Super Bowl XLII a historic Quality Wins mismatch
Cold, Hard Football Facts for Jan 25, 2008
Super Bowl XLII offers one of the great championship game mismatches in history, at least as measured by Quality Wins.
The Patriots enter the game with a 9-0 mark vs. Quality Teams (including playoffs). The Giants are 4-5.
The disparity makes Super Bowl XLII just the fourth time that one contender had a five-game advantage over its opponent against Quality Teams. The Patriots dynasty is now responsible for three of those mismatches.
- The 1979 Steelers entered Super Bowl XIV with a 9-3 mark vs. Quality Teams. The Rams were 4-4.
- The 2003 Patriots entered Super Bowl XXXVIII with a 9-0 mark vs. Quality Teams. The Panters were 4-3.
- The 2004 Patriots entered Super Bowl XXXIX with a 9-1 mark vs. Quality Teams. The Eagles were 3-1.
Of course, the disparity didn't matter much on game day.
The dynastic 1979 Steelers needed two fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull out a 31-19 win over a Rams team that went just 9-7 overall in the regular season. (The Rams are the only team to reach a Super Bowl with a record worse than the 2007 Giants, who went 10-6).
The 2003 Patriots needed a last-second field goal to pull out a 32-29 win over a Panthers team that went just 11-5 overall in the regular season.
The 2004 Patriots eked out a 24-21 win over an Eagles team that went 13-3 overall in the regular season.
The Giants do not have history on their side. Only four of the 37 teams that have won post-merger Super Bowls ended up with a worse record against Quality Competition worse than the team they vanquished in the championship. These four teams are:
- 1983 Raiders (7-4, .636) over Redskins (9-2, .818)
- 1997 Broncos (6-3, .667) over Packers (9-2, .818)
- 2001 Patriots (5-3, .625) over Rams (8-2, .800)
- 2002 Buccaneers (7-4, .636) over Raiders (8-3, .727)
Here's a look at how each Super Bowl winner stacked up in terms of record vs. Quality Opponents (records include the Super Bowl itself).
SUPER BOWL TEAMS vs. QUALITY OPPONENTS (since the AFL-NFL merger)
|
SB (Season) |
Winner (Record) |
vs. Qual. Opp. |
Loser (Record) |
vs. Qual. Opp. |
|
V (1970) |
Baltimore (14-2-1) |
4-2 (.667) |
Dallas (12-5) |
4-5 (.444) |
|
VI (1971) |
Dallas (14-3) |
5-1 (.833) |
Miami (12-4-1) |
4-2 (.667) |
|
VII (1972) |
Miami (17-0) |
5-0 (1.000) |
Washington (13-4) |
6-2 (.750) |
|
VIII (1973) |
Miami (15-2) |
8-1 (.889) |
Minnesota (14-3) |
5-3 (.625) |
|
IX (1974) |
Pittsburgh (13-3-1) |
3-1-1 (.750) |
Minnesota (12-5) |
4-2 (.667) |
|
X (1975) |
Pittsburgh (15-2) |
7-2 (.778) |
Dallas (12-5) |
5-3 (.625) |
|
XI (1976) |
Oakland (16-1) |
7-1 (.875) |
Minnesota (13-3-1) |
3-2-1 (.600) |
|
XII (1977) |
Dallas (15-2) |
7-1 (.875) |
Denver (14-3) |
7-3 (.700) |
|
XIII (1978) |
Pittsburgh (17-2) |
7-2 (.778) |
Dallas (14-5) |
6-4 (.600) |
|
XIV (1979) |
Pittsburgh (15-4) |
10-3 (.769) |
L.A. Rams (11-8) |
4-6 (.400) |
|
XV (1980) |
Oakland (15-5) |
6-4 (.600) |
Philadelphia (14-5) |
5-4 (.556) |
|
XVI (1981) |
San Francisco (16-3) |
6-0 (1.000) |
Cincinnati (14-5) |
6-2 (.750) |
|
XVII (1982) |
Washington (12-1) |
6-1 (.857) |
