About This Quiz
Vince Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest to ever coach the game of football. He once famously said, "Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing." True or not? That's a harsh reality for some, perhaps, but it's nothing short of the truth when it comes to the NFL.
Consider the case of the New England Patriots. Yeah, yeah, we know, Patriots "fatigue" is a real thing, but think about this: In 2007, the team that everyone loves to hate was stacked. We're talking Tom Brady, Randy Moss, a little help on the line from Logan Mankins, a defense with the likes of Mike Vrabel and Vince Wilfork ... stacked with a capital "S." The team blew through its 16-game schedule to emerge undefeated – the first team, in fact, to achieve that level of success since the 1972 Dolphins. They were poised to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at Super Bowl XLII.
Except ... they didn't. They were upset 17-14 in the title game by the pesky New York Giants. While its undefeated regular and playoff season record stood, the Pats ended the 2007 campaign with a lone blemish (the biggest blemish!) on its record.
For many, the Super Bowl victor is all that's remembered from a season of great plays, thrilling victories and edge-of-your-seat two-minute warnings. Which leads us to this quiz. (You knew it all tied together, didn't you?) What kind of championship sleuth are you? Can you identify the team in question based on the number of all-time championships gathered by the franchise? We're talking AFC and NFC division winners and Super Bowl victors here. Gather the trophies and titles ... it's time to celebrate the NFL's big winners!
The New England Patriots are the team tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers for most Super Bowl wins in the NFL – with six. The Patriots are also owners of 11 AFC conference championships.
The Indianapolis Colts who were, at one time, the Baltimore Colts, have five total league championships, including the most recent in 2006. The franchise also holds seven conference titles.
The Denver Broncos won the last of the franchise's league championships in 2015 thanks, in part, to the efforts of quarterback Peyton Manning. The Broncos have eight conference titles, including the one in 2015.
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The San Francisco 49ers trail just behind the NFL's leaders in Super Bowl wins with five of their own. Six conference championships accompany the league titles. Is the 2019 season the year they add No. 6?
The Pittsburgh Steelers share the record of six Super Bowl titles with another AFC team, but their eight conference championships are all their own. Fun fact: When the Steelers first started playing, they weren't the Steelers at all, but the Pirates.
The Seattle Seahawks have had a run of success lately, culminating in conference titles in 2013 and 2014 (as well as one back in 2005), and the franchise's lone Super Bowl, won in 2013.
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Ouch. Sorry, Falcons fans, we really thought the 2018 Super Bowl was going to deliver your team's first league title, but it wasn't meant to be. The team does have two conference championships to celebrate, though.
You could say that 2009 was the New Orleans Saints' year. It was the season they earned both their first NFC championship and their first Super Bowl. That Super Bowl was the Saints' only championship appearance to date.
Owned by Al Davis until his death in 2011 (when ownership passed to Davis' son), the Raiders have called both Los Angeles and Oakland home, and have won an equal number of league and conference championships.
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They don't have many championships, but they won them both in 2002, securing the conference and league titles for the Buccaneers fans. They also have, arguably, one of the coolest game day atmospheres with a pirate ship and real cannons.
The Dallas Cowboys haven't been to the Super Bowl since 1995, but they earned five Super Bowl rings between 1971 and their last championship appearance. They also possess 10 conference titles.
The Green Bay Packers, the only NFL team owned by its community, has a long history of winning, dating back to the franchise's first league championship in 1929. They've won 12 other league titles (including two Super Bowls) and nine conference championships.
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The Los Angeles Rams have called Cleveland, St. Louis and Los Angeles home throughout the franchise's existence. Its most recent league title came in 1999 when the squad was in St. Louis.
The Houston Texans joined the NFL in 2002 after the former Houston Oilers pulled up roots and moved to Tennessee. Since then, the franchise has been on a quest for its first conference and league titles.
In the early 1990s, the Buffalo Bills dominated the AFC, earning conference titles in each year from 1990 to 1993. The team's last league championship, however, dates all the way back to 1965.
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The Miami Dolphins, sometimes referred to as the "Phins" or "Fins," have five conference titles (all from the 1970s and 1980s) and two Super Bowl wins. Each of those also came in the 1970s – back-to-back in 1972 and 1973.
The Cincinnati Bengals, who play in a stadium that fans affectionately call "the Jungle," have had a wild history. Their only championships to date include two conference titles spread across the 1980s.
Don't fault the Baltimore Ravens for not having a more plentiful trophy case; they've only been playing as a franchise since 1996. Since then, they've won two conference titles and two Super Bowl rings.
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Unless you've been living under a rock for the past, oh, four to five decades, you already know that the Cleveland Browns struggle. Mightily. What looked like it might be a prosperous 2019 season turned into another disappointment for fans.
The Kansas City Chiefs have been all the rage lately, but for all the talk, they still haven't acquired the titles to match. The Chiefs' three league championships all came pre-1970 (and pre-modern Super Bowl era).
The Philadelphia Eagles won their first league championship post-AFL/NFL merger in 2017, ending a long drought for the franchise's trophy case. The Eagles have three conference titles since 1980.
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It's been a rough few years (decades?) for the Washington Redskins and their fans, with the last conference and Super Bowl championships coming in 1991. They have four of each prior to that, though.
The New York Giants have won four Super Bowl titles in the modern era, including championships in 1986, 1990, 2007 and 2011. They also own 11 conference titles, including the most recent in 2011.
Skol! The Minnesota Vikings (yes, the team that shares a name with Scandinavian pirates) have been absent from league and conference titles for quite a while now. Despite having one league title and four conference titles, the most recent was way back in 1976.
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The Tennessee Titans, once known as the Houston Oilers, have one conference championship of late – in 1999. Its two league championships came when the team was still located in Texas.
The Carolina Panthers joined the NFL in 1995 as an expansion team and despite being a formidable opponent at times, they've yet to secure a league championship. They have won two conference titles, however.
Formerly the Decatur Staleys, the Chicago Bears had quite a bit of championship success in the early years of the NFL, but haven't won a title since 1985 (unless you count that last conference championship in 2006).
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The Los Angeles Chargers, another team that has moved around a bit (they were most recently in San Diego), have two titles under their belt, including one conference championship and one league championship.
The New York Jets earned its lone championship in 1968, a win in Super Bowl III, which was actually the first Super Bowl to be numbered ... two previous games were retroactively numbered. Fun fact: The "New York" Jets actually play in New Jersey. Huh!
The Detroit Lions have won four league titles – in 1935, 1952, 1953 and 1957 -- and four conference championships, the most recent of which occurred in 1957. It's been a long few decades, eh, Lions fans?
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Joining the league in 1995, the Jacksonville Jaguars have been a pesky competitor for many teams to deal with, but haven't been able to get over the championship hump to bring home titles of its own.
The Arizona Cardinals, which once called Chicago home (as the aptly-named Chicago Cardinals), have two league titles, both coming prior to the 1950s. Their lone conference championship came in 2008.