NFL History: Ranking the 30 best wild card teams in NFL history

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 06: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Eli Manning #10 and Brandon Jacobs #34 of the New York Giants in action against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 6, 2013 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Eagles defeated the Giants 36-21. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

11 of 31

Ahman Green #30 of the Green Bay Packers (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

Ranking the 30 best wild card teams in NFL history: 21. 2001 Green Bay Packers

There were so many really good Green Bay Packers teams with Brett Favre under center. Surprisingly, those teams ended his career with just one Super Bowl. The gunslinger was always trying to win the game with every throw, and that came with mixed results. However, in 2001, the Packers were coming off two straight seasons without a playoff berth, and it was time to show the league why Green Bay was the leader of this league’s history.

Favre threw for just under 4,000 yards and 32 touchdowns, ranking third and second in those categories respectively. It was enough to go 12-4, which on a normal year is good enough to win the division. The Chicago Bears had an even better regular season, which relegated the Packers to the four seed (a wild card at the time).

In the first round, the Packers knocked around the 49ers. After San Francisco tied the game early in the fourth quarter, the Packers scored 10 unanswered points to win the game. Ahman Green’s nine-yard run sealed the game right after the two-minute warning.

Unfortunately for the Packers, because they were the wild card, they were forced to face the “Greatest Show on Turf” in the next round. The St. Louis Rams led by NFL MVP Kurt Warner were just nonstop on the Packers defense, and it looked like they were destined for a championship. That is until Bill Belichick found a way to stop them, no matter how he did it.

Home/NFL