An Alternative Method of Ranking the Best Teams to NOT make the Super Bowl

Hello, and Happy Mother’s Day! Welcome to the final entry in my Margin of Victory (MoV) series. I'll be looking at The Best Teams by MoV to NOT make the Super Bowl (post NFL-AFL Merger). Like my previous list (Worst Teams by MoV to make the Super Bowl), I thought it'd be more interesting to do it this way than to do "Best Teams to lose the Super Bowl". The reason that there are 9 teams instead of 10 is because there were a bunch of teams with an MoV of at least 12, while there were exactly 9 teams with an MoV of 13 or higher who did not make the Super Bowl post-Merger. This also aligned with my other two “Best Teams” lists, which also had 9 teams.

Like the previous entries, I"ll be listing the team, along with their MoV and record in parentheses [Example: 2018 Saints (9.4) (13-3)]. I will also be providing potential insight on what made the team so good in the regular season, how the playoffs panned out, and whether the team not making the Super Bowl was truly an upset or not. I will also be putting the team's final game's score for the season.

As a reminder: THE TEAMS ON THIS LIST AND WHERE THEY PLACE ON THIS LIST IS BASED ON STATS, NOT MY OPINION. While the commentary and honorable mentions are my own, this list is based on a static number.

And now, here are the 9 Best Teams by MoV to make the Super Bowl, ranked by MoV post-merger, from "worst" to best:

9b. 2024 Detroit Lions (13.1) (15-2) - This team tied with another on this list, but I'm placing the Lions from last year higher because they didn't win a playoff game, while the next team did. The Lions came off a season in which they made the NFC Championship despite a pretty poor scoring defense, and came agonizingly close to their first Super Bowl appearance. Expectations were sky high coming into 2024, and during the regular season, the Lions didn't disappoint. They had the #1 scoring offense in the league, featuring Pro-Bowlers Jared Goff, who finished with an incomprehensible 72.4% completion percentage to go along with over 4600 yards, Jahmyr Gibbs, who ran for over 1400 yards, and First Team All-Pro Amon-Ra St. Brown. Jameson Williams, David Montgomery, and Sam LaPorta were also important offensive pieces, while Frank Ragnow and Taylor Decker also made the Pro Bowl as O-linemen. Meanwhile, the scoring defense jumped all the way to 7th, as Terrion Arnold and Brian Branch made the Pro Bowl, and Kerby Joseph was the First-Team All Pro Free Safety. Jack Campbell also pitched in 131 tackles. However, it had two crucial weaknesses. 1. Only 4 players started on Defense all 17 games. This team had an unfathomable number of defensive injuries. Many players were lost by the end of the season. And 2. Perhaps due to the injuries, they allowed the 3rd most passing yards in the league. They did a stellar job at bending but not breaking, but such a strategy is generally not sustainable in the long-term. Despite this, though, the team was dominant. Their 2 losses were both to playoff teams, and by a combined 10 points. They defeated playoff teams a total of 7 times, including twice against Green Bay and twice against Minnesota. They won by more than 2 possessions on 6 different occasions, including a 31-9 win against the 14-3 finishing Vikings in Week 18. Some of their wins against lesser teams were close, though, and down the stretch, the defensive injuries were clearly taking a toll, as their scoring defense the last 6 weeks of the year was markedly worse than the previous weeks.

Despite the late-season issues, it was still expected for the Lions to defeat the upstart Commanders, led by a rookie QB, in the Divisional Round, especially considering the Commanders poor scoring defense. But it was Detroit's defense that was torn to shreds by that rookie, Jayden Daniels. They were simply unable to stop Washington's offense. Detroit's offense scored at about their season average, but it wasn't enough. The Lions were having great success running the ball, but perhaps due to time constraints, only ran the ball 23 times. And like that, the Lions' phenomenal season was finished. Considering that the team has lost both their offensive and defensive coordinators, large question marks remain, but the talent is still there. As is Dan Campbell. Would this team have made the Super Bowl with just an average amount of injuries? I'd say they had a fair shot. The Eagles were also excellent that year, both by record and MoV. I think it could've gone either way.

