APFA/NFL Unofficial Title I (All info courtesy NFLHistory.net) The 1920 season is being skipped for purposes of creating a theoretical lineal title, due to suspected incomplete data. -21 teams enter. -On November 24, the Chicago Staleys lost to the Buffalo All-Americans, losing all lineal titles earned since then. The All-Americans then proceeded to lose back to the Staleys December 4. -The Akron Pros, defending 1920 champions, lost to the Dayton Triangles November 20. The Triangles lost to the Buffalo All-Americans November 27. -The Canton Bulldogs lost to the Akron Pros October 23. -The Rock Island Independents lost to the Staleys October 10. -The Green Bay Packers lost to the Independents October 30. The Independents re-lost to the Staleys November 13. -The Evansville Crimson Giants lost to the Hammond Pros October 16. The Pros then lost to the Chicago Cardinals November 6. The Cardinals lost to the AKRON Pros December 4, and the Pros entered 1922 with one of the few non-Staleys claims. -The Dayton Triangles lost to the Detroit Tigers October 9. -The Chicago Cardinals lost to the Akron Pros October 9. -The Cleveland Tigers lost to the Dayton Triangles October 30. The Triangles lost to the Canton Bulldogs November 6, who lost to the Chicago Staleys December 11. -The Washington Senators lost to the Canton Bulldogs November 27. -The Detroit Tigers lost to the Akron Pros October 16. -The Columbus, Hammond, Cincinatti, Minneapolis, Louisville teams lost Week 2. Tonawanda, Muncie, and NY Brickley all lost all their games. Rochester lost its first game October 16. These eight teams mean the total to be accounted for is 12. Heading into 1922, the ONLY claims for a lineal title would rest with the Chicago Staleys and the Akron Pros. There was no Staleys team in 1922, but the Chicago Bears have a hold on the title due to some claim to being descended from the Staleys. In addition to the Pros and Bears, the Buffalo All-Americans, Canton Bulldogs (who end the year undefeated), Chicago Cardinals, Dayton Triangles, Rock Island Independents, and Toledo Maroons win their first week. The Minneapolis Marines and Rochester Jeffersons were not playing Week 1. Pros Lineage Bears Lineage Other Lineages Akron Pros Chicago Bears BUF, CAN, CHC, DAY, RIx, TOL, MINx, ROCx Bears def. Independents Week 2. On October 12, the Jeffersons started their season by tying the Akron Pros. In Week 3, however, the Dayton Triangles def. the Minneapolis Marines. Bears def. Jeffersons Week 3. 10/22/22 Canton Bulldogs CHC, DAY, TOL (BUF def. by CHB same week) 10/29/22Canton Bulldogs CHC, BUF, TOL Thus the Bulldogs become undisputed champions of a lineage continuing from the APFA. From Week 6 onward, the following changes occured regarding CHC, BUF, and TOL's claims: CHC def. BUF 9-7 November 5; then CAN def. CHC November 19. TOL skipped Weeks 7 and 8. CHB def. TOL December 3; then CHC def. CHB December 10. Entering 1923 Season. APFA Unof. Title I Dispute to title ("Maroon Title") Canton Bulldogs 12/10/22 Chicago Cardinals 11/4/23 Canton Bulldogs (become first NFL Lineal Champions) The Unofficial Title I can also be seen as the Canton Bulldogs Hall of Fame Memorial Title. It is split in 1924 when the Bulldogs move to Cleveland and are absorbed by the Cleveland team. Because the NFL considers the revival in 1925 to be the same team, the Hall of Fame title continues there. Although yet another round of "every team has a claim" is possible, I don't consider it such, but I do show other claims. Date Lineal Title Other Claims 9/27/24 Bulldogs CHB FRN DUL RI RAC CHC BUF COL AKR DAY KC KEN MIN 10/5/24 CLE DAY DUL RI RI CHC BUF BUF AKR DAY MIL DAY* DUL *=On October 4, Kenosha lost to Frankfort, then the next day Frankfort lost to Dayton. 10/12/24 DAY DUL RI CHC DAY CLE MIL 10/19/24 RI DUL RI CHB *GB *=We have condensed the gap between last week's CHC and last week's MIL here. 10/26/24 KC DUL CHB GB 11/2/24 HAM Note: Beyond this point, the Hammond Pros never played a game the rest of the 1924 season. Their claim, however, stands for 1925. 11/9/24 GB 11/16/24 Frankford Yellow Jackets GB CHB Yellow Jackets end Bulldogs' long winning streak 12-7. 11/22/24 CHB 1924 season ended after ten weeks. THE FATE OF THE PROS' CLAIM: The Hammond Pros lost 9/20 to the Green Bay Packers. When the Packers then defeated the Bears one week later, only one dispute to the Lineal Title (the BDE, for "Bulldogs Don't Exist") remained. But look out - the Dogs are back... Date Lineal Title Date BDE Title Date Hall of Fame Title 11/16/24 Yellow Jackets 11/22/24 Bears Canton Bulldogs 9/20/25 Packers 10/4/25 Independents 10/10/25 Yellow Jackets The Yellow Jackets unified the two Bulldog lineages 12-7 at Frankford Stadium. Only the dispute title remains! 10/11/25 Panthers 10/18/25 Packers 11/8/25 Cardinals 11/15/25 Bears On November 26, the Bears and Cardinals played to a 0-0 tie. 0-0 ties were rather common in the early days of the NFL. 12/6/25 Maroons 12/9/25 Steam Roller 12/13/25 Yellow Jackets Maroons suspended from league, thus ending any claim against the lineal title, which should enter 1926 finally completely uncontested. But there is controversy surrounding this. The Bears held the lineal title on 12/6 and claim the lineal title. The Maroons' suspension could be seen as invalidating their defeat of the Cardinals and keeping the dispute title in Cardinal hands. (The "official" championship was subject to this dispute as well.) All four teams remained undefeated until the two Chicago claims, also the two claims resulting from sour losses, were unified October 17 as the Bears beat the Cardinals 16-0. Lineal Title Chicago Claim Maroons Claim 10/17/26 Bears 10/24/26 Steam Roller 10/30/26 Steam Roller Date Lineal Title Date Chicago "Sour Grapes" Claim 10/31/26 Yellow Jackets 12/4/26 Yellow Jackets With the "official" NFL Championship effectively on the line as well, the Yellow Jackets edged the Bears 7-6. Title Holder Start End Notes Yellow Jackets 10/31/269/24/27 Triangles 9/24/27 10/2/27 