Posted on 09/22/2014 8:10:32 PM PDT by NKP_Vet
Attention NFL purists, this piece is for you.
The 2014 NFL season is right around the corner. That sentence alone is enough to get the blood pumping of the millions of Americans that live for the NFL — the most popular sport in the country by a landslide. I share that enthusiasm, not only for the NFL, but for its history. And in this instance, for quantifying that history. I believe it to be a shame that MLB has preserved its history so well that its ancient heroes are fondly remembered and its legendary teams revered, while NFL history sits in relative obscurity. This history remains there, even when one of the more discussed topics in NFL circles is debated: Which franchise is truly the greatest in NFL history? Mind you, professional football has no New York Yankees. To answer this, the entirety of the sport’s history must be accounted for.
With that in mind, I set out to definitively answer the elusive ‘greatest’ NFL franchise debate. My goal was to shed some light on NFL history, and subsequently on every NFL franchise. This list isn’t the byproduct of arguments between fans or some run of the mill ranking of franchises based almost entirely on how many Super Bowl trophies each franchise has collected. Anyone can look up those numbers and anyone can form a baseless opinion. I dug much deeper, because that is what the NFL, and its history, deserves.
(Excerpt) Read more at nflspinzone.com ...
Too many pages to click through.
Only 5 pages... you had me thinking it was going to be one of those lists where every item gets one or two or three pages to click through.
All I can say is Giants! #2! Woo-hoo! And I don’t mind one bit coming in second to Green Bay.
I am surprised the Broncos scored so poorly, even thought they are a younger team. Pat Bowlen, the current owner, is the most successful current owner, with 25 winning seasons and 5 losing seasons.
That list plus $3.50 will get you a decent cup o joe.
They not only dominated the '70s,but have save for a few years, been very good.
I'd put Cowboys up there, but I can't help but think of the last decade.
Green Bay I'll always give props to.
When it came down to the Super Bowl, they really set the standard in the '60s.
I KNOW the AFL was a "joke" at the time, but the Jets proved they were ready for the big show.
Bart Starr, Sunday school teacher, MVP of the first two super bowls and proof that nice guys can finish first.
Dittos to that!!! And has there ever been a better Off. backfield than Bart Starr, Paul Hornung and Jimmy Taylor when they were at full throttle? (In a mix of the years 1957-1966 so). They get my vote as the best!!
Woo Hoo We’re Number 17!
BS list. The highest ranked teams aren’t the ones that have won the most..., they’re the ones that have been around the longest. It’s like a union promoting personnel based on seniority....
I have never seen a running back who could run over people like Jimmy Taylor.
Back then the Quarterback called the plays on the field. Third down and inches to go. Bart would drop back and throw a bomb to Boyd Dowler when everyone on the defense was expecting a run up the middle.
Elijah Pitts was another good one. He seemed to have the same cat like style as Hornung.
Yeah, it’s obviously stacked against the younger franchises, but hey, but when you are talking all time greatness that’s a factor.
As a Seahawks fan I’m pretty sure that Curt Warner and Kenny Easley at their prime would hang with the all time greats, but their careers are not in the same league as the more well known icons of other teams. That’s why they aren’t in the HOF or more well known.
The Seattle franchise as a whole ain’t a patch on Da Bears or Green Bay, or even their current great rival, San Francisco. I’m ok with that, and I’m just enjoying the current tides of Seahawks fortune, but who knows what next Sunday will bring?
As a Cheesehead...yes!!!
Meh. Steelers are .515 lifetime, compared to .548 for the Giants and .563 for the packers. They’re 74-79 run is truly impressive; the NFL’s only true dynasty, although I’d hear arguments for the 70-78 Cowboys as well... but they were simply never good until 1970. And 80-92 was a pretty long dry spell, too.
I might be just a tad negative towards them seeing the way they had to politicize things for President Obama.
shouldn’t they be ranked in terms of domestic violence?
In terms of historical greatness, I would put the Packers #1 and my Bears #2. Maybe the Giants #3. And I think those are the three teams with the most championships.
Sure I hate their politics, but still a great franchise.
And WTF with the Lions? They've been around forever.
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