Best team in each franchise history

[74_75_78_79_]

The 1958 Colts were pretty good....

I also agree about the Browns. One of Paul Brown's 1950s teams HAS to be #1. Not that '87 squad.

Maybe this goes to show the quality of the article.... or the author(s) does not know pro football history like we do.

1998 Broncos over 1997 WC Broncos.

Shannon Sharpe didn't think so. He thinks that the 1997 team was better.

If this wasn’t since-1960, by all means IMO it’d be ’58 or ’59 (take your pick) for the Colts, and 1948 for the Browns. But since it is since-’60, I’ll go with ’68 for Colts and ’64 for Browns. Best Browns season since?...1986.

1998 best Broncos squad IMO and really no debate. I think they beat Vikings in a hypo-SBXXXIII. 2nd-best Broncos team ever?...’97 if only because they, of course, won-it-all as well whereas ’96 got upset 1st-Rd to Jax.


Best Eagles team since ’60? No, not 2002. It’s simply...1960 itself (over Lombardi/Starr), or 2017 (over Belichick/Brady). Take your pick.

[conace21]

1998 Broncos over 1997 WC Broncos.

Shannon Sharpe didn't think so. He thinks that the 1997 team was better.

The 1997 Broncos do have an argument. They ranked #1 in points and yards on offense. (They were #2 and #3 a year later.) Their defensive rankings were also higher than the 1998 team. But 14-2 vs 12-4 is hard to overcome, Since we're considering regular season only.

[NWebster]

I'd have thought 68 Colts ... and definitely Bears in 42, they outscored their opponents 4 tobe1!

I'd take the 1941 Bears over 1942, without a doubt. Sure, they lost one game, but so did the 1942 team, in the end. And they lost at least a couple of major players after 1941: McAfee for sure, plus Standlee, I think, and maybe one or two others.

I think the Bears' 1941 team might easily be one of the ten best ever, all things considered.

Won't get a huge argument from me on that - those 40's Bears team has just incredible talent.

[74_75_78_79_]

I'd have thought 68 Colts ... and definitely Bears in 42, they outscored their opponents 4 tobe1!

I'd take the 1941 Bears over 1942, without a doubt. Sure, they lost one game, but so did the 1942 team, in the end. And they lost at least a couple of major players after 1941: McAfee for sure, plus Standlee, I think, and maybe one or two others.

I think the Bears' 1941 team might easily be one of the ten best ever, all things considered.

Won't get a huge argument from me on that - those 40's Bears team has just incredible talent.

Placing 'Super Bowl Shuffle' as best-ever Bears team may be right (may be not) but you better think long and hard before making it your final answer. Perhaps '41 is the best! Would love to see those two square off!!

As for my own opinion on some of these 'best-ever' franchise teams (disregarding 'post-'59', making it 'all-time'-period), there are some cases where two of them just so happen to be in the same year. For instance, as I already stated, I think 1948 is the best Browns team. I also think that the best-ever Cardinals team was that very same year as well. This despite Cards actually winning-it-all the year before, whereas they not winning it in '48 such the case with '78 Cowboys given nod over '77 (Cards had to deal with a Philly blizzard, Cowboys with...the '78 Steelers; understandable in either event). Perhaps there are some who may think Broncos & Falcons (and Vikings) for 1998, but I disagree. IMO, the 1980 Falcons (and 1969 Vikings) are 'best-ever' franchise-history-wise.

Another example of - again, in my opinion - two best-teams-ever in a franchise both taking place the same year...the two very teams who partook in SBIV!
And if its strictly since-1960 (ignoring '58/'59 Colts)...participants of SBIII can be another (oh yes, I do respect the heck out of that Walt Michaels squad from after their 0-3 start in '81 thru the following year's 'tournament' semifinals, but 'best-ever' not quite; it's '68, come on! Tuna's '98 installment #2, plain and simple).

[Saban1]

Paul Brown said that his undefeated 1948 AAFC Browns team was his best. He should know. That's good enough for me.

As far as NFL teams, I thought that the 1954 Browns team was as good as any. After a slow start, they jelled and their defense was very tough after that.

1978 for Pittsburgh.

1985 for Chicago Bears.

1986 for Giants.

[7DnBrnc53]

1986 for Giants.

Some may say that, but that is a by-product of what I call the Super Bowl Myth era (a time where good but not great NFC teams would beat up on below average AFC teams in the Super Bowl and get greatness bestowed upon them).

Bill Parcells would also disagree. He said that the 89 team was better. So was the 1990 version. They were more talented and deeper than the 86 team, and beating SF and Buffalo was more impressive than beating Washington (in a windy stadium) and Denver (a one-man band with a coach who was running a 1960's offense in the 80's).

[ChrisBabcock]

1934 should be the choice for the Lions.

[Saban1]

Oops, I forgot about the 1950 Giants team, loaded up with players from the AAFC 1949 Yankees, including Arnie Weinmeister, Tom Landry, Otto Schnellbacher, and Harmon Rowe. The Giants surprised the Cleveland Browns with their new "Umbrella Defense," made possible by their new players from the Yankees. If not for the Giants, Cleveland might have been undefeated in 1950.

[JuggernautJ]

Guys... read the article.

As much as I agree with your many pre-1960 picks by the criterion of the writer they are not eligible.
The post-1960 only and the manner of selection (points differential) invalidates the article in my opinion so I haven't had much to say...

But anyone who would take the 1984 Fins over the undefeated super bowl champions of 1972 is obviously looking at slanted statistics. And I'd like to play against them in a football simulation tournament... for money.

[TanksAndSpartans]

I should be the last one talking about the '70s, but isn't the argument that the '72 team had a weak schedule?

I was a fan of the '84 team and while it was a great personal achievement for one player, it was a one dimensional team and the Super Bowl pretty much set the tone for the team for many years.