Top, and Worst, Ten teams of the 14-game era, '61-thru-'77?

[74_75_78_79_]

Starting the very year of Lombardi's first World Champion squad, and ending with that infamous 'dead-ball' year - which ended with the first Super Bowl under a Dome - and all the seasons in-between, who are YOUR Top 10 teams? And your WORST 10 teams? Teams that didn't win a title can be included on your Top 10 along with any AFL team being included on either list (yes, unlike the NFL, the AFL's inaugural season of 1960 was a 14-gamer, so include from there if you want).

Here's my, opined, Ten Worst of the 14-game era...

10) 1966 Giants, 501 pts allowed!

9) 1969 Bears

8) 1971 Bills

7) 1969 Steelers

6) 1967 Falcons

4 -tie) - 1972 & 1973 Oilers

3) 1961 Raiders, lost first two by a combined...99-0!!

2) 1962 Raiders, lone win was their...finale!

1) 1976 Buccaneers

(Dis)honorable mentions:

Sure-enough a number of early AFL teams, even if they won 3 or 4 games.

'61 Redskins, like '62 Raiders, didn't win until last game!

'62 Rams & '68 Bills. What's with all these 1-12-1 teams?



And, now, my JMHO Ten Best from '61-thru-'77...

9 -tie) 1971 & 1977 Cowboys

8) 1969 Chiefs

7) 1963 Bears

6) 1976 Raiders

5) 1973 Dolphins

4) 1972 Dolphins

3) 1966 Packers

2) 1962 Packers

1) 1975 Steelers

Honorable mentions:

'61, '65 and '67 Packers!

[Jay Z]

1973 Rams were not that good IMO for being 12-2.

Only played 2 playoff teams. Lost to Vikings and beat Cowboys. Split with the 9-5 Falcons. Avoided all of the good AFC teams.

Except for McCutcheon, every starter started all 14 games. So no adversity there. Didn't pass all that much. Apparently Hadl hurt his arm halfway through and the passing really fell off, not that they passed all that much anyway. Some questionable talent in the back 7 on defense. Tended to run it up against some weak competition. Knox improved things, but 12-2 was an overstatement.

[CSKreager]

1973 Rams were not that good IMO for being 12-2.

Only played 2 playoff teams. Lost to Vikings and beat Cowboys. Split with the 9-5 Falcons. Avoided all of the good AFC teams.

Except for McCutcheon, every starter started all 14 games. So no adversity there. Didn't pass all that much. Apparently Hadl hurt his arm halfway through and the passing really fell off, not that they passed all that much anyway. Some questionable talent in the back 7 on defense. Tended to run it up against some weak competition. Knox improved things, but 12-2 was an overstatement.

What adversity did Miami have to overcome in 73?

The Dolphins passed less than LA, cakewalked in a weak AFC East, OAK won only 8 games, PIT didn’t win the AFC Central.

Are we overestimating the caliber of competition Shula and co faced in 1973?

Somebody on the Dolphins allegedly said the 1973 Vikings wouldn’t have made the playoffs if they were an AFC team.

Again, the Steelers/Raiders had off years by their standards. Like would CINCINNATI have been a SB team in the NFC?

Miami didn't face a real team in either SB years. 72 AND 73 they played downright weak schedules.

[CSKreager]

I think the 66 Giants were worst of the worst.

They didn’t have the expansion excuse of Tampa and were a more veteran team than those early Raiders

[7DnBrnc53]

For the top 10 best, I would have the 76 and 75 Steelers at 1 and 2 followed by the 66 Packers and 73 Dolphins. I would also include the 1976 Patriots on my list. A great team that got robbed in Oakland (as well as the 77 Cowboys).

[ChrisBabcock]

I think the 1977 Buccaneers need to be in the top 10 worst list. If you look at their first 12 games only, they're definitely worse than the 1976 0-14 team. Half of those games they scored ZERO points. Single digit scoring in 4 others. Gary Huff led the team in TD passes with TWO.

[PA Wingman]

1972 Eagles. Won 2 of their first 3 games then proceeded to go 0-10-1 the rest of the way including a 62-10 loss at the Giants in week 11.

