NFL.com greatest team of all time tournament.

[Headman]

Well I knew this was going to be a stupid waste of time, but seeing that they've crowned the 1976 Raiders as the greatest team of all time has just blown my mind. The Baltimore Ravens from 2000 were #2 which is also retarded. This just proves how stupid fan voting really is.

[DaveViper]

I thought the 2007 New England Patriots where the greatest team ever (18-1)

[Lody]

Patriots-greatest of all time

'nuff said

Close pole

[DaveViper]

Patriots-greatest of all time

'nuff said

Close pole

Your right the Giants suck, :D

[GI FLINT]

nfl network america's game rankings of top super bowl champs/teams.

America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%27s_Game:_The_Super_Bowl_Champions)

[Headman]

I thought the 2007 New England Patriots where the greatest team ever (18-1)

The greatest team ever wouldn't choke in the Superbowl. So no.

[Cobra Terrorist]

The greatest team ever wouldn't choke in the Superbowl. So no.

Hahahaha! That's great, Heady.

...and I'm a Pats fan.


Ok, now the painful memories are coming back...

[drunknmunky]

It would really depend on the format. To me, the 07 Patriots are the greatest team I've ever seen. Yes, they did lose in the Super Bowl. That was their only loss. They also beat the same Giants in the regular season and destroyed nearly every team they played. This team shattered records left and right.
I know Headman wants it to be the 72 Dolphins but I'm glad it's not. It shouldn't be the Raiders either though. But the question I have is are we talking about the greatest team of their time or which team would win head to head? Honestly the game has advanced so much recently, not to mention the players are bigger, faster, stronger and far more talented than they were 20-30 years ago. Seriously the 72 Dolphins couldn't touch any team that has won a ring in the past 10 years.

[Headman]

It would really depend on the format. To me, the 07 Patriots are the greatest team I've ever seen. Yes, they did lose in the Super Bowl. That was their only loss. They also beat the same Giants in the regular season and destroyed nearly every team they played. This team shattered records left and right.
I know Headman wants it to be the 72 Dolphins but I'm glad it's not. It shouldn't be the Raiders either though. But the question I have is are we talking about the greatest team of their time or which team would win head to head? Honestly the game has advanced so much recently, not to mention the players are bigger, faster, stronger and far more talented than they were 20-30 years ago. Seriously the 72 Dolphins couldn't touch any team that has won a ring in the past 10 years.


I could accept it not being the 72 Dolphins. What I cannot accept is a team that wasn't even the 3rd best team of their own decade. The cowboys, Steelers and Dolphins of the 70's were all better than the 76 Raiders. And the runner up with the 2000 Ravens. Yes, they had a great defense but they didn't score a touchdown until what week five? I still can't say the 07 Pats were the best because in the end the 07 Giants were better. I do think the Pats had some of the best teams of all time, but I'd pick a superbowl year if I had to over a year they didn't get the job done. As for the 72 phins not being able to touch current superbowl teams. Yes it's a game of eras, but I disagree. They had two rushers over a thousand yards and a third right under 1,000. They also had a hall of fame QB, a pretty damn good back up, a hall of fame WR and one of the toughest defenses the game has ever seen. The 72 Dolphins shouldn't be written off because of the shorter schedule, because theirs no telling how many games they would have won. The best a team can do is win all their games and that's what they did. And they're the only one's to do that so far, so it's hard to dismiss them.

[drunknmunky]

I could accept it not being the 72 Dolphins. What I cannot accept is a team that wasn't even the 3rd best team of their own decade. The cowboys, Steelers and Dolphins of the 70's were all better than the 76 Raiders. And the runner up with the 2000 Ravens. Yes, they had a great defense but they didn't score a touchdown until what week five? I still can't say the 07 Pats were the best because in the end the 07 Giants were better. I do think the Pats had some of the best teams of all time, but I'd pick a superbowl year if I had to over a year they didn't get the job done.

The thing is a one loss team is still a one loss team. If the Patriots had lost earlier in the year to the Giants but then beat them in the Super Bowl, would they then jump to number 1? It so, why? 18-1 is still 18-1 no matter when they beat and lost to the Giants. The Patriots were 17-0 against the NFL and 1-1 against the Giants.

