Ones that are overly slanted toward most recent.
I kept looking for the 1962 Packers, especially when the '66 Packers showed up. I had no idea Green Bay '62 would be first.
The '85 Bears are too low. In fact, that's the lowest I have ever seen them on a comparable list.
The '91 Redskins are too high, especially compared to several of the great NFC Super Bowl champs that preceded and followed them. That Washington team put together a great year but it simply didn't have the dominant personnel of some of the nearby 49ers, Cowboys and Giants teams.
I was 13 years old when my family had season tickets to the 1972 Dolphins. It was the first year my dad bought season tickets for the family. Not bad timing.
I still remember every game of that season and can recite the roster top to bottom. Awesome team. I was pleased they slotted second. Most bar stool conventional wisdom types idiotically place them much lower.
Those Dolphins had great players virtually position by position. Along with the 5 Hall of Famers there were Hall of Fame caliber types like Dick Anderson and Bill Stanfill who had their careers cut short by injury.
The aspect of a weak schedule is laughable. Miami 1972 remains the only team in NFL history to defeat 5 Hall of Fame quarterbacks -- Dawson, Tarkenton, Namath, Unitas, Bradshaw -- and 3 of them were on the road. The Dolphins were 4 point underdogs in the opener at Kansas City in an instant rematch of the 1971 Christmas Day double overtime classic. Virtually every pundit picked the Chiefs, and some by wide margin. So Miami was projected to open 0-1 yet when they go 17-0 the rationalization is they had a weak schedule. Brilliant.
The Dolphins were also 3.5 point underdogs at Minnesota and Tarkenton a few weeks later. That was the one game the Dolphins should have lost. Minnesota was more physical all day and could have put the game away. Miami's defense kept it reasonably close. The pivotal play was a 51 yard field goal by Yepremian with 7 or 8 minutes remaining. Nobody in our household thought Garo had any hopes of making that kick, and if he missed the game was over. The Dolphins trailed by 8 (14-6) in an era long before the 2 point conversion. Nobody made long kicks like that outdoors at dusty Metropolitan Stadium. Once Garo connected everyone in my family was shocked, and likewise the team noticeably rejuvenated, with more energy than any point during the game. They got the ball back late and Griese directed a long game winning drive capped by a short touchdown pass to Jim Mandich.
The Dolphins were very fortunate to get through those two games before Griese broke his ankle against San Diego, replaced by Earl Morrall. From that point forth the team had terrific energy and smarts all season. We started to think unbeaten once we got past Namath and the Jets 28-24 in an incredibly tense home game. Then the nervy game was the playoff opener hosting Cleveland. Gray dreary day and no energy in the Orange Bowl, unlike any other game. Everyone was nervous, knowing how humiliating it would be to lose a home playoff opener after sweeping the regular season 14-0.
Miami probably would have lost that game minus a long crossing pattern from Morrall to Warfield with maybe 8 minutes remaining. I can still picture how beautiful that play was, after the offense had been inept all day. Jim Kiick capped the drive with the winning touchdown run a few plays later.
Yeah, the 1973 team was more dominant in certain high profile games. But it is ridiculous to assert that team as superior. They took entire games off, like the late season sleepwalk at Baltimore. The 1972 team never had anything like that.
Those early '70s Dolphins were an incredibly smart and resourceful team, matched only by the recent Patriots in that regard. When it was 3rd and 4 I'd snicker in the stands, knowing darn well that Griese would head bob for a cheap first down via drawing an over eager defensive lineman offsides. Nobody could abuse that head bob like Bob Griese. They changed the rules because of him.
Likewise the Dolphins changed pass defense via the so-called Isaac Curtis Rule. He was a flashy Bengals rookie wide receiver who dominated many games in 1973. The smart Dolphins cornerbacks Tim Foley and Curtis Johnson wiped out Curtis at the line of scrimmage all game long in a 1973 playoff opener. They took him out by his legs before the route began. It was gorgeous to watch from the stands. Kenny Anderson would drop back with his intended receiver already eliminated from the play.
That's why I always have to laugh at young goofs who try to compare statistics from other eras to this one, especially with quarterbacks, with no clue how drastically the game has changed via rules changes and interpretation of them. The '70s was the most run heavy decade in pro football history largely because you could still destroy receivers before the ball was thrown, the head slap was still legal and defensive linemen had learned how to use it, and offensive holding was a 15 yard penalty and not merely 10. Those 15 yards could essentially end a drive.
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