Final Result: Lost Divisional Round (31-45) vs. Washington Commanders

9a. 2011 New Orleans Saints (13.1) (13-3) - After winning the Super Bowl in 2009, the Saints scoring defense actually improved in 2010, but the offense also regressed dramatically. This resulted in a disappointing finish in 2010, so in 2011, they were out for revenge. While the defense regressed back to middling, the offense returned to form. Notably, Drew Brees shattered the then-record for passing yards in a season with 5476 on an equally absurd 71.2% completion percentage and 46 TDs to 14 INTs. The only person who prevented him from winning the MVP was Aaron Rodgers, who threw fewer yards and had a lower completion percentage, but threw 45 TDs to only 6 INTs, and his team finished with the best record in the league. Jimmy Graham burst on to the scene as an elite receiving Tight End, getting nearly 100 catches, 1300 yards, and 11 TDs. Marques Colston remained a solid #1 option with over 1100 yards, while Brees' usual crew of other targets (Lance Moore, Robert Meachem, and Devery Henderson) all contributed as well. They also ranked top 10 in rushing yards, thanks to the quartet of Pierre Thomas, Mark Ingram, Chris Ivory, and Darren Sproles, the last of which was also a significant threat in the receiving game. They had no Pro-Bowlers on the defensive side of the ball, though Roman Harper was a big tackling threat at safety (unfortunately, he led the team in sacks with 7.5). They ranked 13th in scoring defense, but finishing 30th in yards allowed was a worrying sign. They lost 3 games by a combined 24 points, and like the previous entry, they won 6 games by more than 2 possessions, though this was bloated a bit by a 62-7 embarrassing of the 2-14 Peyton Manning-less Colts. But considering 3 of those 6 blowouts were in the final 6 games, and that the Saints finished on an 8-game win-streak, optimism was high.

Despite a 13-3 record, the 49ers held a tiebreaker, while the Packers finished 15-1, so the Saints had to play a Wild Card game. Statistically, the Saints were a better version of the Lions, and that showed in a 45-28 win at home. They then had to travel to San Francisco to face the newly elite 49ers. The Saints quickly fell behind 0-14, but fought back all game, until they finally took the lead on a long catch-and-run by Sproles with a bit over 4 minutes left. What followed was one of the greatest finishes in playoff history. 49ers QB Alex Smith led a quick drive, ending with a long bootleg TD run with less than 2:15 remaining. But they failed the 2 point-conversion, and around 35 seconds later, Graham caught a pass in traffic and outran the 49ers defense. The Saints also earned the 2-point conversion, resulting in a 3-point lead. But that high yard-allowing defense reared its ugly head, as Smith was able to once again march the 49ers down the field, ending with a heavily-contested TD catch by Vernon Davis with 9 seconds left to give San Francisco the lead for good. The Saints would spend the remainder of Drew Brees' career alternating between mediocrity and contending, but failed to return to the Super Bowl due to further heartbreaking moments. For 2011, as mentioned previously, the top of the NFC was brutal that year, though it was the 9-7 4th seed who ended up as the NFC representative in the Super Bowl. Considering how similar the Saints were to the Packers in terms of MoV, having a horrendous defense in terms of yards, and having an MVP-level QB, it's not unlikely that they would've suffered the same fate as said Packers against the Giants in a theoretical NFC Championship game, even if they did win the Divisional Round game.

Final Result: Lost Divisional Round (36-32) @ San Francisco 49ers

7a. 1970 Minnesota Vikings (13.7) (12-2) - There was another tie, so I put the team with the worse winning percentage first. A year after making the Super Bowl with one of the greatest defenses of all time, the Vikings returned in 1970 looking quite strong. The Vikings moved on from MVP candidate Joe Kapp to Gary Cuozzo, a statistical downgrade. The rushing attack also took a step back, but the Vikings still finished 3rd in scoring. Gene Washington was selected as a Pro Bowl wide receiver once again. But the heart of the team remained in the defense, which once again finished top of the league in points allowed. The Hall of Fame defensive line duo of Carl Eller and Alan Page once again terrorized opposing QBs on their way to First Team All-Pro. Gary Larsen and Karl Kassulke also made the Pro Bowl while Jim Marshall and Paul Krause remained great in their own rights. As is a trend with this list so far, the Vikings won 6 games by over 2 possessions, including demolishing the eventual NFC Champion Cowboys by 41 points!. Their 2 losses were by a combined 13 points, though both were to bad teams. They also defeated 10-4 Detroit twice.

