FTW pored through the record books (kidding; what are books?) and tallied up the number of regular season wins and playoff appearances over the past 10 years to determine which teams have been the most and least successful over the last decade. The best teams won’t be a surprise — hint, hint: (sound of deflation) — but there are plenty other surprises to be found in our list of 1 to 32.
1. New England Patriots — 122 wins (9 playoff appearances, 1st in AFC East)
2. Indianapolis Colts — 110 wins (9, 1st)
3. Pittsburgh Steelers — 101 wins (6, 1st)
4. Green Bay Packers — 98 wins (7, 1st)
5. San Diego Chargers — 97 wins (5, 1st)
There are few surprises in the top four, with the two teams with the two best quarterbacks over this time period leading the way. And just think of how many more wins Tom Brady would have had if he’d figured out that deflation thing a few years ago! The biggest surprise is that Nos. 1 and 2 have as many Super Bowls combined as No. 10 (which you’ll hit farther down the list).
There are few surprises in the top four, with the two teams with the two best quarterbacks over this time period leading the way. And just think of how many more wins Tom Brady would have had if he’d figured out that deflation thing a few years ago! The biggest surprise is that Nos. 1 and 2 have as many Super Bowls combined as No. 10 (which you’ll hit farther down the list).
To veer off topic for a second, we don’t appreciate how ridiculously lucky it is for Indy that Peyton Manning went down in the season before Andrew Luck hit the draft. The Colts could have been stuck in a Sam Bradford, Blake Bortles or EJ Manuel year. Cam Newton, by all accounts one of the top No. 1 QB picks in recent memory, wouldn’t have even turned the team around. But just like the Spurs getting Tim Duncan, everything just fell into place at the right moment and here we are. (Because of the fortuitous down year in Indy, the only teams to finish every year of the decade over .500 were New England and Pittsburgh.)
But while the top four provides no shockers, the top five does. You could have asked 100 football fans, plus Norv Turner, to name the five winningest teams of the past decade and I’d say 99 wouldn’t have included the San Diego Chargers on that list, including Norv. But there they are, just one win behind Green Bay, buoyed by that 14-2 campaign under Marty Schottenheimer, Turner somehow getting them to 13-3 a few years later and a consistency that saw just one losing season in the past decade (a 7-9 year in Turner’s final season).
But while the top four provides no shockers, the top five does. You could have asked 100 football fans, plus Norv Turner, to name the five winningest teams of the past decade and I’d say 99 wouldn’t have included the San Diego Chargers on that list, including Norv. But there they are, just one win behind Green Bay, buoyed by that 14-2 campaign under Marty Schottenheimer, Turner somehow getting them to 13-3 a few years later and a consistency that saw just one losing season in the past decade (a 7-9 year in Turner’s final season).
So there are the Chargers, with as many playoff wins since 2005 (four) as the New York Giants (the aforementioned No. 10 on this list), had in each of their 2007 and 2011 Super Bowl campaigns. The lesson: Regular season success does not beget postseason success. Heck, just ask the Pats, who won a staggering 122 games in the past 10 years but would have gone without a Super Bowl had it not been for the the worst play call in NFL history.
6. Baltimore Ravens — 96 wins (7, 2nd)
6. Baltimore Ravens — 96 wins (7, 2nd)
7. Denver Broncos — 95 wins (5, 2nd)
8. Dallas Cowboys — 93 wins (4, 1st)
9. Seattle Seahawks — 91 wins (7, 1st)
10. New Orleans Saints — 90 wins (5, 1st)
Perhaps even more surprising than the Chargers at No. 5 is Dallas at No. 8. Didn’t they have like 19 years in a row where the Cowboys finished 8-8 under Jason Garrett? Oh, it was just three? Felt like more. But Dallas’s story is a lot like San Diego’s: Consistency. The only time Dallas finished below .500 in that stretch was back in 2010, when Wade Phillips was fired midseason and replaced with current coach Jason Garrett.
Perhaps even more surprising than the Chargers at No. 5 is Dallas at No. 8. Didn’t they have like 19 years in a row where the Cowboys finished 8-8 under Jason Garrett? Oh, it was just three? Felt like more. But Dallas’s story is a lot like San Diego’s: Consistency. The only time Dallas finished below .500 in that stretch was back in 2010, when Wade Phillips was fired midseason and replaced with current coach Jason Garrett.
For a team that had a stretch of 9, 7, 8, 8 and 4 win seasons over the last 10 years, Denver ranks surprisingly high, but that’s what happen when Peyton Manning comes to town. Seattle also had mediocre seasons of 7, 7, 5 and 4 wins, yet actually made the playoffs one of those years, before recent success shot the Seahawks up this list. But it’s the Saints that have the worst single season of any team in top 10, posting a 3-13 record back in 2005, when Aaron Brooks was under center and Drew Brees still had a lightning bolt on his helmet.
