This past Sunday in the Super Bowl, the Chiefs defeated the 49ers 25-22 to win the Lombardi Trophy. 58 Super Bowls have come and gone, but this poses an interesting thought.
A look at how each champion progressed on their journey to becoming champions. ESPN recently ranked All Super Bowl winning teams. These rankings were made based on his DVOA rating, which takes into account play-by-play efficiency.
Below is where the two winning Bucks teams from 2002 and 2020 will play.
2020 Bucs Squad slot ranks in top half of rankings
The first Bucs Super Bowl champions ranked by ESPN are No. 20 on the 2020 roster, which beat the Chiefs 31-9. ESPN’s Aaron Schatz talked about Tom Brady’s team retaining the Lombardi Trophy in Tampa Bay.
The Buccaneers finished fourth in total DVOA in 2020, but would have been first had they not played a single game after defeating the Saints 38-3 in Week 9. Overall, the Bucks were third in offense and fifth in defense.
Things didn’t look much better when the Bucks went 7-5 in their bye week, but won their final four games of the regular season and then four more in the playoffs. First they beat Washington 31-23 in the wild card, then got revenge in New Orleans by a score of 30-20. They defeated the Packers 31-26 in Brady Rodgers’ NFC Championship Game, and their biggest playoff win was 31-9 against the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV.
Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo courtesy of USA Today
As former head coach Bruce Arians recently spoke to Pewter Reportthis win looks even more impressive considering it meant defeating Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, who appear to be well on their way to the next NFL dynasty.
“I think it’s starting to get noticed a little bit that we were a pretty good football team that year,” Arians said. “We take great pride in it, especially the way we do things.”
The Chiefs weren’t the only challenger Tampa Bay had to overcome. It also means going to New Orleans to beat Drew Brees and the Saints in his final NFL game, then heading to Lambeau Field in late January to beat Aaron Rodgers in the prime of his MVP reign. was.
Overall, this Buccaneers team had to beat three of the best quarterbacks in NFL history, and they did it after going just 7-9 last season. A team effort combined with a dominant defense and high-scoring offense led by Lavonte David, Devin White, Jason Pierre-Paul, Shaquille Barrett, rookie Antoine Winfield Jr., and many others. got there. .
The 2002 Bucks rose in the standings thanks to their historic defense.
While the 2020 team was ranked high, there is one other Bucks team ranked high, and that is the 2002 team, which ranked 14th. This group’s offense wasn’t the best, but the defense was historic. Schatz said of this Buccaneers team:
Former Bucks head coach Jon Gruden and owner Malcolm Glazer – Photo courtesy of USA Today
This team was only 22nd in offensive DVOA. However, the Bucs boasted the best non-strike season pass defense in DVOA history, and the third-best total defense in DVOA history behind only the 1991 Eagles and 1986 Bears. When the Bucks entered the postseason, both teams worked well together, winning by an average of 23.0 points per game.
The 49ers won the district game 31-6. In the NFC Championship Game, they got revenge against the Eagles they lost in Week 7, 27-10. And in Super Bowl XXXVII, Dwight Smith had two pick-sixes from Rich Gannon and Keenan McCardell caught two touchdown passes from Brad. Thanks to Johnson’s performance, the Buccaneers easily won 48-21.
On offense, Brad Johnson did enough to score and support the defense. It helped that opponents only allowed 12.3 points per game.
When you think of the best defenses in NFL history, the 1985 Bears and 2000 Ravens often come to mind first. However, the 2002 group, which included Derrick Brooks, Ronde Barber, Warren Sapp, and John Lynch, was not far behind. All four have gold jackets, and maybe Simeon Rice could one day score five points on just one defense. In addition to that group of stars, that season they were supported by co-stars such as Brian Kelly, Dwight Smith, and Dexter Jackson.
Now that the 2023 season is over and all eyes are on 2024, it’s worth remembering the two greatest Bucks teams in team history and how they were able to reach the pinnacle of success.
How would you rank these teams? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