Defeated the Yellow Jackets 6-3. Yankees 10/2/27 10/16/27Defeated the Triangles 6-3. Bears 10/16/2711/8/27 Defeated the Yankees 12-0. Yankees 11/8/27 11/24/27Defeated the Bears 26-0. Bulldogs 11/24/27 Defeated the Yankees 30-19. By this point the Canton team had folded in 1926. Cleveland Bulldogs fold. End of APFA Title. NFL Unofficial Title II/Pre-Merger Lineal Title Awarded starting 1928 Season; 10 teams enter After Week 2, FRN, CHB, NYG, and PRV have won or are otherwise still alive; DET not yet played FRN Claim Bears Claim Giants Claim PRV Claim DET Claim 10/7/28 FRN 10/13/28 NYY 10/14/28 CHB 10/21/28 PRV 10/21/28 GB 11/3/28 FRN 11/18/28 PRV 11/25/28 POT Steam Roller 11/29/2810/6/29 Claim Lineal Title II by defeating Pottsville. Giants 10/6/29 11/24/29Defeated the Steam Roller 7-0. Packers 11/24/2911/16/30Defeated the Giants 20-6, the Giants' only loss all season. Cruised to the official NFL title. Cardinals 11/16/3011/27/30Defeated the Packers 13-6. Bears 11/27/309/27/31 Defeated the Cardinals 6-0. Packers 9/27/31 11/15/31Defeated the Bears 7-0. Cardinals 11/15/3111/26/31Defeated the Packers 21-13. Bears 11/26/3111/29/31Defeated the Cardinals 18-7. Spartans 11/29/3110/9/32 Defeated the Bears 3-0. Packers 10/9/32 11/20/32Defeated the Spartans 15-10. Giants 11/20/3212/4/32 Defeated the Packers 6-0. Bears 12/4/32 11/5/33 Defeated the Giants 6-0. Went on to win the special "Playoff Game" against the Spartans. Redskins 11/5/33 11/12/33Defeated the Bears 10-0. Giants 11/12/3312/17/33Defeated the Redskins 7-0. Bears 12/17/3312/9/34 Defeated the Giants in the first ever NFL Championship Game. Giants 12/9/34 9/29/35 Snapped what had been an unbeaten Bears season in the NFL Championship Game. Packers 9/29/35 10/13/35Defeated the Giants 7-16 in the regular season. Cardinals 10/13/3510/20/35Defeated the Packers 3-0 in the regular season. Pirates 10/20/3511/3/35 Defeated the Cardinals 17-13 in the regular season. First lineal title in team history. Dodgers 11/3/35 11/10/35Defeated the Pirates 13-7 in the regular season. Pirates 11/10/3511/24/35Defeated the Dodgers 16-7 in the regular season. Packers 11/24/3511/28/35Defeated the Pirates 34-14 in the regular season. Cardinals 11/28/3512/8/35 Defeated the Packers 9-7 in the regular season. Bears 12/8/35 11/1/36 Defeated the Cardinals 13-0 in the regular season. This was the first time in the history of the Championship Game that the lineal title holder did not make it. The Lions defeated the Giants in the Game. Packers 11/1/36 9/12/37 Defeated the Bears 21-10 in the regular season. The Packers had earlier won the 1935 Championship Game lineage from the Lions October 18. The Packers never lost after that and won the Title Game. Cardinals 9/12/37 9/19/37 Defeated the Packers 14-7 in the regular season. Lions 9/19/37 10/3/37 Defeated the Cardinals 16-7. First lineal title as the Lions. Packers 10/3/37 11/21/37Defeated the Lions 26-6. Giants 11/21/3712/5/37 Defeated the Packers 10-0. Redskins 12/5/37 10/9/38 Defeated the Giants 49-14. Went on to win the Championship Game. Giants 10/9/38 11/5/39 Defeated the Redskins 10-7. Went unbeaten the rest of the way and won the Championship Game. Lions 11/5/39 11/12/39Defeated the Giants 18-14. Bears 11/12/399/25/40 Defeated the Lions 23-13. The Bears fell just short of the Title Game. The Packers defeated the Giants in the Championship Game. However, in the Bears' first game Week 3, they beat the Packers 41-10. Cardinals 9/25/40 9/29/40 Defeated the Bears 21-7. Packers 9/29/40 10/20/40Defeated the Cardinals 31-6. Lions 10/20/4010/27/40Defeated the Packers 23-14. Redskins 10/27/4011/10/40Defeated the Lions 20-14. Dodgers 11/10/4010/5/41 Defeated the Redskins 16-14. First lineal title since 1935. The Dodgers failed to make the Championship Game, where the Bears walloped the Redskins 73-0. Redskins 10/5/41 11/9/41 Defeated the Dodgers 3-0. The Bears' only loss of the season came against the Packers 11/2. Dodgers 11/9/41 11/16/41Defeated the Redskins 13-7. Steelers 11/16/4111/23/41Defeated the Dodgers 14-7. Packers 11/23/4112/14/41Defeated the Steelers 54-7 to unify the titles. Bears 12/14/4112/13/42Defeated the Packers in the first-ever divisional playoff game and won the Championship Game. Redskins 12/43/4211/28/43After the Bears went unbeaten in the regular season, the Redskins upset them in the Championship Game. Phil/Pitt 11/28/4312/5/43 The war-forced combination of the Eagles and Steelers defeated the Redskins 27-14 in the regular season. Unless the Frankford Yellow Jackets are counted, this is the first lineal title in Eagles history. Packers 12/5/43 11/5/44 The Packers defeated the "Steagles" 38-28 in the regular season. However, they failed to make the Championship Game, where the Bears got revenge over the Redskins. The Packers defeated the Bears 42-28 on 9/24/44. Bears 11/5/44 11/19/44Defeated the Packers 21-0 in the regular season. Lions 11/19/4410/7/45 Defeated the Bears 41-21 in the regular season. The Lions failed to make the championship game and the Packers defeated the Giants in that game. Packers 10/7/45 10/14/45Defeated the Lions 57-21 in the regular season, unifying the titles. Rams 10/14/4510/28/45Defeated the Packers 27-14 in the regular season. First lineal title in team history. Unless the 1945 NFL Championship is counted, only lineal title in Cleveland. Eagles 10/28/4512/2/45 Defeated the Rams 28-14 in the regular season. First lineal title in team history, not counting the wartime combination with the Steelers. Giants 12/2/45 12/9/45 Defeated the Eagles 28-21 in the regular season. Redskins 12/9/45 12/16/45Defeated the Giants 17-0 in the regular season. Rams 12/16/459/29/46 Won the 1945 NFL Championship Game. Immediately moved to Los Angeles. |-------------------------------------------------------------------------| |All-American Football Conference Lineal Title | |After 1946 Wk 1: CLE, NY, BRK have claims, LA, CHI haven't played yet | |Spl NFL Claim NY Claim BRK Claim LA Claim CHI Claim | |Browns Yankees Dodgers Dons