[bigvig]

The greatest team ever wouldn't choke in the Superbowl. So no.

No shit, right. Goddamm Pats fans.

[MeLikeJinx]

The '07 Patriots were pretty tough, but having a perfect regular season is not that impressive IMO. Sometimes a team will just have a soft schedule that year and get all the tough match-ups at home. I remember one year even the Kansas City chiefs were flirting with a perfect regular season... and they suck most of the time. LOL.

Hmmm... I remember the '98 Broncos being pretty dominant; I think they only lost in the last few games because they were resting people.

[wertdog91]

I thought the 2007 New England Patriots where the greatest team ever (18-1)

Oh please, the Giants made them look stupid in that one. 86 Giants FTW

[drunknmunky]

The '07 Patriots were pretty tough, but having a perfect regular season is not that impressive IMO. Sometimes a team will just have a soft schedule that year and get all the tough match-ups at home. I remember one year even the Kansas City chiefs were flirting with a perfect regular season... and they suck most of the time. LOL.

Hmmm... I remember the '98 Broncos being pretty dominant; I think they only lost in the last few games because they were resting people.

The Patriots schedule was far from soft. Plus they outscored their opponents by an NFL record 315 points. That's nearly 20 points a game they were winning by. They played Philly, Dallas, Indy, San Diego, Pittsburgh, Baltimore plus the Jets twice.

[drunknmunky]

Oh please, the Giants made them look stupid in that one. 86 Giants FTW

Patriots lost the lead in the Super Bowl with less than 40 seconds in the game. It took a miracle catch (that the ref actually admitted to blowing the play dead as a sack while Eli was getting spun around, so the play nearly never happened). So the Giants in no way made them look stupid. But the 86 Giants lost 2 games in the regular season, one of which was to the Cowboys who finished 7-9. Great teams don't lose to shitty teams.

[Headman]

The thing is a one loss team is still a one loss team. If the Patriots had lost earlier in the year to the Giants but then beat them in the Super Bowl, would they then jump to number 1? It so, why? 18-1 is still 18-1 no matter when they beat and lost to the Giants. The Patriots were 17-0 against the NFL and 1-1 against the Giants.

Because the greatest team ever would find a way to win the superbowl wouldn't they? It's not one loss, it's the one game that really matters. The rest of the season is just getting to that moment. But either way, any of the Pats superbowl teams make more sense than the 76 Raiders. That's just dumb. What about the 84 Niners? They stopped Marino during the greatest passing season in NFL history. That is of course before the mess that happened this year.

[drunknmunky]

Because the greatest team ever would find a way to win the superbowl wouldn't they? It's not one loss, it's the one game that really matters. The rest of the season is just getting to that moment.

See I disagree there. If the Seahawks had won the Super Bowl after making the playoffs at 7-9 would you put them ahead of the 07 Patriots? Highly doubtful. It's kind of like when people down Marino for not winning a ring. Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson and Mark Rypen have all won rings but nobody would claim they're better quarterbacks than Marino. The Patriots failed under pressure in one game with 40 seconds left. Marino had tons of chances to win payoff games but didn't. He's still one of the greatest ever. What I'm basically saying is I look at the while body of work rather than just one game. Do we really think that the 02 Bucs are better than the 07 Patriots just because they got a ring?
By the way I'm a Packers fan so I'm voting 96 Packers, 11 Packers, 97 Packers, 66 Packers and 67 Packers as the top 5 teams ever. Completely unbiased :)

[drunknmunky]

. What about the 84 Niners? They stopped Marino during the greatest passing season in NFL history. That is of course before the mess that happened this year.

Drew Brees had an amazing year. Probably because he wanted to score to get his defense on the field as soon as possible so they could start injuring opposing players.

[Headman]

Drew Brees had an amazing year. Probably because he wanted to score to get his defense on the field as soon as possible so they could start injuring opposing players.

