This has been one of the strangest playoffs in the history of the NFL.
We had been expecting another Chiefs VS Bucs final if we were being completely honest. But instead, we are looking at the Rams VS the Bengals?! Who could have guessed it, we certainly didn’t.
We are not even sure who we would pick as the winner out of those two – if you have an idea, check out these NFL Super Bowl odds.
To celebrate this strange year, we are going to take a look at the 10 most surprising teams to reach the Super Bowl…
#10 – 2003 Panthers
In the 2001 and 2002 seasons, the Panthers had one of the worst records in the NFL. Trust us when we say that everyone was blown away by their Super Bowl Run in 2003.
Sadly, they couldn’t take the dream all the way as they met the Patriots in the final and became their second victim in two years.
#9 – 1982 Washington Football Team
This victory put an end to a 40-year championship drought for Washington. This victory should be considered extra special because the playoffs that year included twice the amount of teams – but Joe Gibbs and his team made it all look easy.
#8 – 2001 Patriots
With hindsight, it is easy to look at the Patriots making it to a Super Bowl final in the 21st century as par for the course. But in 2001 we had no idea what was about to hit us and the concept of a Patriots Dynasty was laughable. We barely knew who Tom Brady was – he did get picked 199th in his Draft.
We have never been happier to be proved wrong.
#7 – 2000 Ravens
Since leaving Cleveland, the Ravens had not made their mark on the NFL. They had a great defensive team, but no offense to help them out.
That all changed when they picked up Trent Dilfer – he turned the team around and shocked everyone by taking them to the Super Bowl.
#6 – 1981 49ers
Before 1981, going from the bottom of the NFL to Super Bowl champions in two years had never been done before. Most of us thought that it would never be done. The 49ers decided to do the impossible.
This story is a true testament to why the Draft is so important to keeping the NFL so competitive. It also shows you what an incredible player Joe Montana really was.
# 5 – 2007 Giants
It took Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin 3 years to get the Giants into winning form, but when they did – wow, what a team they were in 2007.
They made it to the Super Bowl after two unsuccessful runs in the playoffs in 2005 and 2006. In 2007, they beat the Packers, the Patriots, and the Cowboys on the way to the Super Bowl.
They were the first team ever to knock the number one NFC seed out of the playoffs. They beat Brett Favre in his last match, and in the Super Bowl, they beat the Patriots who had had an undefeated season up until that point.
#4 – 1999 Rams
The Rams were pretty happy with their acquisition of Trent Green at the start of the ’99 season. Only for him to be injured in a pre-season match.
But along came Kurt Warner (from what felt like nowhere) to lead the Rams to a 13-3 season, and a Super Bowl victory.
#3 – 2021 Rams
The last time that the Rams played in the Super Bowl was in 1999 (see section above). At the start of the season, the Rams had middling odds to make it to the Super Bowl. We’ll be honest, they wouldn’t have been in our Top 10 teams we thought would make it.
However, not only did the Rams top the NFC West this year but they knocked out the 49ers in the conference final without breaking a sweat.
#2 – 2021 Bengals
The Rams were +150,000 (150-1) to even make it to the Super Bowl this year. They have a 25 year old quarterback at their head and two years ago they were the worst team in the NFL.
In the Conference finals, they knocked the Chiefs- who have been Super Bowl favorites since day 1 – out of the race like it was nothing. This is one of the most impressive things any team has ever done.
Are they about to win their first-ever Super Bowl?
#1 – 2020 Buccaneers
Before this match, the critics said no one would ever win Super Bowl MVP over the age of 40. Before this match, they said Tom Brady would never win another Super Bowl. Before this match, no team had ever played at a home Super Bowl.
But that night Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers left everyone speechless.
Who would have predicted that the 2021-22 Super Bowl was going to look like this. At the start of the year, we were talking about Mahomes, Brady, or Rodgers fighting it out for Super Bowl MVP – not Stafford and Burrow!
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