Rockets | |AFTER WEEK 2: | | Dons Browns | |AFTER WEEK 3: | |Spl NFL Claim NY Claim BRK/LA Claim | |Browns Yankees Dons | |AFTER WEEK 4: | | Browns | |AFTER WEEK 5: | |Spl NFL Claim BRK/LA Claim Date | |Browns Dons | | 49ers 10/13/46 | | Bisons 10/19/46 | |49ers 10/27/46 | | 49ers 11/2/46 | |Team Start End | |49ers 11/2/46 11/10/46Unified against the Bisons. | |Browns 11/10/4610/12/47Def. 49ers 14-7. Won the AAFC Title Game. | |Dons 10/12/4711/2/47 Def. Browns 13-10. Only CLE loss of year. | |49ers 11/2/47 11/9/47 Def. Dons 26-16. | |Yankees 11/9/47 12/14/47Def. 49ers 24-16. | |Browns 12/14/4710/9/49 Won AAFC Title Game. | |The Browns went undefeated for 1948 and won the AAFC Title again. | |49ers 10/9/49 10/23/49Def. Browns 56-28. | |Yankees 10/23/4911/6/49 Def. 49ers 24-3. | |Bills 11/6/49 12/4/49 Def. Yankees 17-14. | |Browns 12/4/49 Defeated the Bills in the AAFC Semifinals,| | and won the last AAFC Championship. | |For the post-AAFC history of the title, see NFL 1950 season. | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------| Eagles 9/29/46 10/13/46Defeated the now-Los Angeles Rams 25-14 in the regular season. Packers 10/13/4611/3/46 Defeated the Eagles 19-7 in the regular season. Bears 11/3/46 12/1/46 Defeated the Packers 10-7 in the regular season. Cardinals 12/1/46 10/19/47Defeated the Bears 35-28 in the regular season. The Bears defeated the Giants in the NFL Championship Game. The Bears lost to the Packers in their first game of the season; the Packers later lost to the Cardinals. Rams 10/19/4710/26/47Defeated the Cardinals 27-7 in the regular season. Eagles 10/26/4711/23/47Defeated the Rams 14-7 in the regular season. Yanks 11/23/4711/30/47Defeated the Eagles 21-14 in the regular season. First lineal title as such. Redskins 11/30/4712/7/47 Defeated the Yanks 27-24 in the regular season. Giants 12/7/47 12/14/47Defeated the Redskins 35-10 in the regular season. Rams 12/14/4710/10/48Defeated the Giants 34-10 in the regular season. Missed the playoffs. The Cardinals defeated the Eagles in the championship game. Bears 10/10/4810/24/48Defeated the Rams 42-21 in the regular season. Six days before, had handed the Cardinals what would be their only loss of the season. Eagles 10/24/4812/5/48 Defeated the Bears 12-7 in the regular season. Yanks 12/5/48 9/22/49 Defeated the Eagles 37-14 in the regular season. Missed the championship game, which the Eagles took over the Cardinals. Yanks moved to New York and became the Bulldogs. Eagles 9/22/49 10/16/49Defeated the Bulldogs in the first game of the new season. Bears 10/16/4910/23/49Defeated the Eagles 38-21 in the regular season. Giants 10/23/4911/6/49 Defeated the Bears 28-35 in the regular season. Bulldogs 11/6/49 11/13/49Defeated the Giants 31-24 in the regular season. Cardinals 11/13/4912/11/49Defeated the Bulldogs 65-20 in the regular season. Bears 12/11/49 Defeated the Cardinals 52-21 in the regular season. Did not make championship game. The Eagles defeated the Rams 14-0. 1950 SEASON AND THE MERGE OF THE AAFC AND NFL LINEAL TITLES American Team/Date National Team/Date Notes Browns 9/16/50 Bears 12/11/49 In the "World Series of Pro Football", the opening game of the 1950 season, the four-time defending AAFC Champion Cleveland Browns bested the defending NFL Champion Eagles 35-10. Because the previous season had ended in a split title, this did not merge the AAFC Title with the NFL Title. Instead, it created the unusual situation that the NFL Champion's lineage was with a rival league's title. The title stemming from the AAFC and the 1949 Championship Game is called the American Title from here to unification, and stays largely in the American Conference; the old NFL Lineal Title is called the National Title and stays largely in the National Conference. Giants 10/1/50 Packers 10/1/50 GB def. CHB 31-21; NYG def. CLE 6-0. Both titles now in National Conference. Yanks 10/8/50 Defeated the Packers 44-31 in the regular season. Steelers10/15/50 Defeated the Giants 17-6 in the regular season. Eagles 10/22/50 Defeated the Steelers 17-10 in the regular season. Steelers11/5/50 Defeated the Eagles 9-7 in the regular season. Bears 11/12/50 Defeated the Yanks 28-20 in the regular season. Redskins12/3/50 Cardinals12/3/50 CHC def. CHB 20-10; WSH def. PIT 24-7. Browns 12/10/50 Steelers12/10/50 CLE def. WSH 45-21; PIT def. CHC 28-7. The Steelers miss the playoffs, the first time a split title does not unify within a season (creation of new lineal titles excepted). The Browns go on to win the NFL Championship. 49ers 9/30/51 Defeated the Browns 24-10 in the regular season. Eagles 10/6/51 Packers 10/7/51 PHI def. SF 21-14; GB def. PIT 35-33. Packers 10/14/5110/21/51Defeated the Eagles 37-24 in the regular season to unify the titles. Rams 10/21/5110/28/51Defeated the Packers 28-0 in the regular season. 49ers 10/28/5111/4/51 Defeated the Rams 44-17 in the regular season. Rams 11/4/51 11/25/51Defeated the 49ers 23-16 in the regular season. Redskins 11/25/5112/2/51 Defeated the Rams 31-21 in the regular season. Eagles 12/2/51 12/9/51 Defeated the Redskins 35-21 in the regular season. Giants 12/9/51 10/19/52Defeated the Eagles 23-7 in the regular season. Did not make the championship game, which the Rams won over the Browns. However, the Browns took their revenge in the first game of the new season. The Browns then lost to the Giants 10/12/52. Cardinals 10/19/5210/26/52Defeated the Giants 24-23 in the regular season. Steelers 10/26/5211/9/52 Defeated the Cardinals 34-28 in the regular season. Lions 11/9/52 11/23/52Defeated the Steelers 31-6 in the regular season. Bears 11/23/5211/27/52Defeated the Lions 24-23 in the regular season. Texans 11/27/5212/7/52 Defeated the Bears 27-23 in the regular season. First lineal title for Dallas. Only Texans win all season. Eagles 12/7/52 12/14/52Defeated the Texans 38-21 in the regular season. Redskins 12/14/5210/18/53Defeated the Eagles 27-21 in the regular season. Did not make the playoffs. The Lions beat the Browns in the NFL Championship