At least four other QB's had amazing years, threatening the record. Pass defense is dead. Here's a case were those old 70's and 80's teams would mop the floor with modern teams if they were allowed to put on their big boy pants and play the game like men.

[bigvig]

Yup

[Headman]

See I disagree there. If the Seahawks had won the Super Bowl after making the playoffs at 7-9 would you put them ahead of the 07 Patriots? Highly doubtful. It's kind of like when people down Marino for not winning a ring. Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson and Mark Rypen have all won rings but nobody would claim they're better quarterbacks than Marino. The Patriots failed under pressure in one game with 40 seconds left. Marino had tons of chances to win payoff games but didn't. He's still one of the greatest ever. What I'm basically saying is I look at the while body of work rather than just one game. Do we really think that the 02 Bucs are better than the 07 Patriots just because they got a ring?
By the way I'm a Packers fan so I'm voting 96 Packers, 11 Packers, 97 Packers, 66 Packers and 67 Packers as the top 5 teams ever. Completely unbiased :)


I see what you're saying, but here's my point. Put any other team from the "Greatest of all time" list and you don't think at least a few of them would have been able to do what the Giants did? I'll agree that the Pats dynasty is one of the greatest ever, but I don't believe you can be considered as the best team if you didn't win the superbowl. IMO you need to win the superbowl to even enter the discussion. Packers btw have a few teams that should have gotten more consideration than the 76 Raiders. I still can't get over that result.

[bigvig]

I dont take much stock in stats. They dont mean shit, literally. Just a way to inflate those millionaire egomaniacs some more. You play the game to win the championship. If youre the leader of your team and you cant take them all the way, I dont give a shit about your regular season stats. You play the regular season games to win the championship. Nothing more, nothing less.

[solid.wii]

Patriots lost the lead in the Super Bowl with less than 40 seconds in the game. It took a miracle catch (that the ref actually admitted to blowing the play dead as a sack while Eli was getting spun around, so the play nearly never happened). So the Giants in no way made them look stupid. But the 86 Giants lost 2 games in the regular season, one of which was to the Cowboys who finished 7-9. Great teams don't lose to shitty teams.

The Pats also had the pressure from the Spygate scandal to prove to the other teams that they weren't cheaters. The O7 Pats are the greatest team to never win a Super Bowl. They will always have that "yeah but..." associated with them.

Its also not fair to compare margin of victory because most teams in the past didn't run up the score like the Pats did.

[Headman]

The Pats also had the pressure from the Spygate scandal to prove to the other teams that they weren't cheaters. The O7 Pats are the greatest team to never win a Super Bowl. They will always have that "yeah but..." associated with them.

Its also not fair to compare margin of victory because most teams in the past didn't run up the score like the Pats did.

I would agree with this. Ultimately they didn't get the job done and that matters a lot when talking about the best of all time.

[drunknmunky]

At least four other QB's had amazing years, threatening the record. Pass defense is dead. Here's a case were those old 70's and 80's teams would mop the floor with modern teams if they were allowed to put on their big boy pants and play the game like men.

Players aren't allowed to play defense like they did back then. It's hard for players like Ray Lewis to play like he did even 5 years ago. Players like Ronnie Lott and Lawrence Taylor wouldn't last 1 drive without getting a personal foul. The quarterbacks are exploiting these weaknesses before the defense can find ways to play aggressively but stay within the rules.

I would agree with this. Ultimately they didn't get the job done and that matters a lot when talking about the best of all time.

So you're agreeing that Marino isn't one of the greatest ever?

[MeLikeJinx]

The Pats also had the pressure from the Spygate scandal to prove to the other teams that they weren't cheaters.
I agree... Patriots had a chip on their shoulder that year so they chased after perfection and maybe scored some extra points here and there. Without that extra motivation they might have rested Brady and the starters in the final two or three games and maybe even suffered a loss... which would have greatly diminished their place in history as one of the best teams ever.

Players like Ronnie Lott and Lawrence Taylor wouldn't last 1 drive without getting a personal foul.
So true. LOL. Ronnie Lott was my fav.

