NFL's Most Influential Teams

[Shipley]

The February edition of Sports Illustrated arrived today, and one of the articles was a list of the 50 most influential NFL teams (single season). I thought the group might be interested in hearing their top 10:

10) 1961 Green Bay Packers
9) 2001 New England Patriots
8) 1946 Los Angeles Rams
7) 1974 Pittsburgh Steelers
6) 1981 San Francisco 49ers
5) 1985 Chicago Bears
4) 1950 Cleveland Browns
3) 1972 Miami Dolphins
2) 1958 Baltimore Colts
1) 1968 New York Jets

[Cali_Eagle]

Not a Bears fan but I could see 1932 Bears and 1940 Bears on that list. 1925 Pottsville Maroons too. Probably more if I think about it a little more.

[JeffreyMiller]

The 1940 Bears, popularizing the Modern T in the NFL, don't make the list. Come on, man!

No wonder Sports Illustrated is dying ...

[JuggernautJ]

Wouldn't it would very much depend on how one defined "influential?"

I don't know that the 1968 Jets brought anything to the table that was new or "influenced" strategy or tactics.
But by virtue of winning the Super Bowl they changed football history forever.

That list (only the top ten of 50?) seems to be a hodge-podge of teams thrown together by a committee for a variety of reasons.
It'd be interesting to see a list with clearly defined criteria.

[Sonny9]

Dunno about the '85 Bears. It was one season. They didn't really have a legacy.

Maybe the 1992 Cowboys and their 4 year run. All the excitement they caused with their Super Bowls, the Green Bay and San Francisco rivalries, Prime Time, the triplets, Jerruh Jones, Jimmy Johnson.

[Bob Gill]

Dunno about the '85 Bears. It was one season. They didn't really have a legacy.

I agree completely. Also agree about the 1940 Bears; maybe they ought to be at the very top of the list.

[Bryan]

I think the 49-50 Rams should be alongside the 1950 Browns. They were both highly innovative...as John Facenda once said of John Mackey, "it was like stepping out of a biplane and into the space shuttle." Both teams really pushed pro football forward in a number of different areas.

I would also find room for the 1979 Chargers....they showed how effective Coryell's system could be with only above average talent. A lot of the concepts and plays are still in use.

[Brian wolf]

Wasnt Shaughnessy's 1949 Rams team the first to use triple receiver sets ? Maybe it was later when Bob Boyd joined the team but in 49, you had Fears, Shaw and Hirsch.

The 1969-70 Baltimore Colts were influential on defense being perhaps the first to use cover-2 style defense. The Dolphins did the same when Arnsparger came over with Shula.

[SixtiesFan]

Wouldn't it would very much depend on how one defined "influential?"

I don't know that the 1968 Jets brought anything to the table that was new or "influenced" strategy or tactics.
But by virtue of winning the Super Bowl they changed football history forever.

That list (only the top ten of 50?) seems to be a hodge-podge of teams thrown together by a committee for a variety of reasons.
It'd be interesting to see a list with clearly defined criteria.

No game ever benefited a player more than Super Bowl III did Joe Namath. He got ton of endorsements, publicity, praise for his talent. Had the Jets lost, Joe Namath might not be in the HOF and would be remembered historically mostly for the 427,000 dollar contract. The AFL had gotten the NBC TV deal before the Jets signed Namath, who has often been wrongly credited for it.

[Brian wolf]

I agree and disagree, SixtiesFan, though Sonny Werblin, who was the poorest of the Jets owners, was rich in NBC contacts and connections and helped give the network its TV football star that Roone Arledge at ABC was wanting to show on his network as well but ABC lost out. I agree, Namath wouldnt have made the HOF without the SB win, but an AFL Championship still would have easily justified his splash, headline grabbing, signing.