Game. Browns 10/18/5312/13/53Defeated the Redskins 30-14 in the regular season. The same week, the Lions lost to the Rams. The Rams would go on to lose to the 49ers, who lost to the Browns 11/15. Eagles 12/13/5310/23/54Defeated the Browns 42-27 in the last game of the regular season, once again splitting the title. The Lions again beat the Browns in the NFL Championship Game. Steelers 10/23/5410/31/54Defeated the Eagles 17-7 in the regular season. The next day, the Lions lost to the 49ers. Cardinals 10/31/5411/7/54 Defeated the Steelers 17-14 in the regular season. The same week, the 49ers lost to the Bears. Eagles 11/7/54 11/14/54Defeated the Cardinals 30-14 in the regular season. Giants 11/14/5411/21/54Defeated the Eagles 27-14 in the regular season. The same week, the Bears lost to the Browns. Rams 11/21/5411/28/54Defeated the Giants 17-16 in the regular season. Bears 11/28/549/25/55 Defeated the Rams 24-13 in the regular season. Wouldn't lose the rest of the way but missed the championship game. The Browns lost to the Lions on 12/19, and the Lions lost to the Bears on the Bears' last game of the season, unifying the titles but creating a new split title. The Browns finally knocked off the Lions in the championship game. Colts 9/25/55 10/16/55Defeated the Bears 23-17 in the regular season. First lineal title. The same week, the Browns lost to the Redskins. Bears 10/16/5511/27/55Defeated the Colts 38-10 in the regular season. The previous week, the Redskins lost to the Cardinals, who lost to the Giants this week. The Giants then lost to the Steelers, who lost to the Eagles, who lost to the Redskins. Cardinals 11/27/5512/4/55 Defeated the Bears 53-14 in the regular season. Eagles 12/4/55 12/11/55Defeated the Cardinals 27-3 in the regular season. The same week, the Redskins lost to the Giants. Bears 12/11/559/30/56 Defeated the Eagles 17-10 in the regular season. Both Giants and Bears missed the championship game, which the Browns took over the Rams, marking the only time the lineal title has been split three ways by a championship - a feat that, in today's playoff system, will probably never happen again. Colts 9/30/56 10/6/56 Defeated the Bears 28-21 in the regular season. The Browns lost to the Cardinals the same week. Lions 10/6/56 11/11/56Defeated the Colts 31-14 in the regular season. The same week, the Cardinals defeated the Giants to unify the last two NFL Championship lineages. The Cardinals only lost in their fourth game, against the Redskins. Redskins 11/11/5612/2/56 Defeated the Lions 18-17 in the regular season to unify the titles. Giants 12/2/56 12/9/56 Defeated the Redskins 28-14 in the regular season. Browns 12/9/56 12/16/56Defeated the Giants 24-7 in the regular season. Cardinals 12/16/5610/6/57 Defeated the Browns 24-7 in the regular season. The Cardinals missed the championship game, which the Giants won over the Bears. I call the NFL Lineal Title the "All-Time" Title from here to the merger. The Browns won the 1956 Title with the first game of the new season. Redskins 10/6/57 10/13/57Defeated the Cardinals 37-14 in the regular season. Giants 10/13/5710/27/57Defeated the Redskins 24-20 in the regular season. The Eagles defeated the Browns the following week. Redskins 10/27/5711/3/57 Defeated the Giants 31-14 in the regular season. The Steelers defeated the Eagles the same week. Browns 11/3/57 12/8/57Defeated the Redskins 21-17 in the regular season. The Browns defeated the Steelers the following week to unify the titles. Lions 12/8/57 9/28/58 Defeated the Browns 20-7 in the regular season. Won a Western Conference playoff and the NFL Championship Game. Colts 9/28/58 11/9/58 Defeated the Lions 28-15 in the regular season. Giants 11/9/58 11/16/58Defeated the Colts 24-21 in the regular season. Steelers 11/16/5810/4/59 Defeated the Giants 31-10 in the regular season. Did not get involved in the Eastern Conference mix. The Colts beat the Giants in the championship Game. Redskins 10/4/59 10/18/59Defeated the Steelers 23-17 in the regular season. The Colts lost to the Bears the same week. The Bears lost to the Rams the following week. Steelers 10/18/5910/25/59Defeated the Redskins 27-6 in the regular season. Giants 10/25/5911/15/59Defeated the Steelers 21-16 in the regular season. The same week, the Rams lost to the Lions, who lost to the 49ers the following week. Steelers 11/15/5912/6/59 Defeated the Giants 14-9 in the regular season. The same week, the 49ers fell to the Bears. Bears 12/6/59 10/2/60 Defeated the Steelers 27-21 in the regular season, unifying the titles. However, they fell short to the Baltimore Colts, who won the Championship Game over the Giants. Colts 10/2/60 10/9/60 Defeated the Bears 42-7 in the regular season to unify the titles. Packers 10/9/60 11/6/60 Defeated the Colts 35-21. First title of the Lombardi era. First lineal title since 1951. Colts 11/6/60 11/27/60Defeated the Packers 38-24 in the regular season. 49ers 11/27/6012/10/60Defeated the Colts 30-22 in the regular season. Packers 12/10/6012/26/60Defeated the 49ers 13-0 in the regular season. Eagles 12/26/6010/1/61 Defeated the Packers in the NFL Championship Game. Cardinals 10/1/61 10/8/61 Defeated the Eagles 30-27 in the regular season. First lineal title in St. Louis. Giants 10/8/61 10/29/61Defeated the Cardinals 24-9 in the regular season. Cowboys 10/29/6111/5/61 Defeated the Giants 17-16 in the regular season. First of their many lineal titles. Cardinals 11/5/61 11/12/61Defeated the Cowboys 31-17 in the regular season. Lions 11/12/6111/23/61Defeated the Cardinals 45-14 in the regular season. Packers 11/23/6112/10/61Defeated the Lions 17-9 in the regular season. 