The team seemed destined for a return trip to the Super bowl, finishing 12-2, far and away the best NFC team. Ultimately, though, their offense truly sucked when it mattered most. In the Divisional Round at home against the 49ers, Cuozzo played horrendously, going 9 for 27 with 2 INTs and 3 sacks given up. The 49ers were far from mistake-free, losing 3 fumbles, but the Vikings lost 2 of their own. All of their mistakes compounded into a 14-17 loss. This combined with another poor Cuozzo season in 1971 led the Vikings to re-acquire Fran Tarkenton, and 3 more Super Bowl appearances were in their future, albeit with 0 rings. As for 1970, considering how hard they blew out the Cowboys earlier in the season, I think the Vikings had a fairly good shot at winning that theoretical NFC Championship. And the 1970 Super Bowl was one of the sloppiest playoff games of all time (the teams combined for 11 turnovers), and came down to a last-second field goal. In that sense, 1970 lowkey could've been the Vikings' best chance at actually winning the Super Bowl, despite poor QB play. Then again, knowing the Vikings' history, they likely would've stumbled somewhere along the line.

Final Result: Lost Divisional Round (14-17) vs San Francisco 49ers

7b. 1987 San Francisco 49ers (13.7) (13-2) - The 49ers were the team of the 80's. But if you asked me for a peak of consecutive years within that decade, it'd be 1987-1990. It started following their embarrassing 3-49 loss to the Giants in the 1986 Divisional Round, their 2nd consecutive playoff loss to them. This seemed to wake something up within the team, as they averaged 12.75 wins over the next 4 years (hence the "peak"). Joe Montana played his finest season to date, completing 66.8% of his passes with 31 TDs to only 13 INTs. He earned First Team All-Pro for the first time. Joining him was Jerry Rice, who'd already burst onto the scene the year prior, but won OPOY in 1987 while catching a then-record 22 TDs. This may be arguably more impressive than Randy Moss in 2007, though, as Rice did it in only 12 games. Roger Craig hadn't hit his peak yet, but he was nonetheless a Pro-Bowler at running back. Michael Carter and Ronnie Lott finished First Team All-Pro on defense. Don Griffin and Charles Haley were also relevant to the team's defensive success. They weren't quite littered with Pro-Bowlers, but the team as a whole executed to perfection, at least, following a 13-point loss in Week 1. From that point on, they only had 1 2-point loss the rest of the regular season, and that was to a 12-3 Saints team who they did also beat earlier in the season. They won 5 games by more than 2 possessions, but absolutely torched opponents in the final 3 weeks, posting an absurd 124-7 score margin. This combined with their NFL best 13-2 record led many to declare them the favorites to win the Super Bowl.

However, their opponent in the Divisional Round was an odd one. The Vikings, who'd finished 8-7 yet somehow scraped into the postseason, had gone to New Orleans and blown the doors off the place in a 34-point victory. Now in Candlestick Park, the Vikings started off in a similar manner, taking a 27-10 lead, while Montana played perhaps his worst postseason game as a 49er, going 12 for 26, 0 TD to 1 INT, and getting sacked 4 times. He was eventually benched for Steve Young, who did generate more offense for San Francisco, but not enough to even get within 1 possession. Incredibly, the 49ers averaged 6.4 yards per carry, yet only rushed 18 times, likely due to the deficit. The Vikings pass defense was worse than their rush defense during the season, so the strategy made sense on paper, but it ultimately cost the 49ers dearly. With this said, the Vikings completed one of the greatest upsets in postseason history. The turmoil of this loss seemingly spilled into 1988, as the 49ers started 6-5. But from there, they only lost a single game, winning the Super Bowl, as well as the next. But was this 49er team missing the Super Bowl a freak incident? Maybe. Even ignoring the Vikings, the NFC was stacked that year, including the aforementioned Saints, plus the 11-win Bears and eventual champion Washington (and this was in a 15-game season). I think an NFC Championship matchup with Washington would've been a toss-up, though if they made it to the Super Bowl, I have no doubt they would've won.

Final Result: Lost Divisional Round (24-36) vs. Minnesota Vikings.

