The Greatest Teams: 1990 Buffalo Bills

Had things turned out differently, the Buffalo Bills may be one of the greatest franchises to have ever played in the NFL. From 1990 to 1993, the Bills made it to 4 straight Super Bowl appearances, while dominating the AFC competition. And yet, none of those 4 teams won the most important game of the season, making the Bills 0-4 in Super Bowls all time. Their best chance probably came during the 1990 season, when the Bills had secured a foothold as one of the league's top teams, with star players on both offense and defense. Led by the legendary coach Marv Levy, let us introduce this squad:

At quarterback, the Bills were led by the perennial Pro Bowler Jim Kelly. Kelly, selected in the famed Quarterback Class of 1983, tossed the ball nearly 3,000 yards in the air, with 24 touchdowns compared to 9 interceptions to boot. In the backfield, the tremendous weapon of Thurman Thomas helped to keep defenders at bay. Thomas rushed for 1,297 yards on the ground and caught 532 yards through the air, for a combined 13 touchdowns. At receiver, the Bills boasted the duo of James Lofton and Andre Reed, who added 12 touchdowns. The offensive line, led by center Kent Hull, allowed only 27 sacks, one of the lowest totals in the league.

Defensively, the Bills were led by Hall of Famer Bruce Smith, a fifth year defensive end who came in second in the year with sacks (19) and vaulted Buffalo's defense to seventh in the league. A Pro Bowl studded linebacking core of Cornelius Bennett, Shane Conlan, and Darryl Talley combined for 9 sacks and  5 takeaways, while the frequently rotating secondary managed to record an average of 2 picks per player. On special teams, the duo of kicker Scott Norwood and punter Rick Tuten consistently performed well against the opposition.

The Bills led the league in scoring on their way to a 13-3 season. After easily drubbing the Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Raiders in the playoffs, the Bills faced an in-state rival in the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXV. Although the Bills led 12-3 at one point, the Giants came roaring back, with New York kicker Matt Bahr making a 21 yard field goal in the middle of the fourth quarter. Down by 1, with 2:16 left on the clock, the Bills offense impressively drove downfield to the Giants' 29 yard line. With only seconds to go, kicker Scott Norwood came on to try a 47 yard field goal. During the season, Norwood had gone only 1 of 5 for 40+ yard field goals on grass, with most of his kicks coming up short. In a play that went down forever into NFL lore, Norwood's kick had plenty of distance, but sailed "wide right" of the goalpost, ending Buffalo's season and crowning New York as Super Bowl champions, 20-19. In the following years, Buffalo would go on to make it to the Super Bowl a 3 more consecutive times, losing to Washington, and twice to Dallas. The Bills serve as a stark reminder to every franchise of a team reaching its peak multiple times before being buried under the blankets of ineptitude, a fate that could also be compared to the Minnesota Vikings. Nevertheless, in their heyday, the Bills were a proud team with a proud following, turning a small market franchise into one of the greatest teams of the early 90s.

The Greatest Teams: 1961 Houston Oilers

"Houston has the Oilers, the greatest football team;
We take the ball from goal to goal like no one's ever seen.
We're in the air, we're on the ground...always in control;
And when you say 'the Oilers', you're talking Super Bowl."

The Tennessee Titans have a long and storied history, particularly because they used to be another franchise completely: the Houston Oilers. Although the Oilers never did quite make it to the Super Bowl as "Luv Ya Blue" attests, their legacy still lives on in NFL lore. Several recent Titans franchises certainly deserved consideration here, including the 1999 Tennessee team that made it to Super Bowl XXXIV(where they lost to the St. Louis Rams, 23-16). However, the early Oilers teams of the American Football League were very dominant in their own right, especially the 1961 team. And, just for clarification purposes, the Oilers of the AFL are still a part of NFL history, since AFL history and records have been incorporated into the NFL after the merger.

At quarterback, the Oilers boasted the "Grand Old Man" in George Blanda, who was 34 and still exhibiting Pro Bowl seasons. Blanda, who previously played in Chicago before starting in Houston in 1960, was both the team's quarterback and kicker, and feat not unusual for the day. As quarterback, he led the young AFL in passing yardage, passing touchdowns, and passer rating during the 1961 season. These numbers were supported by Houston's All-Pro halfback Billy Cannon, who led the league in rushing yardage. Cannon, the 1959 Heisman winner, was fiercely recruited by both the NFL and AFL (he was selected by the NFL's Los Angeles Rams with the first pick in the 1960 Draft), which resulted in a court decision that ultimately ruled in the AFL's favor. Cannon looked like he was certainly on his way to being the star he was in college at LSU. At receiver, both Bill Groman and Charley Hennigan had 1,000 yard seasons, with Groman scoring 18 touchdowns and Hennigan scoring 12. Left tackle Al Jamison and center Bob Schmidt merited Pro Bowl seasons, 2 out of 13 players on the team to do so.

On defense, veteran Ed Husmann anchored the four man defensive front, powered by a linebacking core of Doug Cline, Dennit Morris, and Mike Dukes. The secondary helped vault the Oilers to second in the league in pass defense, with star corner Tony Banfield recording 8 picks, fourth best in the league. Safety Jim Norton did one better, recording 9 interceptions, but unfortunately did not get All-Pro consideration.

The Oilers started off the season by creaming the Oakland Raiders 55-0 before losing their next three games and tying one to the Boston Patriots. The Oilers would quickly rebound after that, destroying the Dallas Texans in their next game, 38-7, before going on a 9 game win streak en route to their second straight AFL Championship Game appearance. A George Blanda to Billy Cannon touchdown pass would be all this difference in a somewhat sloppy 10-3 win against the San Diego Chargers. The Oilers quickly established themselves in the early AFL as a dominant powerhouse, a feat that could only be matched by the Oilers in the late 70s, early 90s, and the Titans of the early 2000s. Although the Oilers are now but a fun look back into football's past, the 1961 team shall live on as one of the best Oilers/Titans teams ever to grace the gridiron.