Best rushing teams of the Super Bowl Era

Here's a look at the greatest rushing attacks in of the Super Bowl Era, based upon average yards per attempt. It includes the 19 teams of the era that averaged more than 5.0 YPA over the course of a season, along with two that came desperately close to reaching the magical 5.0 mark.

 

Click here for a complete wrap-up of the topic. The one big thing that jumps out from this list is that few of these teams were particularly dominant. Not one of the greatest ground attacks of the Super Bowl Era won the big game. And only one, the 1966 Chiefs of the AFL, even reached the Super Bowl.

 

This list, in other words, defies the conventional wisdom that running the ball well is a key to success in the NFL. If this conventional wisdom was correct you'd expect the greatest running teams of all time to have shown far more success. For example, the 2007 Vikings were one of the best teams of the Super Bowl Era running the ball and stopping the run on defense. Yet they finished just 8-8.

 

By contrast, the great passing teams have been far more successful than the great running teams. 

 

You can also click here for a look at the top running attacks in all of NFL history.