What makes a team "better" in a single season?

[lolPhillies]

Does winning the Super Bowl make you the best team of that season? Or does your record, your in-team achievements, your stats, and your overall team on paper make you the best team of the season?

i.e. the New York Giants, and the Green Bay Packers.

Which was the better team in 2011? More importantly, why?

[yankees1088]

The best team is the one that wins the Super Bowl, it's as simple as that, and that's why that team picks last in the following draft.

Just like the Packers were the best team 2 years ago, even finishing at 10-6, while no one remembers that the Pats went 14-2 and Atlanta went 13-3.

Just answer this: What is every team's goal at the beginning of the season??

The team that accomplishes that is the best at it.

[Bigdaddyburch]

Every year you have one goal. To go and win the SB. Thats what the Giants did. The Packers while I believe played better the whole season came up short when it mattered most. So IMO the Giants did.

[Underdogz∞]

Imo the best team for the regular season has the best record at the end of the regular season (Packers). And the best team for the playoffs wins the Superbowl (Giants).

Playoffs and Regular season are too different too lump together for a proper discussion to be had. But simply put winning the Superbowl is the Ultimate goal, but it doesn't mean the best team won it.

Im not being a homer simpson but imo the best team last season in this order were

1. Steelers (without injuries)
2. Texans (without injuries)
3. Saints
4. Packers
5. Patriots/49ers
the rest.................I'd put Giants top 10 tho.

I'm saying last season in this order if each team fielded its full 53 man roster healthy those are the best teams.

So yea imo Packers were better tram than Giants just not in the one playoff game, Losing one game to a team doesn't mean the Packers weren't better.

[valade16]

This would be a better comparison if the Giants hadn't beaten the Packers in Lambeau in the playoffs.

Giants won the Superbowl, they are the best team. It isn't soccer where you win some trophy for best regular season record. I don't care that the Niners went 13-3 and the Giants 9-7 becasue ultimately the Niners didn't hoist the Lombardi trophy...

[Bigdaddyburch]

This would be a better comparison if the Giants hadn't beaten the Packers in Lambeau in the playoffs.

Giants won the Superbowl, they are the best team. It isn't soccer where you win some trophy for best regular season record. I don't care that the Niners went 13-3 and the Giants 9-7 becasue ultimately the Niners didn't hoist the Lombardi trophy...

Yeah its kind of a silly question. A better one might be Packers Niners.

[xxplayerxx23]

Id rather go 8-8 in the regular season sneak into the playoffs and win the superbowl then go 16-0 in the regular season and lose in the playoffs

[cwick925]

Id rather go 8-8 in the regular season sneak into the playoffs and win the superbowl then go 16-0 in the regular season and lose in the playoffs

this but id perfer to go 10-6 with a super bowl.. would be a depressing cpl months at 8-8

[xxplayerxx23]

this but id perfer to go 10-6 with a super bowl.. would be a depressing cpl months at 8-8

Lol thats true as a giant fan going 9-7 had me going crazy all year.,

[mdlr52192]

The best team is the one that wins the Super Bowl, it's as simple as that, and that's why that team picks last in the following draft.

Just like the Packers were the best team 2 years ago, even finishing at 10-6, while no one remembers that the Pats went 14-2 and Atlanta went 13-3.

Just answer this: What is every team's goal at the beginning of the season??

The team that accomplishes that is the best at it.

That's not true, sorry. The 2007 Patriots are the best team of all time and they didn't win the Super Bowl...the 1 and done playoff format allows for the best team to not win every year, it happens, that's why we have upsets...the Saints, Packers, Patriots, Ravens, 49ers, and Texans were better than the Giants, but that doesn't matter, the Giants won the Super Bowl, debating over who was better just makes everyone seem bitter

[yankees1088]

That's not true, sorry. The 2007 Patriots are the best team of all time and they didn't win the Super Bowl...the 1 and done playoff format allows for the best team to not win every year, it happens, that's why we have upsets...the Saints, Packers, Patriots, Ravens, 49ers, and Texans were better than the Giants, but that doesn't matter, the Giants won the Super Bowl, debating over who was better just makes everyone seem bitter

They weren't the best team of all time, I'm sorry. They went into the season with 1 goal in mind and didn't do it. You can't be the best at something when you failed to accomplish what you set out to do. You can argue semantics all you want about what they did during the regular season, and the records they broke, but the regular season is just a means to get to the postseason, and they didn't finish it off. The best team of all time is still the 72 Dolphins... Undefeated with the championship, until someone does that in the 16 game format that will remain true.

[BigBlueCrew]

I guess this really is the NFL offseason cuz we keep going over the same question just regurgitated in different forms.....

Yes it was the Giants, Yes because they won the Superbowl, Yes because they went through 4 teams to get there and they weren't crappy teams either.

Yes well all know the Packers were 15-1, they beat the vikes twice, once against the Cutlers-less Bears, Kyle Orton's Chiefs, and the list goes on and on and on.

So lets put this to bed for a couple of days until someone else brings issue up again in another format.

[yankees1088]

Daytona 500- A driver leads for 140 of 150 laps and gets overtaken during the last 10 and finishes in 2nd. Is he the best driver and winner of the Daytona 500??

Kentucky Derby- A horse is in the back of the pack the entire race, and makes his move during the last 20 meters and comes in 1st, is he not the winner, and the best horse??

MLB- Are the 2001 Seattle Mariners (best winning percentage of any modern age team), the best modern age team ever?? Absolutely not, they lost the 2001 ALCS. The '98 Yankees are considered one of the greatest teams ever and they had a worse winning percentage then the M's, but won the title. Yet, the '01 Mariners are forgotten, and the '98 Yanks are still talked about.

NHL- Just look at this postseason. If the Kings win are they not the best team?? According to you they're not, they were only the 8th seed. But, no, no one will remember the #1 Canucks or the #2 Rangers. It's going to be the Kings.

Why would the champion be penalized for how they got there?? It all depends on how you finish. No one remembers the rest.

[PatsPropaganda]

Success .. and for teams who are struggling , Off-season moves is what can turn your team around.

[whooligun]

That's not true, sorry. The 2007 Patriots are the best team of all time and they didn't win the Super Bowl...the 1 and done playoff format allows for the best team to not win every year, it happens, that's why we have upsets...the Saints, Packers, Patriots, Ravens, 49ers, and Texans were better than the Giants, but that doesn't matter, the Giants won the Super Bowl, debating over who was better just makes everyone seem bitter

So the best team of all time didnt win the Superbowl?