So you're agreeing that Marino isn't one of the greatest ever?
IMHO... to be considered the greatest team ever you have to have won the Championship, but to be considered one of the greatest QB's ever you don't need a ring since Football is such a team sport and 1 person can't win it all himself.

IMHO... John Elway is the greatest QB ever even though Montana has more rings. Jim Kelly and Dan Marino are also up there without rings. But like Terry Bradshaw has 4 rings, and I don't even consider him on the list at all. LOL.

[Headman]

Players aren't allowed to play defense like they did back then. It's hard for players like Ray Lewis to play like he did even 5 years ago. Players like Ronnie Lott and Lawrence Taylor wouldn't last 1 drive without getting a personal foul. The quarterbacks are exploiting these weaknesses before the defense can find ways to play aggressively but stay within the rules.



So you're agreeing that Marino isn't one of the greatest ever?


No, not at all. Marino is one of the best ever. But the NFL is a team sport. He couldn't do it alone. The best team however should be able to win the superbowl, right?

[drunknmunky]

No, not at all. Marino is one of the best ever. But the NFL is a team sport. He couldn't do it alone. The best team however should be able to win the superbowl, right?

I agree. With Marino I look at the body of work. He has a ton of records and carried that team on his back. The Dolphins are one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to personnel. Marino really never had much talent around him. Now look at the Dolphins. They still refuse to put anyone on that team.
The way I look at it is the 07 Patriots didn't win the Super Bowl but still deserve to be in the talks of greatest ever. Consider them getting in as a Wild Card into the tournament. Think of it this way- the Giants didn't even win their division yet they went on to beat the undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl. I believe the 07 Patriots could take on any team ever and win. It would be fun to see them play a nasty defense like the 85 Bears or 2000 Ravens. It would also be fun to watch them play a team like the 99-2000 Rams just to watch the scoreboard attempt to keep up.
In the end there really is no way of knowing who would win. There are just too many variables. Wait, what the hell am I saying? I'm going to turn on Madden and settle this once and for all!

[DaveViper]

Oh please, the Giants made them look stupid in that one. 86 Giants FTW

I am not actually a pats fan guys, lol. That's why I put a plug in for the Giants in after Lody posted that the 07 pats are the greatest team ever. Haha, my sarcasm backfired on me once again.

So are we talking total stats and does losing the super bowl void your perfect season, and for being a contender for greatest team ever. What the Pats did during the regular 2007 season was impressive but Imo I think it was all for nothing since they didn't win the Superbowl. Its like fucking the prom queen either you did or you didn't. Good question Headman.

[GI FLINT]

Patriots lost the lead in the Super Bowl with less than 40 seconds in the game. It took a miracle catch (that the ref actually admitted to blowing the play dead as a sack while Eli was getting spun around, so the play nearly never happened). So the Giants in no way made them look stupid. But the 86 Giants lost 2 games in the regular season, one of which was to the Cowboys who finished 7-9. Great teams don't lose to shitty teams.

86 cowboys were 6-2 when the giants broke qb danny white's wrist/ arm in the rematch the giants won by 3. cowboys only won one more game all year. not exactly shitty.

[GI FLINT]

See I disagree there. If the Seahawks had won the Super Bowl after making the playoffs at 7-9 would you put them ahead of the 07 Patriots? Highly doubtful. It's kind of like when people down Marino for not winning a ring. Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson and Mark Rypen have all won rings but nobody would claim they're better quarterbacks than Marino. The Patriots failed under pressure in one game with 40 seconds left. Marino had tons of chances to win payoff games but didn't. He's still one of the greatest ever. What I'm basically saying is I look at the while body of work rather than just one game. Do we really think that the 02 Bucs are better than the 07 Patriots just because they got a ring?
By the way I'm a Packers fan so I'm voting 96 Packers, 11 Packers, 97 Packers, 66 Packers and 67 Packers as the top 5 teams ever. Completely unbiased :)

i think the 92 or 93 49ers are better than any team the last decade, and they didn't get a ring (got in in 94).

but today you don't have to be a great team, you just have to be hot at the right time.

07 pats started out hot, cooled off towards the end, then eventually lost. not great.