49ers 12/10/6112/16/61Defeated the Packers 22-21 in the regular season. Colts 12/16/619/30/62 Defeated the 49ers 27-24 in the regular season. Did not make the playoffs or the Playoff Bowl. The Packers defeated the Giants in the Championship Game. Lions 9/30/62 10/7/62 Defeated the Colts 29-20 in the regular season. Packers 10/7/62 11/22/62Defeated the Lions 9-7 in the regular season to unify the titles. Lions 11/22/6212/16/62The Packers' only loss would be 26-14 against the Lions. Bears 12/16/6210/20/63Defeated the Lions 3-0 in the regular season. Did not make the Championship Game, won by the Packers again, or the Playoff Bowl. 49ers 10/20/6310/27/63The Bears lost their only game of the season 20-14, after defeating the Packers in their first game of the season. Rams 10/27/6311/3/63 Defeated the 49ers 28-21 in the regular season. Vikings 11/3/63 11/10/63Won their first lineal title 21-13 in the regular season. Packers 11/10/6311/17/63Defeated the Vikings 28-7 in the regular season. Bears 11/17/639/13/64 Defeated the Packers 26-7 in the regular season. Went undefeated the rest of the way and won the NFL Championship Game. Packers 9/13/64 9/20/64 Defeated the Bears 23-12 in the regular season. Colts 9/20/64 12/6/64 Defeated the Packers 21-20 in the regular season. Lions 12/6/64 10/10/65Defeated the Colts 31-14 in the regular season. Missed the Championship Game and playoff bowl. The Packers defeated the Colts in the Championship Game. Colts 10/10/6512/5/65 Defeated the Lions 31-7 in the regular season. The Packers' first loss came Halloween against the Bears, who lost the next week to the Colts. Bears 12/5/65 12/19/65Defeated the Colts 13-0 in the regular season. Vikings 12/19/659/18/66 Defeated the Bears 24-17 in the regular season. Only finished 7-7. The Packers won the first of three straight titles. Colts 9/18/66 10/9/66 Defeated the Vikings 38-23 in the regular season. The Colts picked up the first recognized bye in the history of any NFL lineal title. Bears 10/9/66 10/16/66Defeated the Colts 27-17 in the regular season. The Packers lost the same week to the 49ers. Packers 10/16/6611/6/66 Defeated the Bears 17-0 in the regular season. The 49ers lost 10/30 to the Vikings. Vikings 11/6/66 11/13/66Defeated the Packers 20-17 in the regular season to unify the titles. Lions 11/13/6611/24/66Defeated the Vikings 32-31 in the regular season. 49ers 11/24/6612/4/66 Defeated the Lions 41-14 in the regular season. Packers 12/4/66 10/15/67Defeated the 49ers 20-7 in the regular season. Won the NFL Championship. For subsequent history, see NFL-AFL Merged Title. AFL Lineal Title INITIAL CLAIMS - 1960 SEASON Date DEN LA HOU NY Wk 1 Broncos Chargers Oilers Titans Wk 2 Oilers Patriots 9/23/60 Titans Raiders (9/25) Bills 10/2/60 Broncos Chargers 10/8/60 Oilers Patriots 10/16/60 Chargers Raiders 10/23/60 Bills 10/28/60Bills (10/30) Chargers 11/6/60 Texans 11/20/60Patriots (11/18) Bills 11/25/60Oilers 12/4/60 Texans 12/11/60 Oilers Oilers advance to championship game and defeat the Chargers. CLAIMS - 1961 SEASON Date 1960 Lineal Title Texans' Claim Start Oilers Texans 9/10/61 Chargers 9/24/61 Chargers Oilers 12/3/61 9/16/62 Defeated the Chargers 33-13 in the regular season. Won the 1961 AFL Title. Patriots 9/16/62 10/12/62Defeated the Oilers 34-21 in the regular season. Texans 10/12/6211/4/62 Defeated the Patriots 27-7 in the regular season. Oilers 11/4/62 12/23/62Defeated the Texans 14-6 in the regular season. Texans 12/23/629/29/63 Won the 1962 AFL Championship. Moved to Kansas City and became the Chiefs. Chargers 9/29/63 10/6/63 Defeated the Chiefs 24-10 in the regular season. Broncos 10/6/63 10/13/63Defeated the Chargers 50-34 in the regular season. Oilers 10/13/6311/1/63 Defeated the Broncos 33-24 in the regular season. Patriots 11/1/63 11/10/63Defeated the Oilers 45-3 in the regular season. Chargers 11/10/6312/8/63 Defeated the Patriots 7-6 in the regular season. Raiders 12/8/63 9/13/64 Defeated the Chargers 41-27 in the regular season. Missed the AFL Championship, won by the Chargers over the Patriots. Patriots 9/13/64 10/9/64 Defeated the Raiders 17-14 in the regular season. Defeated the Chargers the following week. Chargers 10/9/64 11/26/64Defeated the Patriots 26-17 in the regular season. Bills 11/26/6412/6/64 Defeated the Chargers 27-24 in the regular season. Raiders 12/6/64 9/19/65 Defeated the Bills 16-13 in the regular season. Did not make the championship game, which the Bills took over the Chargers. Chargers 9/19/65 10/31/65Defeated the Raiders 17-6 in the regular season. Defeated the Bills 10/10 to unify the titles. Patriots 10/31/6511/7/65 Defeated the Chargers 22-6 in the regular season. Bills 11/7/65 12/19/65Defeated the Patriots 23-7 in the regular season. Jets 12/19/6510/16/66Defeated the Bills 14-12 in the regular season. Did not make the championship game, which was won by the Bills over the Chargers. The Bills lost to the Chargers in the first game of the new season. Oilers 10/16/6610/23/66Defeated the Jets 24-0 in the regular season. The previous week, the Chargers lost to the Jets, unifying the titles. Dolphins 10/23/6611/6/66 Defeated the Oilers 20-13 in the regular season. Bills 11/6/66 12/4/66 Defeated the Dolphins 29-0 in the regular season. Patriots 12/4/66 12/17/66Defeated the Bills 14-3 in the regular season. Jets 12/17/669/10/67 Defeated the Patriots 38-28 in the regular season. Did not make the playoffs. The Chiefs defeated the Bills in the AFL Championship Game, but lost Super Bowl I, giving the NFL a claim to their lineal title. Thus the lineal title resulting from the Chiefs' win is of dubious authority. Bills 9/10/67 9/17/67 Defeated the Jets 20-17 in the regular season. Oilers 9/17/67 9/24/67 Defeated the Bills 20-3 in the regular season. Chargers 9/24/67 10/29/67Defeated the Oilers 13-3 in the regular season. The following week, Oakland knocked off the Chiefs, then the Jets knocked off the Raiders. Then Houston topped the Jets. Raiders 10/29/6710/13/68Defeated the Chargers 51-10 in the regular season. The next week, the Patriots defeated the Oilers. Then Kansas City topped the Patriots, and the Chargers topped the Chiefs. Finally Oakland unified the titles 12/3. They won the AFL Championship Game but lost Super Bowl II, thus giving the NFL a claim to the AFL's overall lineal title. The AFL would never get another crack at it until the merger