Most 4th Quarter Comebacks Since 2008

Most 4th quarter comebacks in NFL history are by players 1. Tom Brady 2. Peyton Manning 3. Ben Roethlisberger and more.

These QBs have established great performance on the field, delivering clutch moments to accomplish a crucial victory for their team. Players like Brady and Manning are multiple Super Bowl winners too. 

One of the best-known comebacks was on Super Bowl LI. Atlanta Falcons led the 4th quarter’s start with a 28-9 lead, but eventually succumbed to QB Brady’s onslaught.

Tom assisted in a TD and 2-point conversion to James White and Danny Amendola respectively. With just 0:57 time remaining, White made a spectacular 1-yard rush that sealed the game to overtime. James’s 2-yard rush in the OT made it one of the best SB ever. 

Here is the list of the top 20 QBs with the most recorded fourth-quarter comebacks in the Regular season:

• Tom Brady – 46
• Peyton Manning – 43
• Ben Roethlisberger – 41
• Matt Ryan – 38
• Drew Brees – 36
• Matthew Stafford – 34
• Johnny Unitas – 34
• Dan Marino – 33
• John Elway – 31
• Philip Rivers – 29
• Fran Tarkenton – 29
• Vinny Testaverde – 29
• Derek Carr – 28
• Brett Favre – 28
• Eli Manning – 27
• Russell Wilson – 27
• Joe Montana – 26
• Andy Dalton – 25
• Warren Moon – 25
• Ryan Tannehill – 25

Who Has The Highest Game Winning Drives?

Most game winning drives in NFL history includes Tony Romo, Carson Palmer, Jay Culter, and Drew Bledsoe.

Only 3 Quarterbacks have registered 50+ drives. Some of the best drives have been featured in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XXIII. 

QB Eli Manning shined in the XLII when the NY Giants faced NE Patriots. The Giants were trailing 14-10 in the fourth quarter with 2:42 at play clock. However, Manning delivered a great 13-yard passing TD to Plxico Burress with only 0:35 time remaining. 

Here is the list of the top 10 game-winning drive NFL players of all time:

• Tom Brady – 58
• Peyton Manning – 54
• Drew Brees – 53
• Ben Roethlisberger – 53
• Dan Marino – 47
• Matt Ryan – 46
• Brett Favre – 43
• Matthew Stafford – 42
• John Elway – 40
• Johnny Unitas – 38

Most game winning drives among active QBs include 1. Matt Ryan 2. Matthew Stafford and 3. Russell Wilson.

Tom Brady held the record until his retirement in early 2023. So in his absence, the active leader falls to former Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Ryan, who has registered an impressive 46 game-winning drives in his career. Ryan is a free agent as of the 2023 season.

Here is the list of all-time active leaders for game-winning drives in NFL history:

• Matt Ryan – 46
• Matthew Stafford – 42
• Russell Wilson – 35
• Derek Carr – 33
• Aaron Rodgers – 31
• Andy Dalton – 29
• Kirk Cousins – 28
• Ryan Tannehill – 26
• Joe Flacco – 25
• Dan Prescott – 19

Cowboys QB Dan Prescott is already in the 20-mark, and 2023 will be his official 8th season in the NFL. One of his famous drives is at the 2018 Wild Card against Seahawks, where they were losing by 14-10. Prescott made a 1-yard rushing TD with 2:08 clock remaining. 

Matthew Stafford has made 34 fourth quarter comebacks in his NFL career. 

Stafford’s first 4QC came in the 2009 season during the regular season matchup against Cleveland Browns. Lions were trailing by 37-31 in the 4Q, and in the last moment with 0:00 play clock remaining, Matthew delivered a 1-yard pass to Brandon Pettigrew for a TD.

Another famous instance of his 4QC is the 26-23 win against Atlanta Falcons in the 2020 season. Falcons led by 22-16 with just remaining 1:04 play clock time. Stafford made a great 11-yard pass to TJ Hockenson at the knick of time (0:00) to complete a TD. 

During his 2021 season for LA Rams, Stafford made a 4QC in the Super Bowl LVI against Cincinnati Bengals too. Matthew’s team trailed by 20-16 at the 4Q beginning.

With 1:25 time remaining, Stafford made a 1-yard passing TD to Cooper Kupp that helped them clinch the SB.

Many QBs like Derek Carr, Josh Allen, and Andy Dalton have registered 4th Quarter Comebacks in their NFL career. 

Derek Carr

Derek Carr has 28 4th quarter comebacks in his NFL career. Carr made his first 4QC in November 2014.

One of his popular 4QC scenarios was the Week 11 match of the Raiders against the Texans. Houston led the 4Q with a 20-13 score, and Carr went on to make an impressive performance with 2 passing touchdowns.

His 75-yard pass to Jamize Olawale came at the 10:44 play clock, which tied the game 20-20. Then, Derek threw another 35-yard ball to Amari Cooper at 4:43, which helped the Raiders bounce back. 

Aaron Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers has registered 21 4th quarter comebacks in his career. His first 4QC came on 14 September 2008. 

One of his famous 4QC happened in the Week 13 of the 2015 season against the Detroit Lions. The Packers were trailing by 20-14 at the end of 3rd quarter, but Rodgers helped to overcome this margin. 

When the play clock was at 3:04, Rodgers made a 17-yard rush himself, which landed in a TD. Then, at the last moment, Aaron made a powerful 61-yard pass to Richard Rodgers that sealed the game in their favor.

Russell Wilson

QB Russell Wilson has registered 27 4th quarter comebacks in his NFL years. 

Wilson established his first 4QC in the 2012 season. That day, Seattle Seahawks were facing the Green Bay Packers for the Week 3 match. The Packers went ahead by 12-7 in the last quarter’s 8:44 time frame. 

However, Russell showed a clutch moment with a 24-yard pass to Golden Tate in the last seconds of the game to win by 14-12. 

Tony Romo

Former Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo made 24 fourth quarter comebacks in his career. 

Romo made his first comeback in the 2006 season against Arizona Cardinals. Similarly, in Week 1 of the 2015 season, Tony displayed another bounce back against NY Giants. The Giants were leading by 16-13 at the end of 3rd. 

Now, at the 4Q, Cowboys made two epic touchdowns that helped them win the game. Tony was involved in both of them. He threw a 1-yard pass to Jason Witten at 5:08. Afterward, with 0:07 on the clock, Romo made an 11-yard pass to Witten again.  

Andrew Luck

Andrew Luck has registered 16 4th quarter comebacks in his NFL years.

Luck made his first in October 2012. He was playing against the Green Bay Packers for the Week 5 schedule. When the play clock became 4:30, Packers made a TD that resulted in a 27-22 lead for them. 

However, Andrew made a spectacular display at the end of the match, i.e. 0:35. luck threw a 4-yard pass to Reggie Wayne for a TD, and then made a 2-point conversion. The final score was 30-27. 

Tim Tebow

Tim Tebow 4th quarter comebacks is 6. Tebow made his first 4QC in December 2012. 

During his first recorded 4QC, Tebow was playing against Houston Texans. With a 23-10 score, the Denver Broncos were trailing by 13 points at the end of 3rd quarter.

Tebow made a 23-yard pass to Correll Buckhalter with 10:55 time remaining. Then, with 3:02 on the play clock, Tim rushed for a 6-yard touchdown himself, making the final score 24-23.