American football is arguably the most followed sport in the United States and the acronym NFL comes in when the game is to be played competitively in a professional manner.
The NFL is known as the National Football League and teams come under this umbrella to play American football professionally at the highest level.
The NFL has its share of games in a season and one question that remains despite the popularity of the sport is how long an NFL game lasts. Typically, NFL games last for about 60 minutes and these minutes are divided into 15-minute quarters.
Those asking; How long is a football quarter? Well, a football quarter lasts for 15 minutes. However, these quarters can be interrupted during a game for several reasons and this is a norm in the NFL. \
Many stoppages occur during a game of American Football and more light will be thrown on them as you continue reading.
How Long Is An NFL Game?
Based on information from many keen observers of the sport, an NFL game could last for close to 3 hours. However, when you are a fan of the sport, you’ll find out that the action during these hours may just be between 11 to 15 minutes of play.
Why Are American Football Games Lengthy?
The game clock stops running during an NFL football game for due to many reasons.
There are many factors responsible for the stop of the game clock during an American Football game and we’ll be mentioning some below.
A commercial break that precedes the kickoff by any of the teams
An incomplete pass from a quarterback to a teammate.
If a player runs out of bounds with the ball.
If an injury occurs.
When a team commits a penalty
The two-minute warning
A team purposely choosing not to snap the ball till the last n of the game because they are winning
What Increases the Time for Playoff / Superbowl Games?
It is no more news that playoffs such as the Superbowl result in an increase in the duration of a game and this is not the case with regular-season games. This is mostly due to commercials, as well as the increased halftime show during the Super Bowl.
What Is The Longest Ever Game in the NFL?
The longest American Football Game was between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins in 1971.
The game lasted for 82 minutes before a winner could emerge. The Dolphins eventually emerged victoriously in a game that lasted for seven hours and eight minutes.
What are some of the ways the NFL is speeding up the game?
Fans of the NFL have been proferring suggestions over the years on how to speed up an American Football game at the highest level.
However, we wait to see if any suggestions from dedicated fans of the game would be adopted any time soon or in the future. Find some of these suggestions from fans on how to speed up NFL games below:
Do away with the 2-minute warnings
Speed up instant replays through reviews
Reduce the number of commercials between games.
Limit the challenges and timeouts for teams during a game.
Conclusion – How Long Are NFL Games?
The National Football League also known as the NFL is the name given to the league in which teams compete to play professional American football at the highest level in the United States.
Speaking about the length of NFL games, an NFL game can last up to three hours. There are numerous factors that can cause the game clock to stop during an NFL football game and we’ve noted some of them in this article.
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins played the longest American Football Game. The game lasted for a whopping 82 minutes before a winner could be determined.
Many factors add to the length of an NFL game. One is the commercials and the expanded halftime show during the Super Bowl.