itself. Chargers 10/13/6810/27/68Defeated the Raiders 23-14 in the regular season. Chiefs 10/27/6811/3/68 Defeated the Chargers 27-20 in the regular season. Raiders 11/3/68 12/29/68Defeated the Chiefs 38-21 in the regular season. Jets 12/29/689/21/69 Defeated the Raiders in the AFL Championship Game. Famously Won Super Bowl III, thus giving the AFL its own lineal title without qualifications, of sorts: the Super Bowl III title. Broncos 9/21/69 10/5/69 Defeated the Jets 21-19 in the regular season. Chiefs 10/5/69 11/24/69Defeated the Broncos 26-13 in the regular season. Raiders 11/24/691/4/70Defeated the Chiefs 27-24 in the regular season. Chiefs 1/4/70 9/20/70 Defeated the Raiders 17-7 in the AFL Championship Game. Won Super Bowl IV. Note that whenever the NFL Lineal Title was not on the line in the pre-merger Super Bowls, the AFL title was - and the AFL won both games. But when the NFL's main lineal title was on the line, the Packers won both times. Vikings 9/20/70 10/4/70 Defeated the Chiefs 27-10 in the regular season. Packers 10/4/70 Defeated the Vikings 13-10 in the regular season. This unified it with the Merged Title. AFL-NFL Title Packers 1/15/67 10/15/67Won Super Bowl I. Title would be held in the NFL. On 9/17/67, Detroit and Green Bay played to a 17-17 draw. This does not change the lineage. Vikings 10/15/6710/29/67Defeated the Packers 10-7 in the regular season. As with the Packers, the Viking's first defense, against Baltimore, would be played to a 20-20 draw. Falcons 10/29/6711/5/67 Defeated the Vikings 21-20 in the regular season. Cowboys 11/5/67 12/3/67 Defeated the Falcons 37-7 in the regular season. On 11/19/67, Washington and Dallas played to a 27/27 draw. Colts 12/3/67 12/17/67Defeated the Cowboys 23-17 in the regular season. Rams 12/17/6712/23/67Defeated the Colts 34-10 in the regular season. This game effectively decided the Western Conference's Coastal Division, as both Rams and Colts finished 11-1-2. This was the Colts' only loss all season. Packers 12/23/679/22/68 Won the title back in the Western Conference Championship Game. Won Super Bowl II. Title, which now contained the heritages of both leagues' titles, would once again be held in the NFL. Vikings 9/22/68 9/29/68 Defeated the Packers 26-13 in the regular season. Something of a repeat of the year before. Bears 9/29/68 10/6/68 Defeated the Vikings 27-17 in the regular season. Colts 10/6/68 10/20/68Defeated the Bears 28-7 in the regular season. First team to successfully defend it this season since the Packers. They lost it in their only loss of the season. Browns 10/20/6812/14/68Defeated the Colts 30-20 in the regular season. Won it Week 6 coming off a loss, and lost it Week 14, a 9-game winning streak unmatched to this point, and the most successful defenses thus far. Cardinals 12/14/689/21/69 Defeated the Browns 27-16 in the regular season. First time end-of-year holder does not make the playoffs. The Browns would be shut out in a rematch with the Colts in the NFL Title Game, and the Colts would be infamously beat themselves in Super Bowl III. Namath's bluster does not win him this title. Cowboys 9/21/69 11/2/69 Defeated the Cardinals 24-3 in the regular season. The Rams beat the Colts the same week. The Cowboys would win their first six games. Browns 11/2/69 11/9/69 Defeated the Cowboys 42-10 in the regular season. Vikings 11/9/69 12/21/69Defeated the Browns 51-3 in the regular season. Ended the Rams' perfect season to terminate the claim stemming from the Colts' NFL Championship. Falcons 12/21/699/27/70 For the third straight year, a last-game change of hands. Defeated the Vikings 10-3 in the regular season. Again the NFL escapes an AFL victory in the Super Bowl, but with the merger, that would change. Packers 9/27/70 10/18/70Defeated the Falcons 27-24 in the regular season. The following week, the Packers would unify it with the AFL title (really, the Super Bowls III and IV titles). This title would also be defended, for the first time, on Monday Night Football, the week after unification, also its only defense to an AFC opponent (the Chargers) since Super Bowl II. The Packers won 22-20. Rams 10/18/7010/26/70Defeated the Packers 31-21 in the regular season. Vikings 10/26/7011/29/70Defeated the Rams 13-3 in the regular season. First time the title would change hands on MNF. Jets 11/29/7012/6/70 First time held by an AFC team. Defeated the Vikings 20-10 in the regular season. Raiders 12/6/70 12/20/70Defeated the Jets 14-13 in the regular season. 49ers 12/20/701/3/71 Defeated the Raiders 38-7 in the regular season. Brings it back to the NFC. San Francisco won the NFC West, so the title would be truly contested in the playoffs. Cowboys 1/3/71 1/17/71 Defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. From here on, date of win only shown Colts 1/17/71 Won Super Bowl V. Browns 9/26/71 Defeated the Colts in the regular season. Raiders 10/4/71 Defeated the Browns 34-20 on MNF. Another lengthy defense, this was won Week 3 and lost Week 11, following a Week 1 loss to the Patriots - and the Raiders didn't make the playoffs! For the first time since 1967, a tie occured in a defense. The Raiders tied the Saints 21-21 on 11/7. Colts 11/28/71 Defeated the Raiders 37-14 in the regular season. Patriots 12/19/71 Another final week change of hands, the Patriots defeat the Colts 21-17. They do not make the playoffs, so once again the title is not defended there. Dallas wins Super Bowl VI 24-3 over the Dolphins. The Cowboys end up with a 12-game winning streak but never defeated a team with the lineal title. Bengals 9/17/72 Defeated the Patriots 31-7 in the regular season. Browns 10/1/72 Defeated the Bengals 27-6 in the regular season. This same week, the Super Bowl VI champions Dallas had their first loss of the season to the Packers. Chiefs 10/8/72 Defeated the Browns 31-7 in the regular season. Bengals 10/15/72 Defeated the Chiefs 23-16 in the regular season. Rams 10/22/72 Defeated the Bengals 15-12 in the regular season. This same week, Green Bay