Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

Here are all the teams that led the league in score% Differential from the other thread in their respective seasons:

1941 Bears
1942 Bears
1943 Bears
1944 Eagles
1945 Eagles
1946 Browns
1947 Browns
1948 Eagles
1949 Eagles
1950 Browns
1951 Browns
1952 Lions
1953 Browns
1954 Browns
1955 Browns
1956 Bears
1957 Browns
1958 Colts
1959 Giants
1960 Texans
1961 Oilers
1962 Packers
1963 Colts
1964 Colts
1965 Bears
1966 Cowboys
1967 Colts
1968 Colts
1969 Vikings
1970 Vikings
1971 Colts
1972 Dolphins
1973 Rams
1974 Redskins
1975 Steelers
1976 Steelers
1977 Rams
1978 Cowboys
1979 Steelers
1980 Eagles
1981 Eagles
1982 Jets
1983 Redskins
1984 49ers
1985 Bears
1986 Bears
1987 49ers
1988 Vikings
1989 49ers
1990 Giants
1991 Redskins
1992 49ers
1993 Cowboys
1994 49ers
1995 49ers
1996 Packers
1997 Broncos
1998 Vikings
1999 Rams
2000 Titans
2001 Rams
2002 Eagles
2003 Packers
2004 Patriots
2005 Colts
2006 Patriots
2007 Patriots
2008 Giants
2009 Patriots
2010 Patriots
2011 Packers
2012 Patriots
2013 Seahawks
2014 Seahawks
2015 Seahawks
2016 Patriots
2017 Patriots
2018 Saints
2019 Ravens
2020 Buccaneers
2021 Bills
2022 Bills
2023 Ravens

A few things I notice:

By my count 57 of these teams made it to at least the conference championship game, and nearly all of those who didn’t at least did so within a couple years of landing on top with a similar group of players.

There were a handful of non-playoff teams, all of which are pre-merger. Though the 03 Packers and 15 Seahawks post-merger were both six seeds I believe. 03 Packers in particular were a missed Hail Mary away from missing the playoffs entirely.

All of these teams that are old enough to have a Hall of Famer have one. Until Joe Klecko got in, the 82 Jets were all alone in that regard.

A few top teams with underwhelming components:

The 1968 Colts, 1971 Colts, 1972 Dolphins, 1976 Steelers, 1986 Bears, 1990 Giants, 1995 49ers, and 2002 Eagles all started their backup quarterbacks for a number of games.

86 Bears in particular had one of the lowest passer ratings in the league, and still finished on top.

The 1974 Redskins had one of the worst running games on here. They ran for 1,443 yards on 3.1 yards per carry, but they must’ve had a great run defense because they somehow collectively outran their opponents.

The 2011 Packers had in my opinion the worst defense of the bunch, but having an offense led by Aaron Rodgers in the season where he set the passer rating record spearheaded the way to the top. 03 Packers could also be called an underwhelming defense perhaps.

People sometimes talk about how the 76 Steelers ended on a tear on defense, well I noticed that the 61 Oilers similarly ended on a tear on offense (averaging 41.1 points per game for the rest of the regular season after Wally Lemm replaced Lou Rymkus), and interestingly enough, they scored only ten points in the AFL title game, and turned the ball over seven times in that game.

The Patriots and Browns appear on top the most largely due to their respective dynasties in the 21st century and mid 20th century respectively.

The teams that don’t appear on top even once though are the Raiders, Cardinals, Jaguars, Falcons, Panthers, Bengals, Texans, Chargers, and expansion Browns if you consider them separate.

With all their (Commitment to) "Excellence", you'd think at least a couple of those late-'60s-thru-mid-'80s Raiders teams would have finished atop!

74_75_78_79_ wrote: ↑Wed Sep 04, 2024 4:51 am With all their (Commitment to) "Excellence", you'd think at least a couple of those late-'60s-thru-mid-'80s Raiders teams would have finished atop!

The best teams the Raiders had in a regular season by score% differential is 1967 (a team which had eleven pro bowlers and six first team all pros in the AFL), and finished right behind Baltimore.