Do the 2001-14 Patriots Have the Greatest Postseason Reign? (continued)
Second, we look at weighted postseason advancement rates. For this study, only the 13 “postseason reigns” that were discovered above will qualify for this part of the analysis. As for the weighted postseason advancements, we’re going to stick with a formula very similar to the one used for the Pick’em competition. That formula used a 6-6-9-12 point system for the winners, but we will downsize the point total to one-third of that system for this study. Also, we want to reward that just makes the playoffs.
Therefore, the final system we will use to determine the weight postseason advancement rates goes as followed:
- Making the postseason: gain four points
- Advance past Wild Card Weekend: gain two more points
- Advance past the Divisional Round: gain two more points
- Win the Conference Championship Game: gain three more points
- Win the Super Bowl championship: gain four more points
This points system is the post-merger set. For the pre-merger set, simply because a Conference Championship victory with a NFL or AFL Championship victory. Also, the Wild Card Weekend points do not apply to any seasons before 1978. Each respective point total in the postseason reign will be divided by the total possible points in each reign to create the weight postseason advancement rate for each respective reign. The below table shows the results, with the 2001-14 Patriots once again highlighted in blue.
Table 2: Postseason Advancement Rates
| Team | Year-by-Year Record | Total Pts | Possible Pts | Adv Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-14 Patriots | 3-0 +1, None, 3-0 +1, 3-0 +1, 1-1, 2-1, 2-1, +1, None, 0-1, 0-1 +1, 2-1 +1, 1-1 +1, 1-1 +1, 2-0 +1 |
118 points | 206 points | 57.28 percent |
| 1981-98 49ers | 3-0 +1, None, 1-1 +1, 3-0 +1, 0-1, 0-1 +1, 0-1 +1, 3-0 +1, 3-0 +1, 1-1 +1, None, 1-1 +1, 1-1 +1, 3-0 +1, 0-1 +1, 1-1, 1-1 +1, 1-1 |
149 points | 270 points | 55.19 percent |
| 1972-84 Steelers | 1-1, 0-1, 3-0, 3-0, 1-1, 0-1, 3-0 +1, 3-0 +1, None, None, 0-1, 0-1 +1, 1-1 +1 |
94 points | 183 points | 51.37 percent |
| 1982-92 Redskins | 4-0, 2-1 +1, 0-1 +1, None, 2-1, 3-0 +1, None, None, 1-1, 3-0 +1, 1-1 |
82 points | 165 points | 49.70 percent |
| 1966-85 Cowboys | 0-1, 1-1, 0-1, 0-1, 2-1, 3-0, 1-1, 1-1, None, 2-1, 1-1, 3-0, 2-1 +1, 0-1 +1, 2-1, 1-1 +1, 2-1, 0-1, None, 0-1 +1 |
131 points | 274 points | 47.81 percent |
| 1968-78 Vikings | 0-1, 2-1, 0-1, 0-1, None, 2-1, 2-1, 0-1, 2-1, 1-1, 0-1 +1 | 64 points | 145 points | 44.14 percent |
| 1970-85 Dolphins | 0-1, 2-1, 3-0, 3-0, 0-1, None, None, None, 0-1, 0-1 +1, None, 0-1 +1, 3-1, 0-1 +1, 2-1 +1, 1-1 +1 |
95 points | 224 points | 42.41 percent |
| 1966-85 Raiders | None, 1-1, 0-1*, 1-1, 1-1, None, 0-1, 1-1, 1-1, 1-1, 3-0, 1-1, None, None, 4-0, None, 1-1, 3-0 +1, 0-1, 0-1 +1 |
109 points | 270 points | 40.37 percent |
| 1999-2014 Colts | 0-1 +1, 0-1, None, 0-1, 2-1, 1-1, 0-1 +1, 4-0, 0-1 +1, 0-1, 2-1 +1, 0-1, None, 0-1, 1-1, 2-1 |
92 points | 240 points | 38.33 percent |
| 2000-11 Steelers | None, 1-1 +1, 1-1, None, 1-1 +1, 4-0, None, 0-1 3-0 +1, None, 2-1 +1, 0-1 |
67 points | 180 points | 37.22 percent |
| 1992-2004 Packers | None, 1-1, 1-1, 2-1, 3-0 +1, 2-1 +1, 0-1, None, None, 1-1, 0-1, 1-1, 0-1 |
70 points | 195 points | 35.90 percent |
| 1966-80 Rams | None, 0-1, None, 0-1, None, None, None, 0-1, 1-1, 1-1, 1-1, 0-1, 1-1 +1, 2-1 +1, 0-1 |
57 points | 199 points | 28.64 percent |
| 1990-2003 Dolphins | 1-1, None, 1-1 +1, None, 1-1, 0-1, None, 0-1, 1-1, 1-1, 1-1, 0-1, None, None |
50 points | 210 points | 23.81 percent |
Total Pts= Advancement Points Earned; Possible Pts= Possible Advancement Points; Adv Pct= Postseason Advancement Rate
*- Excludes the 1968 Western Division playoff
We now see where the Patriots truly step up to the plate, and this something that truly puts the Belichick-Brady combo in the discussion for “best ever” debates. As expected, the 1981-98 49ers put up the toughest competition when it comes to postseason advancement rate. No wonder the comparisons to the Montana-Walsh comparison are so prevalent. With a Super Bowl loss, the 2001-14 Patriots fall to 56.19 percent and take one small step closer to the rest. With a Super Bowl win, they improve to 59.10 percent to gain some extra distance. One can truly marvel at New England’s consistent postseason success.