Ranking The Most Successful NFL Franchises in History
When it comes to professional American Football there’s a world of difference between being a great franchise and being a successful franchise. For example, let’s talk along the lines of how being great vs. being successful works in the world of NFL odds. When wagering on NFL action you might find teams that right now are some of the hottest squads around, the Cincinnati Bengals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers being two perfect examples of that this season in particular. But if you break down their historical records and other stats, you’d be surprised to come to know that these are two of the most volatile teams in the history of the league. Yes, the Bucs have won two Super Bowls, but one of them was with Tom Brady at the helm, and that in itself usually earns you half a Super Bowl win from the get-go.
While we could sit and further prolong the debate about the difference between great franchises and successful franchises, let’s focus on the latter. In the NFL, like in all other pro leagues, there’s a chain of hierarchy when it comes to which are the most important franchises when it comes to title wins and dominance in the league, and here we bring you our ranks of the three most successful NFL franchises in history.
Pittsburgh Steelers
When football experts talk about the Pittsburgh Steelers and their history in the league, everyone knows that the Steelers are the closest thing to a football royalty dynasty that exists. No team has been more successful in the last 50 years in the league than Pittsburgh, and they have all 6 Super Bowl trophies to prove it. But that’s just half of it when talking about the Steelers.
Pittsburgh is to this day, the only team in league history where all of their head coaches have managed to win at least one Super Bowl trophy during their tenure. If that’s not enough proof that this team takes legacy and full-on respect for coaching tenures and careers, then I honestly don’t know what could do the trick. With one of the most loyal fanbases in the NFL and a winning culture that is impossible to avoid, it’s no wonder why according to all pro football pundits, the Steelers are the closest thing to a mark of excellence there has ever been in the league.
New England Patriots
What the Steelers have managed to do for 50+ years, the Patriots have managed to do since 2001. It was then and there, at the beginning of the 2001 season that a rookie QB from the University of Michigan called Tom Brady made his debut and as history has shown us, once he and coach Bill Belichick got to work, the league and the sport of football got flipped on its head.
Brady and Belichick made the New England Patriots go from a decent to good team up until the start of the new millennium to transforming the squad into the most dominant, title-winning franchise of the 21st century. With six Super Bowl wins under their belts, Brady and Belichick became the winningest QB-coach duo in the history of the league, all while everyone had to just take a step back and see the legend of Tom Brady begin, take form and solidify itself. Now with Brady at Tampa Bay and Belichick starting to see the light once again after rebuilding his team, the most fitting way to see this relationship end is a Brady vs. Belichick Super Bowl showdown. For now, here’s to hoping it happens.
San Francisco 49ers
Any football fan in the world will tell you that the San Francisco 49ers during the ’80s and the start of the ’90s were one of the most entertaining and dominant football teams to watch in action. It was in that span that the 49ers, first led by bonafide QB legend Joe Montana alongside the greatest WR in the history of the NFL, Jerry Rice, and then by QB Steve Young and Jerry Rice managed to win five Super Bowl titles, all while establishing the concept of the “West Coast Offense” playing style that is still used to this day.
When the 49ers hit the field in the ’80s and early ’90s everyone paid attention, and their battles for NFC supremacy in the early 90’s against the Dallas Cowboys still to this day makes up for some of the absolute best football that football fans, at least over the age of 30 have ever witnessed.