10. New York Giants — 90 wins (5, 2nd)
10. New York Giants — 90 wins (5, 2nd)
12. Chicago Bears — 89 wins (3, 2nd)
13. Philadelphia Eagles — 86 wins (5, 3rd)
14. Atlanta Falcons — 85 wins (4, 2nd)
15. Cincinnati Bengals — 84 wins (6, 3rd)
The Giants have the longest playoff drought of any team in the top 15, not having made the playoffs since 2011. But since Tom Coughlin is on the hot seat again this year, expect another turnaround season in Jersey. The Bears have the 12th most wins in the NFL over the past decade but only three playoff appearances to show for it. Philly was surprisingly low, until you remember that the Donovan McNabb/Terrell Owens glory days came before 2005.
The Giants have the longest playoff drought of any team in the top 15, not having made the playoffs since 2011. But since Tom Coughlin is on the hot seat again this year, expect another turnaround season in Jersey. The Bears have the 12th most wins in the NFL over the past decade but only three playoff appearances to show for it. Philly was surprisingly low, until you remember that the Donovan McNabb/Terrell Owens glory days came before 2005.
As for the Bengals, everyone knows all about the four straight playoff appearances (and four straight losses) but the fact that Cincy has made six playoff appearances is a bit of a surprise, which might help explain why Marvin Lewis is the second-longest tenured coach in the NFL. That and the notorious cheapness of the Bengals organization, I guess. (Bill Belichick is the only coach who’s been with his team longer than Lewis.)
15. San Francisco 49ers — 81 wins (3, 2nd)
15. San Francisco 49ers — 81 wins (3, 2nd)
16. Carolina Panthers — 80 wins (4, 3rd)
17. Arizona Cardinals — 76 wins (3, 3rd)
17. Minnesota Vikings — 76 wins (3, 3rd)
19. Tennessee Titans — 73 wins (2, 2nd)
The Titans have been under .500 in five of their last six seasons, which is why it’s so surprising to see them at No. 19. But when you go further back, you remember those odd years when Vince Young led the team to a 10-6 record and then Kerry Collins brought them to 13-3 and it makes more sense. As for the 49ers, even having the second-most wins from 2011-2013 wasn’t enough to get them up higher on this list. And with Jim Harbaugh gone, expect a slow decline.
19. New York Jets — 73 wins (3, 2nd)
19. New York Jets — 73 wins (3, 2nd)
21. Houston Texans — 72 wins (2, 3rd)
22. Miami Dolphins — 70 wins (1, 2nd)
23. Kansas City Chiefs — 68 wins (3, 3rd)
23. Kansas City Chiefs — 68 wins (3, 3rd)
24. Minnesota Vikings –– 67 wins (3, 3rd)
25. Jacksonville Jaguars — 65 wins (2, 4th)
There it is, the surprise of the list: Not only aren’t the Jacksonville Jaguars in last, they’re not evenclose to last. They can thank Byron Leftwich and David Garrard for that and their two playoff appearances, which is still hard to wrap your head around: Jacksonville has been in the playoffs more times in the past 10 years than Miami. Florida, amirite?
26. Washington Redskins — 64 wins (3, 4th)
26. Washington Redskins — 64 wins (3, 4th)
27. Tampa Bay Buccaneers — 63 wins (2, 4th)
28. Buffalo Bills — 63 wins (0, 4th)
29. Detroit Lions — 55 wins (2, 4th)
Man, it only gets worse for fans of the Jets and Redskins. Despite two AFC championship appearances by New York and that brief glimmer of hope in Washington when Robert Griffin III was healthy and the team led Seattle 14-0 in a wild-card game, those two teams are surprisingly, but not shockingly, low — though it is a bit bizarre that the 25th and 26th ranked teams have as many playoff appearances as the No. 12 Bears.
Man, it only gets worse for fans of the Jets and Redskins. Despite two AFC championship appearances by New York and that brief glimmer of hope in Washington when Robert Griffin III was healthy and the team led Seattle 14-0 in a wild-card game, those two teams are surprisingly, but not shockingly, low — though it is a bit bizarre that the 25th and 26th ranked teams have as many playoff appearances as the No. 12 Bears.
Despite a resurgence of late, Detroit still can’t past 29, which is what happens when there’s an 0-16 mark on your resume. Buffalo does surprisingly well for a team with no playoff appearances, sitting just one win behind both those Jets and Reskins.
30. Cleveland Browns — 53 wins (0, 4th)
31. St. Louis Rams — 49 wins (0, 4th)
32. Oakland Raiders — 47 wins (0, 4th)
The less said about these teams, the better. But hey, Johnny Manziel!
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