think it is tough to top San Francisco vs New Orleans in 1987. The 49ers finished 13-2. The Saints were 12-3. The 49ers won in New Orleans by a score of 24-22. Later in the season the Saints won in San Francisco 26-24.

Well, having not actually been at any of the games in question it is hard to tell exactly how "exciting" any particular game might have been.
The pair I mentioned 1) ended in a tie (doesn't get much more dead even than that) and 2) was played under incredibly exciting circumstances (the records and the stakes).
And I think it would be incredibly exciting to see Johnny Unitas try to lead a fourth quarter comeback with the playoffs at stake.

But you may well be correct.
If I saw that game as a youth (probable) I don't remember a thing about it.
I did look at the box scores before posting an opinion and I would still like to see both those games.
But perhaps they were not all I thought them to be.

[JWL]

The Rams-Colts games of '67 definitely deserved mention in this thread for the reasons you stated and certainly the first game was a tie. But, for me, that second game had to be closer in score to merit top billing here.

[MatthewToy]

1986 Steelers vs Browns. Both games made the NFL Game of the Week that season. First game was the first time Cleveland won in Three Rivers Stadium and the second went to overtime.

[CSKreager]

Broncos/Raiders 1993

[Gary Najman]

1978 Falcons-Saints, with Atlanta winning both games by the same score of 20-17 in the last seconds.

[Brian wolf]

Cowboys-Eagles 1980 ... Philly won a brutal game at home 17-14, where the officials blew it for Dallas, then in the rematch for the division title, the Cowboys jumped out 35-10, which had they maintained, would have given them the division on a points tiebreaker but in defeat, Ron Jaworski led a comeback that almost pulled the game out 35-27 but gave them the title, their first Eastern crown since 1960 ...

[Bryan]

The Seahawks and Raiders played two wild games toward the end of the 1988 season. For some reason I remember watching both of these games on TV. I think the second game may have determined the division winner, too.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ ... 280sea.htm

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ ... 180rai.htm

[Brian wolf]

John L Williams for Seattle was one of the most complete fullbacks to ever play the game. Could catch the ball as well as run ... A HOVG case, I believe ...