loses the line of Super Bowl VI to the Falcons. Raiders 10/29/72 Defeated the Rams 45-17 in the regular season. This same week, the 49ers beat the Falcons. Chiefs 11/5/72 Defeated the Raiders 27-14 in the regular season. This same week, the Packers won back the line of Super Bowl VI from the 49ers. Steelers 11/12/72 The Steel Curtain's first hold of the title. Defeated Kansas City 16-7 in the regular season. Browns 11/19/72 Defeated the Steelers 26-24 in the regular season. First team to successfully defend the next week since the Bengals in September. The Redskins beat the Packers the week they defended. Steelers 12/3/72 Took back the title 30-0 over the Browns. On December 10, the Cowboys defeated Washington for the line of Super Bowl VI. The following week, they lost it again to the Giants. Pittsburgh would make the playoffs; the Giants would not. Dolphins 12/31/72 This was the unbeaten season for the Dolphins, but they had never played for either line before beating Pittsburgh in the AFC Championship Game. The Dolphins would complete their perfecto in Super Bowl VII. Raiders 9/23/73 The Raiders broke up the Dolphins' long perfect streak Week 2 of 1973. The same week, the Giants fought Philadelphia to a tie. Chiefs 9/30/73 Defeated the Raiders 16-3 in the regular season. This same week, the Browns won the Super Bowl VI "NFC Title" from the Giants. The Browns were the first team to hold both the "NFC Title" and the post-Super Bowl VI Merged Title. Kansas City fought Green Bay to a 10-10 tie October 14. This same week, the Dolphins followed their brief hold of the "True Title" with a defeat of the Browns Monday Night for the Super Bowl VI line. Bengals 10/21/73 Defeated the Chiefs 14-6 in the regular season. Steelers 10/28/73 Defeated the Bengals 20-13 in the regular season. Pittsburgh would defend this title on MNF against Washington and win. Broncos 11/18/73 Defeated the Steelers 23-13. First ever hold of the lineal title. Cowboys 12/2/73 In their first shot at the lineal title since Super Bowl VI, the Cowboys defeated the Broncos 22-10. The next week, Miami finally lost to Baltimore. Dallas would win their division, but the Colts would miss the playoffs. Vikings 12/30/73 Defeated Dallas in the NFC Championship Game. Dolphins 1/13/74 Won Super Bowl VIII. Patriots 9/15/74 Defeated the Dolphins 34-24 in the regular season. The Steelers beat the Colts the same week. Oakland would beat the Steelers Week 3. Bills 10/20/74 Defeated the Patriots 30-28. Oilers 11/10/74 Defeated the Bills 21-9. Cowboys 11/24/74 Defeated the Oilers 10-0. The same week, Denver ended Oakland's winning streak. Both teams defended their titles Thanksgiving Day for the first time in the history of either title. Raiders 12/14/74 Defeated the Cowboys 27-23. Denver lost their title the next day to the Chargers. They were in the same division, but the Raiders finished first and the Chargers last. Steelers 12/29/74 Defeated the Raiders in the AFC Championship Game. Won Super Bowl IX. At long last, the Super Bowl VI lineage was unified with the "true title" Week 1, when Pittsburgh clobbered the Chargers. Bills 9/28/75 First week after unification. Defeated the Steelers 30-21. Giants 10/20/75 First Monday Night defense after unification. Cardinals 10/25/75 Defeated the Giants 20-13. Bills 11/27/75 Defeated the Cardinals 32-14 on Thanksgiving. Dolphins 12/7/75 Defeated the Bills 31-21. Colts 12/14/75 Defeated the Dolphins in OT. Steelers 12/27/75 Defeated the Colts in an AFC Divisional Playoff. First time the lineal title changed hands in the divisional round. Won Super Bowl X. Raiders 9/12/76 Defeated the Steelers in the first game of the regular season. The Raiders successfully defended it against the Chiefs the following week on Monday Night. Patriots 10/3/76 Defeated the Raiders 48-17. The Raiders' only loss all season. Lions 10/10/76 Defeated the Patriots 30-10. Redskins 10/17/76 Defeated the Lions 20-7. Washington would defend it on Monday night a week later against St. Louis. Cowboys 10/31/76 Defeated the Redskins 20-7. This was another title defended on MNF. Falcons 11/21/76 Defeated the Cowboys 17-10. Just two weeks earlier the Falcons became the first team that existed the previous season to lose to the expansion Seahawks. Oilers 11/28/76 Ending a 6-game losing streak, the Oilers beat Atlanta 20-14. Browns 12/5/76 Defeated the Oilers 13-10. Chiefs 12/12/76 Defeated the Browns 39-14. For the first time since 1971, the end-of-season lineal champion does not go to the playoffs. The Raiders defeated Minnesota in Super Bowl XI 32-14. Their loss of the title to the Patriots was their only one all season, but they never got another shot. Once again an "ersatz" title renders the real title disputed. Patriots 9/18/77 Defeated the Chiefs 21-17. Browns 9/26/77 Defeated the Patriots on MNF. Steelers 10/2/77 Defeated the Browns 28-14. Oilers 10/9/77 Defeated the Steelers 27-10. Browns 10/16/77 Defeated the Oilers 24-23. The same week, Denver ended Oakland's long winning streak. Oakland would pick up revenge two weeks later. Bengals 11/6/77 Defeated the Browns 10-7. Vikings 11/13/77 Defeated the Bengals 42-10. Bears 11/20/77 Defeated the Vikings 10-7. The same week, San Diego knocked off the Raiders. The Broncos won the Super Bowl XI lineage from the Chargers in the penultimate week of the season. Dallas would beat them the following week. The Bears' post-"real title" winning streak barely pushes them into the playoffs as the wild card. The Cowboys are NFC East champions. Cowboys 12/26/77 Unified their Super Bowl XI lineage with the "real title" in the Divisional Playoffs. Won Super Bowl XII. Their first post-Super Bowl defense was on MNF. Rams 9/17/78 Ended the Cowboys' winning streak 27-14. Saints 10/22/78 Ended the Rams' perfect record 10-3 to hold this title for the first time. Steelers 11/5/78 Defeated the Saints 20-14. Rams 11/12/78 Defeated the Steelers 10-7. Browns 11/26/78 Defeated the Rams 30-19. Seahawks 12/3/78 Defeated the Browns 47-24. First