5. 2012 New England Patriots (14.1) (12-4) - Honestly, I was surprised to find that this team was at the top of Patriots' teams who didn't make the Super Bowl. I thought it would've been 2010 for sure (though ultimately both teams lost in surprising fashion prior to reaching the big game). After a 2011 Super Bowl loss, the team improved both offensively and defensively. While they weren't quite dominant, they were still top 10 in scoring defense. Vince Wilfork was First Team All-Pro, and Jerod Mayo made his final Pro Bowl. Devin McCourty was also important, as were Rob Ninkovich and Chandler Jones. But the real selling point of the team was the offense, one of Tom Brady's greatest during his long tenure as Patriots' QB. They averaged nearly 35 points per game, while also finishing 1st in total offensive yards. Brady threw for over 4800 yards and 34 TDs on his way to the Pro Bowl. Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski continued their excellence on the way to Pro Bowl nods as well, while Brandon Lloyd was good in his lone season in New England. However, the team was not one-dimensional. They accrued the 7th most rushing yards in the league, mostly due to a breakout season from Steven Ridley. It became a pick-your-poison situation in which most of the league had no answer for. After an unlucky 3-3 start, in which their 3 losses were by a combined 4 points, the team only lost 1 more game during the regular season, which was to the eventual NFC Champion 49ers. In typical Bill Belichick fashion, the Patriots blew out 7 teams by over 2 possessions. They eclipsed 30+ points in 10 games, and only scored under 20 once. They did beat only 3 playoff teams, though I'd argue this was mainly due to playing in a weak division (they went 6-0 against the Dolphins, Bills, and Jets combined).

The Offensive onslaught continued in the Divisional Round, as New England outraced the Texans to a 41-28 win. However, facing the Ravens for the 2nd consecutive year at home in the AFC Championship, they fell flat, managing a mere 13 points. In reality, Brady didn't take a single sack, and the team racked up 428 yards of total offense, but Brady also threw 2 INTs, and when the team really needed to get it in the endzone, they could not. Another conference championship loss in 2013 and slow start to 2014 had pundits questioning if the Patriots could no longer hack it amongst the NFL's elite. They proceeded to win 3 more Super Bowls that decade. It turns out the Patriots were on the verge of busting the door down, not on the verge of falling off a cliff. In relation to 2012, I think the Broncos were more balanced and overall better on paper, while the Ravens were better during that postseason in reality. In either case, I don't think it's that stunning that the team didn't make the Super Bowl. Similar to teams earlier on this list, they ranked quite low in yards allowed per game. Such a thing is ripe to be exposed in the playoffs. Even if they did make the Super Bowl, they'd lost to the 49ers at home earlier in the season, so I believe the 49ers would've been favored.

Final Result: Lost Conference Championship (13-28) vs. Baltimore Ravens.

4. 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers (14.5) (10-4) - Following 2 straight Super Bowl victories, the Steelers entered 1976 still as one of the championship favorites. Instead, the team stumbled to a terrible 1-4 start, capped off by an injury to QB Terry Bradshaw in the 5th game. Yet somehow, they won every single game the rest of the regular season, even with rookie backup Mike Kruczek starting 6 games. Rocky Bleier and Pro-Bowler Franco Harris were still a dynamic duo, each reaching 1,000 yards rushing. But Hall of Famers John Stallworth and Lynn Swann both missed time, resulting in "only" the 5th ranked scoring offense. The true strength of this team was always the defense, and in 1976, they had their finest season. They had 8 (!) Pro Bowlers on Defense, including Hall of Famers Mel Blount, Joe Greene, Jack Ham, and Jack Lambert (DPOY). They allowed under 10 PPG and shut out teams 5 times. Notably, after their 1-4 start, in the remaining 9 games, the team allowed 28 points. Total. Teams were averaging just over a Field Goal per-game against them during that period. One of the most dominant defensive seasons of all time, highlighted by arguably the greatest 9-game stretch of defense ever played. Overall, they won 7 games by 2+ possessions. They entered the playoffs scorching, and considering their postseason pedigree, a 3-peat would've seemed likely. That is, if not for the fact that the AFC was incredible that season, including the 11-3 Colts, 11-3 Patriots, and 13-1 Raiders joining Pittsburgh in the playoffs.