[Brian wolf]

Great finish for the 76' Steelers before Oakland kicked their ass ... not Top 7. The Cowboys finish in 1971 deserves Top 10

[RichardBak]

I'm too lazy to do a Top 10 list. I'll do a Top 1 list:

Best: 1962 Packers
Worst: 1966 Giants

But man, I just looked up the Bucs' first 2 seasons. Forgot how truly terrible they were. They were shut out in 11 of their first 26 games. Brutal.

[74_75_78_79_]

I think the 66 Giants were worst of the worst.

They didn’t have the expansion excuse of Tampa and were a more veteran team than those early Raiders

Very good point! No "excuses", but IMO those two early AFL (new, lesser league at the time) Raider teams mentioned, and of course who I feel is the epitome of a PURE babe-in-the-woods "expansion" team, those '76 Bucs, wouldn't be able to topple that, yes, REAL bad Giants team but was at least HC'd by one who led his team to three-straight-NFLCGs just a few years earlier and, for what it's worth, finished a respectable 7-7 the year before and the year after. Sherman seemed to have lost his stuff in the very end, but '66 wreaks of an anomaly. Maybe I'm wrong.

I think the 1977 Buccaneers need to be in the top 10 worst list. If you look at their first 12 games only, they're definitely worse than the 1976 0-14 team. Half of those games they scored ZERO points. Single digit scoring in 4 others. Gary Huff led the team in TD passes with TWO.

I've heard (and, yes, at least respect) that opinion before. And, yes, they sure continued some real bad stuff those next 12 games! But, sort-of like those Cortez-led Hawks 15 years later, they at least showed real signs-of-life on the defensive side of the ball! A real bad team but definite improvement from the year prior. And then they win those final two which, with me, gets them off the hook as far as Historic sucktitude is concerned. Maybe it's a little bit being lazy, but if an NFL team at least won two games, that makes me gently push them aside and move on.

Which leads to,,,

1972 Eagles. Won 2 of their first 3 games then proceeded to go 0-10-1 the rest of the way including a 62-10 loss at the Giants in week 11.

Yes, indeed, a horrible team (and worse unis)! But beating Chiefs at KC who, right up to that very affair, were still seen as a contender, is enough to get that white helmet with no-silver-lining green winged team led by Bill Bradley off the schneid with me as well!

Great finish for the 76' Steelers before Oakland kicked their ass ... not Top 7. The Cowboys finish in 1971 deserves Top 10

In a previous 'Rank all 20 League Champs of the '60s' thread, I placed ALL Green Bay champs above the '69 Chiefs who, I see, as the 'Abbey Road' of all AFL Champs! Beatles' best album which just so happened to be in '69, and their last one! But on this, here, thread I originally had them at #8 with '71/'77 Cowboys tied at #9. Then edited it and placed '61/'65 Pack tied at #8 and '67 Pack at #10. I think it's, actually 50/50. Sometimes '69 Chiefs and '71/'77 Boys better than '61/65 & '67 Pack, and sometimes the contrary.

'69 Chiefs simply gaining much more Historic stock with me as time goes by. So what if Raiders swept them and that they didn't become 'Team of the 70s'. They bettered Oak when it truly mattered. And it's not as both losses were blowouts. They SO looked the part of 'ahead-of-their-time' - especially in SBIV! Joe Green, fresh off his 'refuse to lose' wiser-and-tougher-beyond-his-years rookie 1-13 season (fighting til the bitter end) and friends attended the Game and saw (looked UP to) that KC Defense as the 'template' of who he wanted he and his Steelers to be in the decade to come. I don't know. As better-than-great the '61, '65, and '67 Packers were, maybe I should only see 1962 and 1966 as better than that Peak-of-Powers/Tour de Force Hank Stram team!

For a while, I always saw the '68 Jets and '69 Chiefs as almost-equal. But the latter has been pulling away more and more with me. No, not by a lopsided margin. Things about that Jets team that smell of precursor-'85 Bears for, well you know, what reason, and I'd like to sneak them into this Top 10; but Chiefs IMO at a noticeable-enough margin (and I very respectfully feel that NYJ is lesser than ANY of Vince's five World Champs).

'71/'77 Cowboys both superior teams who I feel a little bad for leaving out! Each are likely better than the '61, '65, and '67 Pack as well. I don't know who to place above the other so both Landry World Champs are tied IMO.

I think I'll now change my Top 10 again. Only to bring the other three Lombardi Champs back in again (as soon as the wind blows in the other direction). And keep going back-and-forth, lol.