What we saw Al Davis do with the
Raiders in the late 1970s and early '80s was remarkable. He was always infatuated with speed, and we saw him -- and head coaches John Madden and Tom Flores -- utilize speed at most, if not all, skill positions. That's why they were able to win three championships during that time (1976, 1980 and 1983).
When you talk about a dynasty, you have to talk about the fan base. When the
Raiders moved from Oakland to Los Angeles in 1982, their fans moved with them. History shows the
Raiders have a strong fan base, and if they move to Las Vegas, you would see the same type of following.
It's almost a no-brainer for me, because I grew up watching the
Cowboys in the early 1990s. I wore No. 8 because I was a big-time Troy Aikman fan. That
Cowboys team won three titles in four years (1992, 1993 and 1995), and in the year they didn't win, they lost in the NFC Championship Game to San Francisco. They had some of the first true triplets with quarterback Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin. That's the mold every team is trying to create now: that three-headed monster. The
Cowboys had the right combo, and they dominated.
Since 2000, the
New England Patriots have been so consistent -- 13 division titles, 10 AFC Championship Game appearances, six
Super Bowl appearances and four titles. They've had the same head coach (Bill Belichick), quarterback (Tom Brady) and a nucleus of players for long periods of time in that locker room, which allows them to continue to experiment and win.
I have to go with the 1970s
Steelers, because that group won four Super Bowls in six seasons. That's incredible. It's impressive that the
Patriots have won four titles in 14 years, let alone winning four in
SIX. Those
Steelers teams had a great combination of players -- Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth and Mean Joe Greene, among others. When I think "dynasty," I think championships and
Hall of Fame players and coaches. The '70s
Steelers had both.
What do you expect a former 49er to say? I'm going with my team. From the time San Francisco won its first
Super Bowl in 1981 to its fifth title in 1994, the team had one of the best records in the league every year. Not only did they win five championships, but there were seven other postseason appearances -- four times, their season ended with the NFC title game.
For me, it's a debate between the early-2000s
Patriots and early-1990s
Cowboys. Dallas is unique because it won before and after free agency began heading into the 1993 season. Jerry Jones did a great job building a team with stars at every position, and the
Cowboys won three titles with two different head coaches.
For the
Patriots, they had a lot of the same staff, leadership and structure. But what gives the edge to New England in my eyes is the fact that free agency created more restrictions than the '90s
Cowboys had to deal with.
The first team that pops in my head is the
Cowboys and the run they had in the early 1990s. They had
Hall of Fame everything -- players, coaches, you name it. The defense was stout and the offense was explosive. They had it all.