In the Divisional Round in Baltimore, the Steelers faced the league MVP QB Bert Jones and the #1 offense in the league. But in typical 70's Steelers' fashion, they shut things down. They held the Colts to a mere 170 yards of offense, while rolling up 526 yards of their own. The score was 33-7 before the teams traded garbage time touchdowns to reach the final 40-14 score. This dominant showing made way for the AFC Championship in Oakland against the Raiders, the only team hotter than them win-streak wise. Considering Oakland's history of choking up until that point, combined with how close their Divisional Round victory was, a Steelers' "upset" was a real possibility. But on that day, Oakland revenged the previous 2 years' AFC Championship defeats. Despite Ken Stabler only throwing for 88 yards, 3 Raiders' Running Backs combined for 166 rushing yards against the Steel Curtain, sinking the Steelers. Pittsburgh had an off-year in 1977, sporting a below-average scoring defense and losing in the Divisional Round, but they were far from dead. The Steelers won 2 consecutive Super Bowls in 1978 and 1979. Was the 1976 team not making the Super Bowl a fluke, though? Statistically, yes. But in reality, that Raiders team had a magic to them, as well as the best record in the league. They truly exemplified the Al Davis phrase, "Just win, baby." I have no doubt the Steelers would've 3-peated if they made it past the Raiders though, because...the Vikings would’ve been waiting for them in the Super Bowl.

Final Result: Lost Conference Championship (7-24) @ Oakland Raiders

3. 1973 Los Angeles Rams (15) (12-2) - After 2 mediocre seasons under Tommy Prothro, the Rams canned him in favor of Chuck Knox. In every season he was there (1973-1977) the team won at least 10 games in a 14-game season. He was a bit like the 70's Marty Schottenheimer, as we'll soon see. They were led at QB by John Hadl, who probably should be in the Hall of Fame, and who had his final great season in 1973, finishing First Team-All Pro with 22 TDs to only 11 INTs (great stats for that era). But they weren't the #1 scoring offense just because of him. They also were 2nd in rushing yards, led by a pair of Pro-Bowlers in Lawrence McCutcheon and Jim Bertelsen. First Team All-Pro Harold Jackson also led the league with 13 TD catches. They were no slouches defensively either, ranking 4th in scoring. Merlin Olson earned his 12th of eventual 14 consecutive Pro Bowl nods at defensive tackle, while Jack Youngblood started his own Pro-Bowl streak this season. Isiah Robertson finished First Team All-Pro at linebacker, and Eddie McMillan finished 2nd in DROY voting. The teams 2 losses were by a combined 3 points, while they won 7 games by 2+ possessions. The defense notably clamped down after Week 5, never allowing over 17 the rest of the regular season. The team seemed primed for a deep playoff run.

The playoffs presented a scenario, though, that today sounds unfathomable. Home Teams in the playoffs were decided on a rotation prior until 1975. This means the 12-2 Rams had to travel to Dallas to face the 10-4 Cowboys, who were excellent in their own right (12.8 MoV). Did venue alone account for the 11 point difference in the Rams' 16-27 defeat, especially considering that the Rams beat them in Los Angeles earlier in the season? I don't think so. But I would argue that it combined with the Cowboys' playoff experience did. The once offensively-dominant Rams sputtered, failing to reach 200 total yards. Hadl in particular struggled mightily, going 7-23 while taking 5 sacks and throwing 0 TDs to 1 INT. This would ultimately signal the downfall of his career, as he would never have another great season prior to his retirement in 1977. But the Rams would return to the playoffs for the rest of the decade, making 5 conference championships and 1 Super Bowl. I don't think the Rams failing to make the Super Bowl was in actuality that shocking. While the team was very strong, they had paradoxically an aging QB and a lack of playoff experience at that point. But it is interesting how this team is essentially the opposite of the 1979 Rams team that made the Super Bowl. Dominant regular season with MVP candidate QB but one-and-done vs. mediocre regular season with below average QB and making the Super Bowl.

2. 2019 Baltimore Ravens (15.6) (14-2) - Lamar Jackson took over for Joe Flacco midway through the 2018 season, and ignited a 6-1 record to end the season to propel Baltimore to the playoffs. Jackson took a much larger step forward in 2019, putting the offense on par with their already dominant defense. He threw 36 TDs to only 6 INTs on 66% passing, while also rushing for over 1200 yards (an NFL record for QBs) in 15 games. But even this is a disservice to Jackson's averages, as he didn't play in parts of 5 other games due to the Ravens' dominance. Mark Ingram also made the Pro Bowl with a bit over 1000 yards rushing, and Gus Edwards chipped in over 700 yards himself. Credit also belongs to Pro-Bowl Fullback Patrick Ricard for the team nearly reaching 3300 rushing yards combined. No one receiver was dominant, but Mark Andrews did make a Pro Bowl at the Tight End position. They were the #1 scoring offense, matched well with the #3 scoring defense. Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters were both First Team All-Pro as Cornerbacks. Matthew Judon and Earl Thomas also made the Pro Bowl on defense. The star-studded roster combined for 7 wins by over 2 possessions, including 12 straight wins to end the season. They really only had one questionable game, a loss at home to Cleveland. Their other loss was on the road against the eventual champion Chiefs. They beat 5 playoff opponents, including the NFC Champion 49ers. They were both the most dominant and hottest team during the regular season, and all signs were pointing toward a Super Bowl birth.