Miami (10-3) |
6-3 (.667) |
|
XVIII (1983) |
L.A. Raiders (15-4) |
7-4 (.636) |
Washington (16-3) |
9-2 (.818) |
|
XIX (1984) |
San Francisco (18-1) |
7-1 (.875) |
Miami (16-3) |
8-2 (.800) |
|
XX (1985) |
Chicago (18-1) |
8-1 (.889) |
New England (14-6) |
5-5 (.500) |
|
XXI (1986) |
N.Y. Giants (17-2) |
8-1 (.889) |
Denver (13-6) |
7-5 (.583) |
|
XXII (1987) |
Washington (14-4) |
4-1 (.800) |
Denver (12-5-1) |
7-4 (.636) |
|
XXIII (1988) |
San Francisco (13-6) |
9-2 (.818) |
Cincinnati (14-5) |
7-4 (.636) |
|
XXIV (1989) |
San Francisco (17-2) |
9-2 (.818) |
Denver (13-6) |
7-4 (.636) |
|
XXV (1990) |
N.Y. Giants (16-3) |
7-3 (.700) |
Buffalo (15-4) |
6-4 (.600) |
|
XXVI (1991) |
Washington (17-2) |
9-2 (.818) |
Buffalo (15-4) |
4-3 (.571) |
|
XXVII (1992) |
Dallas (16-3) |
6-2 (.750) |
Buffalo (14-6) |
8-4 (.667) |
|
XXVIII (1993) |
Dallas (15-4) |
8-2 (.800) |
Buffalo (14-5) |
6-5 (.545) |
|
XXIX (1994) |
San Francisco (16-3) |
7-2 (.778) |
San Diego (13-6) |
6-4 (.600) |
|
XXX (1995) |
Dallas (15-4) |
8-2 (.800) |
Pittsburgh (13-6) |
5-3 (.625) |
|
XXXI (1996) |
Green Bay (16-3) |
7-3 (.700) |
New England (13-6) |
6-5 (.545) |
|
XXXII (1997) |
Denver (16-4) |
6-3 (.667) |
Green Bay (15-4) |
9-2 (.818) |
|
XXXIII (1998) |
Denver (17-2) |
6-1 (.857) |
Atlanta (16-3) |
5-3 (.625) |
|
XXXIV (1999) |
St. Louis (16-3) |
3-1 (.750) |
Tennessee (16-4) |
6-2 (.750) |
|
XXXV (2000) |
Baltimore (16-4) |
7-3 (.700) |
N.Y. Giants (14-5) |
5-4 (.556) |
|
XXXVI (2001) |
New England (14-5) |
5-3 (.625) |
St. Louis (16-3) |
8-2 (.800) |
|
XXXVII (2002) |
Tampa Bay (15-4) |
7-4 (.636) |
Oakland (13-6) |
8-3 (.727) |
|
XXXVIII (2003) |
New England (17-2) |
10-0 (1.000) |
Carolina (14-6) |
4-4 (.500) |
|
XXXVIII (2004) |
New England (17-2) |
10-1 (.909) |
Philadelphia (15-4) |
3-2 (.600) |
|
XL (2005) |
Pittsburgh (15-5) |
8-4 (.667) |
Seattle (15-4) |
5-3 (.625) |
|
XLI (2006) |
Indianapolis (16-4) |
8-1 (.889) |
Chicago (15-4) |
4-2 (.667) |
Read more: Cold Hard Football Facts, NFL
Forearm Shiver: the CHFF Blog
- Hockey Announcer Gone Wild: You Want To Party (Maybe) With This Guy
- Best Pass Defense Ever: Ronde Barber And The 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Reese Witherspoon Arrest Video: Hot, Bothered And Handcuffed
- Sam Adams In A Can, Just In Time For Summer Drinking Season
- Live From Radio City: Reporter Punks NFL Draft Fans
Quick Outs
- The 5.0 Club: Best Rushing Teams in NFL History
- Sieves: The Worst Run Defenses In NFL History
- Monsters of the Midway: We Need The Chicago Bears More Than Ever
- Boston, Sports, Patriotism And Terror
- The 100 Stingiest Defenses In Football History
- NFL Crown Rule: Will It Dethrone Rushing King Adrian Peterson?
- Year Of The Offensive Tackle: Not Always The 'Safe' Draft Bet
- Draft Habits: NFL Teams Covet LBs, Duped By False Temptress WRs
- Big Tease: 2012 New England Patriots And NFL's History Of Offensive Failures
- Epic Fail: The Wide Receiver Draft Class Of 2012
Must See Videos
Jets Fans React To Draft Picks
Connect With Us
Sign up for our newsletter to recieve all the latest news and updates...
 |
 |
 |
RSS Feed
Follow @footballfacts
Follow us on Facebook