Worth the replay?

1. #1

   BearsatCommanders

   NFL· ABCDown to the wire

   B

   64/100
   ▸ Why this grade

   Late tension30/30

   Swings22/25

   Comeback14/20

   Decided late15/15

   Back-and-forth5/10

   Drama 86 × pre-game weight 0.75 (pre-game Watchability 50, estimated) = 64

2. #2

   BillsatFalcons

   NFL· ESPN

   C

   35/100
   ▸ Why this grade

   Late tension22/30

   Swings13/25

   Comeback5/20

   Decided late5/15

   Back-and-forth3/10

   Drama 47 × pre-game weight 0.75 (pre-game Watchability 50, estimated) = 35

Ranked from each game's win probability as it was played (ESPN's for football and basketball; ours, from the goals, for hockey): how in doubt it was near the end, how far the winner came back from, how late it was decided, how big its momentum swings were and how often a team erased a deficit, with a bonus for overtime. That drama is then weighted by how good a matchup it was going in (its pre-game Watchability score), so a thriller between top teams ranks above an equally wild game between minor ones.