And then, the Divisional Round happened. At home, against a 9-7 Titans squad who'd switched QBs mid-season and had barely made the playoffs, the Ravens laid an egg. Now, the Titans were hot down the stretch themselves, and would have a better record the next year, but they still weren't on Baltimore's level on paper. But the game isn't played on paper. Derrick Henry ran roughshod over the Ravens for almost 200 yards, and after falling behind by multiple touchdowns, Jackson was forced to throw a lot. 59 times to be exact. He still managed to rush for over 100 yards too, but his running back duo combined for only 42 yards on 9 attempts. Jackson wasn't blameless, as he took 4 sacks and was intercepted twice, but this loss was a team failure. The score was 28-6 prior to a garbage time TD, sealing the Ravens' fate as one of the greatest teams to not win a playoff game. Since then, the Ravens have made the playoffs in most years, and Jackson remains a perennial MVP candidate, but they have failed to reach the Super Bowl. With the benefit of hindsight, the 2019 team not making the Super Bowl is only somewhat shocking, instead of pure insanity. But it is still disappointing to be that dominant and not win a playoff game. Losing to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship would've been acceptable, but losing to the Titans was wild.

Final Result: Lost Divisional Round (12-28) vs. Tennessee Titans

1. 1998 Minnesota Vikings (16.3) (15-1) - Seeing this team again is a big reason why this will be the final entry in the MoV series. I haven't had a repeat entry until now, and I feel like in part due to this, the idea has run its course. I've already covered this team in my "An Alternative Method of Ranking the Top 9 Best Teams of All Time," but I"ll do some rephrasing and add details when applicable.

Throughout the 90's, early playoff exits plagued the Vikings. However, there were 2 huge changes in 1998. First was the injury to starting QB Brad Johnson, forcing aged veteran Randall Cunningham, more known for athletic plays than playoff success, into the starting role. But Cunningham had a career renaissance as a passer, throwing for 34 TDs to only 10 INTs and earning a First Team All-Pro nod. Second was the arrival of rookie Wide Receiver Randy Moss, who lit the NFL ablaze with otherworldly deep ball talent, racking up a rookie record 17 receiving TDs. These two, plus nearly 1200 rushing yards from Robert Smith and over 1000 yards from Cris Carter, propelled the Vikings to new offensive heights. They set a then-record for points in a season with 556 points. They also sported the 6th ranked scoring defense, behind First Team All-Pro John Randle terrorizing QBs, as well as Pro-Bowlers Robert Griffith, Ed McDaniel, and Second Team All-Pro Dwayne Rudd. They even had the First Team All-Pro Kicker Gary Anderson, who didn't miss a single kick during the regular season (more on that later). They won 7 games by over 2 possessions, while only losing 1 time by 3 points. Even more comically, they scored over 40 points on 4 separate occasions. They had 4 wins over playoff teams, including two against 2-time defending NFC champion Green Bay. Notably, the offense peaked near the end of the season, as they scored 46 or more in 3 of their final 5 games. They seemed to be on a collision course to meet with the also dominant, defending champion Broncos in the Super Bowl.

