The Parity of the NFL - Brendan Darr's Blog

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Brendan Darr's Blog

The Parity of the NFL

Posted on September 27, 2012 at 08:34 PM.

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There are no Dallas Cowboys teams of the mid-90's or San Francisco 49ers teams of the 1980's in the NFL. We have no dominant teams that can go on multi-year runs of championships. We also have no teams that are consistently drafting in the top-3 -- Oh, wait, sorry Cleveland. Speaking of which, how long ago does 2007 seem?

With that said, the parity in the league is as widespread as it has ever been. It says a lot about the league when it is three weeks in and only two teams have yet to win a game. On the other side of the coin, only three teams have yet to lose a game.

We've seen teams that we thought were previously untouchable at home, the Saints, lose twice at home to far inferior opponents in the Redskins and Chiefs.

The NFL has also seen three of the more dominant teams of the last decade in New England, Pittsburgh, and Green Bay start the season with a losing record through three games.

Should we all expect these trends to continue? Well, New Orleans' case, perhaps, but I would certainly expect New England, Pittsburgh and Green Bay to get back to their winning ways sooner rather than later. As for teams like Cleveland, St. Louis, and to a lesser extent Jacksonville and Washington, would I expect them to break out of their slumps and make the playoffs this year? Unfortunately, no.

Ultimately, a regression to the mean should take place with certain teams, whereas others like Buffalo, Cincinnati and Minnesota looked prime to continue their ascent up the NFL hierarchy.

A lot of this has to do with injuries, while others are poor management. By now, I'm sure you've all heard to the reports about the Raiders cutting their second third-round draft pick from 2011. A story of incompetence that has been repeating itself over the years in Oakland. Some things never change, despite ownership. Just fight to be relevant, baby.

This is what sets the NFL apart from other leagues. Sure, the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles are bucking the recent trends in the MLB, but where are the Pirates and Royals? Oh, and look the Yankees, Rangers, Giants and Cardinals are all still in the playoffs. The Lakers just added Steve Nash and Dwight Howard to stay competitive. The NHL? Well, we have more to talk about the MLS than we do the NHL right now -- and the MLS may have some parity, but it all boils down to NYRB and LA Galaxy.

So while some teams seem to be recession-proof, none have risen head-and-shoulders above the rest. While others have yet to step-up to the competition. It all boils down to one thing for the NFL, and at the beginning of every season we as NFL fans always feel like our team has a shot if we get the right breaks (Note: Except in Cleveland, you're eternally doomed). That's called parity, folks.