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RIP Chuck Noll

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Inky_Wretch, Jun 13, 2014.

  1. outofplace

    outofplace Well-Known Member

    Oh, those teams were amazing. No doubt about it. But they teams they beat were subpar, too.
     
  2. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    Good points, Fart.
    The NFC was also loaded with powerhouse teams -- historically great teams, even -- at that time that turned a competitive imbalance into a chasm.
    Between 1984 and 1991, the Giants, Bears, Redskins and 49ers were all by and large Super Bowl-caliber teams every year. The biggest thing that kept any one of them from ripping off two or three in a row was that they had to go through each other. Four of the top 10 teams of the Super Bowl era -- the '84 and '89 49ers, the '85 Bears and the '86 Giants -- along with the underrated '91 Redskins, all came from that period.
    Even the middle of the conference was good. The Vikings, Eagles, Saints and Rams all had a couple of decent teams during that stretch.
    The best example of the gulf between the loaded NFC and mediocre AFC was the 1989 season. The Broncos got home field advantage with an 11-5 record, and were the only team in the AFC to win more than nine games. The Packers and Redskins both went 10-6 and missed the playoffs in the NFC.
    The '89 Broncos might have been mediocre, but they were still the best by a mile that the AFC had to offer that season. Combine that with the greatness of that Niners team and 55-10 is what you get.
     
  3. outofplace

    outofplace Well-Known Member

    I think you are overrating the '89 Broncos a bit, but otherwise, that all sounds about right.
     
  4. 3_Octave_Fart

    3_Octave_Fart Well-Known Member

    I loved that era in football, Batman.
    Even a Bears team that went 14-2 got dumped on its ass by a Wild Card team.
    Such strength in the NFC at that time.
    The AFC had been in too much transition with the decline of the Dolphins and Steelers.
    None of the teams that tried to wrest their power could keep it together for very long at all, notably the Bengals and Patriots.
    The Broncos were like a prom queen where everyone else is sick.
    Then came the Bills, who should have won one if not two.
     
  5. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    I remember by the mid-90s there was a movement to scrap the conferences entirely and just take the top 12 teams for the playoffs. Coming back full circle to the Steelers, we might have them to thank for keeping the current setup. Them finally giving the NFC a good game in Super Bowl XXX, even though they lost, put an end to that.
    It's funny that the NFC was that dominant in the 80s, though, since the AFC was the same way in the 70s with the Dolphins, Raiders and Steelers all having historically great teams. It was a complete 180-degree turn. The '72 Dolphins, '76 Raiders and '78 Steelers are also on that short list of GOAT teams, just like the Niners, Giants, Bears and Redskins of the '80s.
    Kids today don't know how truly great they've got it with the current age of parity.
     
  6. jr/shotglass

    jr/shotglass Well-Known Member

    I've always wondered just how tight Marv Levy's ass was in the locker room prior to those four Super Bowls.
     
  7. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

    Sexually speaking ??
     
  8. jr/shotglass

    jr/shotglass Well-Known Member

    I just threw up a little in my mouth.
     
  9. 3_Octave_Fart

    3_Octave_Fart Well-Known Member

    Nobody in the other conference was going to beat the 1992 Cowboys.
    They were holding a royal flush and dropped the king before Buffalo knew what hit them.
    Darryl Talley makes a tackle and they probably beat the Giants.
    They should have beaten the team with the racist nickname.
     
  10. Batman

    Batman Well-Known Member

    Don't know about beating the Redskins. That game was never really close. It was 17-0 at halftime, and that was a damn dominant Redskins team, too. They made it to Thanksgving unbeaten, and lost two games by a total of five points -- including one in Week 17 when they pulled the starters against the Eagles. The '91 Redskins are one of the forgotten great teams of the Super Bowl era. From Week 1 there was little doubt they were the team to beat that year.
    The Bills' second Super Bowl against the Cowboys, though, they should've won. They had the lead at halftime and blew it.
     
  11. 3_Octave_Fart

    3_Octave_Fart Well-Known Member

    I just think that was Buffalo's best matchup of the four.
    That was the Bills' most explosive offense.
    They were like an NBA team.
    More offensive TDs than punts that season.
     
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