In the Divisional Round, things stayed on schedule with a 41-21 route against the upstart Cardinals. For the Conference Championship against a surprising 14-2 Atlanta Falcons squad, things continued humming along at first, as Minnesota took a 20-7 lead. But the Falcons cut it to 6 just before the half, then only a single field goal was scored in the 3rd quarter between both teams. The Vikings struck back in the 4th for a 10-point lead, which the Falcons cut to 7. Finally, with under 3 minutes left, the Vikings lined up for a field goal that would’ve iced the game. Anderson, who again had not missed a kick in any form all season, missed a mere 38-yard field goal. Atlanta then marched down the field in a bit over a minute to tie the game, forcing overtime. Despite this choke, the Vikings actually had 2 possessions in OT where they could've rectified things, but they failed to even get a field goal. On Atlanta's 2nd drive, meanwhile, the other long-time Anderson kicker, Morten, sunk his own 38-yard field goal to send the Falcons to the Super Bowl, and terminate the Vikings' season. The Vikings would make the playoffs two more times during the Dennis Green coaching era, but couldn't reach the big game in those seasons either, and wouldn't come quite that close again until 2009, where another heartbreaking OT loss awaited them. Unlike the other teams on this list, I can resoundly say this team not making the Super Bowl was a fluke. Would they have defeated the Broncos? That's debatable. And the Falcons were a great team, with an MoV worthy of making the Super Bowl (9.5). But they shouldn't have been able to beat that Minnesota team. I chalk it up to that franchise being cursed.

Final Result: Lost Conference Championship (27-30) vs. Atlanta Falcons

Honorable Mentions:

1999 Jaguars (11.2): They went 14-2 and dominated every single team they faced. Except 1. Their 3 losses, including in the AFC Championship, was to their division rival Titans. This came after a 62-7 drubbing of the Dolphins in Dan Marino's final game (Florida on Florida violence). There are allegations that Titans' Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams stole a playbook from Jacksonville after their Week 3 matchup. Considering Williams' sketchy history (Bountygate), and the fact that the next two matchups with Jacksonville were blowouts, it doesn't sound that farfetched.

2005 Colts (12): One of the most dominant Peyton Manning-led Colts' teams, they started 13-0 and finished 14-2. However, they did seem to slip during the last 4 weeks of the season. This carried over into the Divisional Round against the 6th seeded Steelers, who dominated the Colts for 3 quarters before a 4th quarter rally fell short after Mike Vanderjagt badly shanked a game-tying field goal with under a minute left.

2010 Patriots (12.8): As mentioned previously, I thought this team would be in the top 9. Still, it was quite elite. 1st in scoring offense, 8th in scoring defense. Brady won MVP, throwing 36 TDs to a mere 4 INTs. This was despite the fact that Moss was traded after only 4 games, and that he had no 1,000 yard receivers. They came into the playoffs hot too, entering on an 8-game win streak, and blowing out 4 of their final 5 opponents by 29 or more. This included a 42-point blowout against their Divisional Round opponent, the Jets. Yet somehow, on the same field weeks later, New York bullied New England, and the game only looked close thanks to garbage time points.

For the final time, what does this all mean? This one may be the strongest argument AGAINST MoV being a good metric to determine postseason success. 5 of the 9 teams on the main list didn't win a single playoff game. Even 2 of the 3 honorable mentions didn't win one. There wasn't even a positive correlation between MoV and postseason wins. Coincidentally, this list, my final one, solidifies the idea that MoV alone cannot reliably determine postseason success. Though I would argue no one metric can. The answer, in my opinion, is clearly a combination of multiple statistical categories, the state of the team's mentality, and the ability of the coaching staff to tailor specific game plans to specific opponents on a week-to-week basis.

Thus, this little project has come to an end. If you made it to the bottom of this post, thank you. I hope my posts piqued your curiosity at the very least, and perhaps awakened old memories (I feel like Vikings fans likely suffered quite a bit reading these “Best Teams” posts. Sorry).

Here are previous entries in the MoV series:

An Alternative Method of Ranking the Top 10 Worst NFL Teams of All time: https://old.reddit.com/r/nfl/comments/1j7b7b8/an_alternative_method_of_ranking_the_top_10_worst/

An Alternative Method of Ranking the Top 9 Best Teams of All time: https://old.reddit.com/r/nfl/comments/1jc2j9g/an_alternative_method_of_ranking_the_top_9_best/

An Alternative Method of Ranking the Worst Division Winners: https://old.reddit.com/r/nfl/comments/1jmoep9/an_alternative_method_of_ranking_the_worst/

An Alternative Method of Ranking the Best Non-Division Winners of All time: https://old.reddit.com/r/nfl/comments/1js6lx0/an_alternative_method_of_ranking_the_best/

An Alternative Method of Ranking the Worst Teams to make the Super Bowl: https://old.reddit.com/r/nfl/comments/1kepsod/an_alternative_method_of_ranking_the_worst_teams/