# NFL Stats Scraper (`parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper`) Actor

Scrapes NFL player and team statistics from NFL.com by season, stat type, and optional name query. Returns each stat line as a flat row for passing, rushing, receiving, or defensive categories.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Sports, SEO tools
- **Features:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 14 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: 5.00 out of 5 stars

## Pricing

from $19.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

[![ParseForge](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ParseForge/apify-assets/main/banner-v4.webp)](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp)

### NFL Stats Scraper

**Scrape NFL player and team stats from NFL.com for any season since 1990.** Get passing, rushing, receiving, and defensive numbers in one flat table. No API key or login. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

NFL.com has no public stats API, and building your own scraper means handling dynamic pages and changing layouts. This Actor reads the official stats pages directly, filtered by season, stat type, and player or team name, and returns each record in a fixed schema. It works for every season from 1990 through 2030.

| Who uses it | What they scrape NFL.com for |
|---|---|
| Fantasy football analysts | Pull weekly passing, rushing, and receiving numbers to rank players and spot waiver-wire pickups. |
| Sports journalists | Gather season-long stats for articles, game previews, and player profiles without manual copying. |
| Data scientists | Build historical datasets for modeling player performance, team trends, or betting markets. |
| Coaches and scouts | Compare defensive stats across teams to identify weaknesses and game-plan advantages. |

### What it does

This Actor collects NFL player and team statistics from NFL.com by season, stat type, and optional name query, and returns each stat line as a flat row.

- 🏈 **Four stat types:** passing, rushing, receiving, and defensive, each with its own set of columns.
- 🔍 **Name search:** filter by team or player name to get only the records you need.
- 📅 **Season range:** any season from 1990 to 2030, so you can build historical comparisons.
- 📊 **Flat output:** every stat line is one row, ready for spreadsheets or databases.
- ⚡ **Fast and simple:** no login, no API key, no rate-limit headaches.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

### What you can do with NFL.com data

**🏆 Fantasy football rankings.**

A fantasy analyst runs the Actor for the current season, passing stats, and no name filter to get every quarterback's numbers, then sorts by touchdowns and yards to set weekly rankings.

**📰 Game preview articles.**

A sports writer pulls defensive stats for two upcoming opponents and compares sacks and interceptions to highlight the key matchup in a preview piece.

**📈 Historical trend analysis.**

A data scientist collects rushing stats for every season from 2000 to 2024 and builds a regression model to see how running back production has changed over time.

**🎯 Scouting reports.**

A college scout filters receiving stats for a specific player across multiple seasons to evaluate consistency and route-running impact before a draft decision.

### Why choose this scraper

|  | What you get |
|---|---|
| **No API key** | NFL.com does not offer a public stats API, so this Actor scrapes the pages directly. |
| **Historical depth** | Seasons back to 1990 let you analyze long-term trends and career arcs. |
| **Clean schema** | Every record has the same fields, so you can merge seasons without cleaning. |
| **Flexible filtering** | Combine season, stat type, and name to get exactly the slice you need. |

### How it compares

No other Store actor targets NFL.com the same way, so the honest comparison is with the alternatives teams actually weigh.

| | NFL Stats Scraper | Build it in-house | By hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setup | Run it now, zero config | Days of engineering | None, but hours per pull |
| When NFL.com changes | Maintained for you | You fix it | You re-learn the page |
| Proxies, retries, anti-bot | Built in | Your problem | Browser only |
| Output | Fixed JSON schema, CSV/Excel export | Whatever you build | Copy-paste |
| Cost | Pay per result | Engineering time | Analyst hours |

### Configure the run

Set the season, choose a stat type, and optionally enter a team or player name. The Actor reads the matching NFL.com stats pages and returns up to the number of records you specify. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10
}
```

A larger pull:

```json
{
  "maxItems": 200
}
```

### Pricing

Pay-per-result: **$0.021 per result** collected. You pay only for the results written to your dataset.

| Results collected | Approximate cost |
|---|---|
| 100 results | $2.10 |
| 1,000 results | $21.00 |
| 10,000 results | $210.00 |

New Apify accounts start with $5 in free credit.

### Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. [Upgrade your Apify plan](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

### Run it

1. [Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp).
2. Open the [NFL Stats Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper?fpr=vmoqkp).
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click **Start**.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the **Dataset** tab.

Run it programmatically through the [Apify API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2) (`run-sync-get-dataset-items`) or the [ApifyClient](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js) for JavaScript and Python.

### Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to NFL.com through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

```bash
claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper"
```

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

### Troubleshooting

**Why am I getting no results?**

First, verify the season is between 1990 and 2030. Then check that the stat type is valid and the name query is spelled correctly. If you set a very low max records, increase it.

**The run takes too long or times out.**

Reduce the maximum number of records or narrow your filters. Scraping all players for a season can be large, so try a specific team or player name.

**Some fields are empty in the output.**

Not every stat applies to every player or team. For example, a defensive player may not have passing yards. Empty fields mean the stat was not recorded for that record.

**I get an error about invalid input.**

Check that the season is an integer between 1990 and 2030, the stat type is one of passing, rushing, receiving, or defensive, and max records is at least 1.

### FAQ

| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What stats can I scrape? | You can scrape passing, rushing, receiving, and defensive stats. Each stat type returns different columns, such as yards, touchdowns, interceptions, sacks, and tackles. |
| How far back does the data go? | The Actor supports seasons from 1990 to 2030. You can set any season in that range in the input. |
| Can I filter by a specific player or team? | Yes, use the 'Team or player name' field to enter a keyword. The Actor will return only records that match that name. |
| Do I need an API key or login? | No. The Actor scrapes the public NFL.com stats pages directly, so no authentication is required. |
| What format is the output? | The Actor returns a flat dataset where each stat line is one row. You can export it to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML from the Apify platform. |
| How many records can I get in one run? | You can set the maximum number of records with the 'Maximum stats records' field, up to 1,000,000 per run. |
| Does this include team stats or only player stats? | The Actor returns both player and team stats depending on the stat type and filters. For example, defensive stats often include team-level totals. |
| Can I scrape multiple seasons at once? | Each run handles one season. To get multiple seasons, run the Actor multiple times with different season inputs, or use Apify's scheduler to automate it. |
| Is the data updated in real time? | The Actor scrapes the current NFL.com pages, so it reflects the latest published stats. For live in-game data, you would need a different source. |
| What if I get no results? | Check your filters. Make sure the season is within 1990-2030, the stat type is correct, and the name query matches a real player or team. Also try increasing the max records. |

### Related actors

Browse the full [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge?fpr=vmoqkp) for more scrapers.

🆘 **Need help?** Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

⚠️ **Disclaimer.** This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by NFL Enterprises LLC. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.

# Actor input Schema

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

How many stats records to collect per run.

## `query` (type: `string`):

Keyword search

## `statType` (type: `string`):

Stat Type

## `season` (type: `integer`):

Season

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxItems": 10,
  "statType": "passing",
  "season": 2024
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxItems": 10
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "maxItems": 10 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxItems": 10
}' |
apify call parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,parseforge/nfl-stats-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/tWQkYu0xjY6DvnFfJ/builds/HEZoiD4bHDyJFYsv3/openapi.json