The NFL may be touted for its parity, but that doesn’t mean that we haven’t seen quite a few dynasties emerge over the years.
But even the mightiest of giants must fall eventually.
Sometimes it is one bad contract… others it is a coach retiring – or a key injury that sends the organization into a fall from grace.
Let’s take a look at 10 of the greatest dynasties the league has seen and dive into their downfall!
Which of these NFL dynasties do you remember the most?
Green Bay Packers (1960s)
The Green Bay Packers dynasty is so legendary that it actually dates back to before the Super Bowl even existed!
They won NFL titles in 1961, 1962, and 1965 and then captured the first two Super Bowl titles in 1966 and 1967 against the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders, respectively.
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This roster was loaded with talent, like Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr, who was the team’s leader—and most valuable player during both Super Bowl wins. Two of his key targets during that stretch were wide receiver Boyd Dowler and tight end Ron Kramer.
Meanwhile, on the ground, fullback Jim Taylor and halfback Paul Hornung provided a powerful rushing attack, which rounded out a very balanced offense.
This team, like many other great ones, fell off after the departure of their Hall of Fame coach, Vince Lombardi, who retired as Head Coach of the Packers in ’67 and General Manager the following year, which left a huge leadership gap and led to an NFL dynasty falling from greatness.
Miami Dolphins (1970s)
The 1970s Miami Dolphins were a special bunch, headlined by back-to-back Super Bowl wins in the 1972 and 1973 seasons and what is STILL the only perfect season in NFL history.
All of this was delivered under the tutelage of head coach Don Shula, who led a super-balanced Dolphins team that was able to withstand a number of key injuries, even to quarterback Bob Griese, who missed several games during the ’72 campaign.
Imagine that… This team was so dominant that it went undefeated, featuring two different starting quarterbacks for various stretches of the season… that is insane!
Miami was built around its rushing attack, which was led by Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris, who provided a punishing ground attack.
These two stars were the first pair of teammates to surpass 1000 rushing yards in 1972 – a first in NFL history for two players from the same team.
Unfortunately for the folks down in South Beach, their success couldn’t last forever.
Trouble loomed with the burgeoning World Football League, which displaced Morris, Csonka, and wide receiver Paul Warfield.
Granted, these guys were aging at the time, but this was emblematic of the roster turnover that the front office wasn’t able to keep pace with, which spelled doom for the Dolphins dynasty.
New York Giants (Late 1980s – Early 1990s)
Back in the 1980s, the New York Giants, led by Bill Parcells, with an upstart Bill Belichick leading the defense, were one of the most feared teams in the game.
They had solid quarterbacking play for most of that era with Phil Simms and a strong offense, yes, but that team was built around the legendary L.T. – Lawrence Taylor – and Belichick’s defense.
That core led them to two Super Bowls in 1987 and 1991 – and, honestly, they probably should’ve won more.
But that team, its star player LT included—perhaps more than anyone else—had a bit of a partying problem, which limited their potential.
The nail in the coffin for this dynasty was the bust of their first-round selection in the 92 NFL supplemental draft, quarterback Dave Brown. The Giants put way too many eggs in Brown’s basket they were never able to properly stabilize at the position once Simms started to decline.
New England Patriots (2000 – 2008)
The early 2000s Patriots were one of the most surprising dynasties that we’ve ever seen take form in the NFL.
And before we get too far into it, yes, non-New England fans, it is rather disgusting that we can to make the distinction between their two dynasties…
But I digress.
Prior to Belichick taking over, the Patriots hadn’t exactly been a cornerstone franchise for the NFL. They were up and down throughout the year and struggled to compete with any sort of consistency.
It all started in ’84 when former owner James Orthwein sold the team to Robert Kraft, who a few years later brought in Bill Belichick and his staff selected QB, Tom Brady in the sixth round out of Michigan.
Soon after, destiny strikes, the Pats end up losing Drew Bledsoe, their starting quarterback and a former number one overall pick in the draft…
And next thing you know—BOOM! Super Bowl Champions!
Not just once but three times in four years between 2001 and 2004. Simply ridiculous.
Not to mention their nearly perfect year that saw the first and only 16 and 0 regular season in NFL history!
So, what went wrong?
And before we get too far into it, yes, Patriots fans, we know it is hard to say “what went wrong” for a team that most would argue morphed into a new dynasty a few years later…
But, again, I digress!
This version of the Patriots had one of the strangest “ends” we’ve seen.
They battled public controversy and cheating scandals, they were upended by Eli Manning and the underdog Giants, had a player charged with a capital offense, and like may others, then found themselves with injuries to key players, which ultimately resulted in a 10-year hiatus from Super Bowl glory and that iteration of the Pats dynasty dying out.
There was, however, a second act!
Though the Patriots ended up losing the Super Bowl in 2012 – again to Eli Manning and an underdog Giants team – this is really where their NFL roster started to turn, and the new era of the Patriots dynasty began…. albeit still with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick at the center of it.
In addition to Brady and Belichick, this group featured young, exciting stars like Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, both of which were homegrown prospects and really breathed life into what was an aging Patriots offense.
Coincidentally, this iteration of the New England Patriots was ended by the same force that launched them… Kraft, Brady, and Belichick, as it seemed those three were stuck in a never-ending power struggle that resulted in the unthinkable happening… Brady is leaving town for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, of all places!
