Sometimes, there are teams that are average-mediocre in a season, but had a tendency to pull off a handful of surprise wins against seemingly better teams.
Examples:
1985 Detroit Lions. 7-9 under Darryl Rogers, but they beat FOUR playoff teams at the Silverdome- Dallas, San Francisco, Miami, and the NY Jets
2001 Bengals: a 6-10 record that was encouraging by Bengal standards of that era (pre-Marvin) and some quality wins- SB champ to be New England, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Tennessee.
Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
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Todd Pence
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Re: Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
The 9-7 Raiders in 1979 were 5-2 against playoff teams. Another 9-7 team that year, Cleveland, beat four playoff teams.
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Todd Pence
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Re: Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
In 1969, the second-year expansion Bengals managed to stun both the American League goliaths, Kansas City and Oakland. None of the other seven AFl teams that year could manage a single victory against those two.
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BD Sullivan
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Re: Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
Two poor teams who made the most of their few wins:Todd Pence wrote:The 9-7 Raiders in 1979 were 5-2 against playoff teams. Another 9-7 team that year, Cleveland, beat four playoff teams.
1979 Bengals (4-12) beat two playoff teams: the Steelers and Eagles, and eliminated the Browns in Week 16.
1981 Browns (5-11) were the only team to beat both Super Bowl teams (Bengals and Niners)
Re: Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
That may have had to do with a man by the name of Greg Cook. It's too bad he got hurt.Todd Pence wrote:In 1969, the second-year expansion Bengals managed to stun both the American League goliaths, Kansas City and Oakland. None of the other seven AFl teams that year could manage a single victory against those two.
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74_75_78_79_
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Re: Average teams that pulled off a lot of upsets
Just having responded on the '81 Power Rankings thread, how about the 6-10 Seahawks of that very year? Pretty strange team! Four of their six wins were against winning teams. Two of those a sweep over the Jets (only to get clobbered at home to Giants, 32-0; and Houston, 35-17, the week prior). The other two wins were splitting with Denver & SD (beating Chargers convincingly in their win) yet allow Raiders to sweep them; KC as well who destroyed them in their second match Week #12. They beat the Steelers who were 5-4 going in. In the opener, they were up 21-0 on Cincy 1st Q only to surrender 27-unanswered by end of regulation.