The dominos that have fallen since have been incredible. New England has been one of the worst teams in the league and Belichick, widely considered to be the greatest coach in NFL history has since been pushed out of Foxborough and is unemployed.
Oakland Raiders (Mid 1970 – Early 80s)
Back during the mid-1970s and early 80s, under the leadership of head coach John Madden and later Tom Flores, were one of the most dominant teams in the NFL and launched a silver and black dynasty that will forever be remembered for their physical play and “Commitment to Excellence.”
The Raiders had talent all of the field and boasted several Hall of Fame players, including quarterback Ken Stabler, wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff, and cornerback Willie Brown.
Tack on defensive forces like Howie Long and Ted Hendricks, and this was one fearsome squad! The Raiders won three Super Bowls during this era, one in Super Bowl 11 – the 1976 season – under John Madden, then two more under Tom Flores in Super Bowl 15 against the Philadelphia Eagles and Super Bowl 18 against the Washington Redskins
While the aging stars played a significant role in their decline, what really did the Raiders in was the departure of Tom Flores in ’87 and Al Davis’s ornery, to put it lightly, relationship with the NFL, which constantly put the organization under the magnifying glass from opposing teams and the media alike.
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Denver Broncos (Late 1990s)
Though it took them some time to finally get over the hump, the late 1990s Denver Broncos were quite a force to be reckoned with. The organization’s success was marked by back-to-back Super Bowl victories in the 1997 and 1998 seasons behind the leadership and skill of Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway and head coach Mike Shanahan.
This is one of the more compelling dynasty narratives we’ve seen, as Elways and the Broncos had been viewed as choke artists for years! But two consecutive playoff runs with clutch moment after clutch moment – not to mention the contributions of 1998 league MVP and Super Bowl MVP running back Terrell Davis – were able to change that.
Unfortunately, once Elway famously rode off into the sunset following his second Super Bowl win, the Broncos were never really able to find a suitable replacement, and the dynasty died out.
Dallas Cowboys (1990s)
The 1990s Dallas Cowboys are undeniably one of the most famous—and, frankly, notorious dynasties that the game has ever seen.
The team featured big personalities, headlined by its outspoken owner, Jerry Jones, and star wide receiver, Michael Irvin, and the two coaches that led the team during that era, Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer.
Although the dynasty, which netted Jones and the Cowboys three Super Bowls, did technically span across two coaches tenures, the irony is that it was really the departure of Johnson, the group’s first coach, after a fallout with Jerry Jones regarding control of the NFL team, that resulted in the team’s decline.
This was the first of many internal conflicts that disrupted cohesion and spelled the downfall of one of the greatest teams the NFL has ever seen.
Pittsburgh Steelers (1970s)
This iteration of the legendary Pittsburgh Steelers franchise was known for two things… Winning football games and its ferocious Steel Curtain defense.
When all was said and done, the group, led by players like Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Lynn Swann, and Jack Lambert, was able to capture four Super Bowl titles during the 1970s, making Pittsburgh the new face of the league instead of the old guard Green Bay Packers.
Head coach, Chuck Knoll, had a knack for coaching team football and getting his star talent to really commit to the team-first ethos. This was in-part due to the sizable role that he played in the player personnel process during the team’s heyday, something that was uncommon for head coaches at the time.
Knoll, however, fell out of favor with the Steelers brass, and as a result, the organizational structure shifted, essentially removing Knoll from a lot of the player evaluation and selection process that disrupted the continuity and resulted in Pittsburgh’s untimely fall from grace following the fourth Lombardi Trophy.
San Francisco 49ers (1980s – 1990s)
The San Francisco 49ers dynasties of the 1980s and early 90s is one of the greatest that the league has seen.
It is unique in the fact that it was actually able to withstand going separate ways with longtime quarterback, Joe Montana, who led them to Super Bowl wins in ’82, ’85, ’89, and ’90 and nine division titles along the way.
The team, of course, didn’t push Montana out of town without a plan… They had another future Hall of Fame quarterback, Steve Young, waiting in the wings.
What the Niners couldn’t ultimately overcome, however, was the departure of Bill Walsh in 1989, which left a massive strategic void that George Seifert was not ultimately able to mask.
Yes, the team continued to win under Seifert… but that was with a lot of carryovers from Walsh’s days. Once enough distance got between the team and the culture and system that Walsh had built, it was all downhill from there for San Francisco!
Chicago Bears (1980s)
Though they ultimately ended up winning just one Super Bowl, Super Bowl 20… many people believe that Mike Ditka’s Bears, featuring defensive stars like Mike Singletary and Richard Dent, were one of the greatest teams that the league has ever seen.
While it may come as a surprise to some of our younger fans, this Bears “dynasty” struggled to find consistent quarterback play to complement its fearsome defense, which really held them back and was ultimately a key factor in their downfall.
They whiffed on an overpaid free-agent signing with Mike Tomczak – and the best that they had, Jim McMahon, struggled with off-the-field issues and injuries.
That said, he did manage to lift the Bears to their only ring in ’85, but still!
Anyway! While Chicago’s downfall was certainly expedited by injuries, it all centered around Ditka’s falling out with his defensive coordinator, NFL Legend Buddy Ryan – and the subsequent locker-room tensions that it caused.
This team never achieved its maximum potential and ultimately fell apart because of their quarterback, injury, and chemistry issues.