lineal title in team history. Chargers 12/10/78 Defeated the Seahawks 37-10. Did not make the playoffs. The Steelers would defeat the Cowboys in Super Bowl XIII. Patriots 9/23/79 Ended the Chargers' unbeaten run 27-21. Packers 10/1/79 Defeated the Patriots on MNF. Philadelphia ended the Steelers' unbeaten season the same week. First time since 1970 holding the real title. Falcons 10/7/79 Defeated the Packers 25-7. Raiders 10/14/79 Defeated the Falcons 50-19. Jets 10/21/79 Defeated the Raiders 28-19. Washington defeated Philadelphia the same week. Oilers 10/28/79 Defeated the Jets 27-24. The same week, the Saints beat the Redskins. The next week, Houston defended it on MNF, as New Orleans lost to Denver. Browns 12/2/79 Ended the Oilers' winning streak 14-7. The previous week, the Broncos lost to Oakland. This week, they defended it on MNF. Raiders 12/9/79 Defeated the Browns 19-14 after winning the legacy of Super Bowl XIII two weeks ago and successfully defending it from New Orleans on MNF the week in between. Seahawks 12/16/79 Defeated the Raiders 29-24. Did not make the playoffs. The Steelers would win Super Bowl XIV 31-19 over the Rams. Chargers 9/7/80 Defeated the Seahawks 34-13. In Week 3, the Steelers fell to Cincinatti, who lost the next week to Houston. Bills 10/5/80 Defeated the Chargers 26-24. The same week, the Seahawks beat the Oilers. Colts 10/12/80 Defeated the Bills 17-12. The same week, the Browns beat the Seahawks. Patriots 10/19/80 Defeated the Colts 37-21. Bills 10/26/80 Defeated the Patriots 31-13. Falcons 11/2/80 Defeated the Bills 30-14. In Week 11, the Browns ended their winning streak against the Steelers. The week after that, the Steelers lost to the Bills. The week after that, the Bills lost to the Colts, then the Colts lost to the Bengals, then the Bengals finally defended against the Bears. Rams 12/21/80 Defeated the Falcons 20-17. The same week, the Bengals lost to the Browns. The Rams and Browns both made the playoffs, but unification would not come until the Super Bowl. Cowboys 12/28/80 First time the lineal title changed hands in the wild card round. The Browns would lose to the Raiders in the divisional round. Eagles 1/11/81 Defeated the Cowboys in the NFC Championship game. Raiders 1/25/81 Won Super Bowl XV. Broncos 9/6/81 OAK 7, DEN 9 Week 1. Seahawks 9/13/81 DEN 10, SEA 13 Week 2. Raiders 9/20/81 OAK 20, SEA 10 Week 3. Lions 9/27/81 OAK 0, DET 16 Week 4. Buccaneers 10/4/81 DET 10, TB 28 Week 5. First lineal title in club history. Successfully defended the next week against Green Bay. Raiders 10/18/81 TB 16, OAK 18 Week 7. Chiefs 10/25/81 KC 28, OAK 17 Week 8. Chargers 11/1/81 KC 20, SD 22 Week 9. Bears 11/8/81 CHI 16, KC 13 Week 10. Packers 11/15/81 CHI 17, GB 21 Week 11. Buccaneers 11/22/81 GB 3, TB 37 Week 12. Succesfully defended the next week against the Saints. Chargers 12/13/81 SD 24, TB 23 Week 15. Bengals 1/10/82 Defeated the Chargers in the AFC Championship Game. 49ers 1/24/82 Won Super Bowl XVI. First hold of the lineal title in more than 12 years, and first lineal title for Joe Montana. Raiders 9/12/82 LAR 23, SF 17 Week 1. First lineal title in Los Angeles. Defended it on MNF Week 3. Bengals 9/28/82 CIN 31, LAR 17 Week 4. Chargers 12/20/82 Defeated the Bengals Week 7 on MNF. Large skip is due to the players' strike. Raiders 1/2/83 LAR 41, SD 34 Week 9. A 16-team tournament was held to crown the Super Bowl champion. Jets 1/15/83 Defeated the Raiders in the second round of the tournament. Dolphins 1/23/83 Defeated the Jets in the AFC Championship Game. Redskins 1/30/83 Won Super Bowl XVII. Cowboys 9/5/83 Defeated the Redskins in the first MNF of the new season. Raiders 10/23/83 LAR 40, DAL 38 Week 8. Seahawks 10/30/83 SEA 34, LAR 21 Week 9. Cardinals 11/13/83 SEA 28, STL 33 Week 11. First lineal title since 1975. Cowboys 11/24/83 STL 17, DAL 35 Week 13. Redskins 12/11/83 WAS 31, DAL 10 Week 15. Unified with an unrecognized title that entered the season with end-of-regular-season lineal holders the Raiders. Raiders 1/22/84 Won Super Bowl XVIII. Broncos 9/30/84 LAR 13, DEN 16 Week 5. First lineal title held by John Elway. Seahawks 11/25/84 SEA 27, DEN 24 Week 13. Chiefs 12/9/84 SEA 7, KC 34 Week 15. The Chiefs did not make the playoffs. For the first time in five years, the lineal titleholder will not go to the playoffs. The 49ers defeated the Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX, but would lose that lineage to the Vikings Week 1 the following season. Dolphins 9/22/85 KC 0, MIA 31 Week 3. The same week, the Chicago Bears won the Super Bowl XIX lineage from the Vikings. Jets 10/14/85 Defeated the Dolphins on MNF. Patriots 10/20/85 NYJ 13, NE 20 Week 7. Jets 11/24/85 NE 13, NYJ 16 Week 12. Lions 11/28/85 Defeated the Jets Thanksgiving Day. That Monday, the Dolphins would end the Bears' 12-game unbeaten run. Patriots 12/8/85 DET 6, NE 23 Week 14. Dolphins 12/16/85 Unification occurred on MNF. Patriots 1/12/86 Defeated the Dolphins in the AFC Championship Game. Bears 1/26/86 Won Super Bowl XX. Vikings 10/19/86 CHI 7, MIN 23 Week 7. Browns 10/26/86 CLE 23, MIN 20 Week 8. Raiders 11/16/86 CLE 14, LAR 27 Week 11. One week after the Browns defended it on MNF. Eagles 11/30/86 PHI 33, LAR 27 Week 13. Philadelphia and St. Louis played to the first title draw since 1973 Week 14. Redskins 12/21/86 WAS 21, PHI 14 Week 16. This saved the title-holder from not making the playoffs. Giants 1/11/87 Defeated the Redskins in the NFC Championship Game. Won Super Bowl XXI. Bears 9/14/87 Defeated the Giants in the season opener on MNF. Saints 10/18/87 NO 19, CHI 17 Week 6. Disputed, as this game was played using replacement players. 49ers 10/25/87 Disputed, though not played with replacements; see above. Saints 11/15/87 Disputed; see above. If the Bears' run is considered uninterrupted, it ended that Monday night against John Elway's Broncos. Denver's run then ends December 13, lost to the Seahawks. Vikings 1/3/88 Disputed; see above. Defeated the Saints in the Wild Card round. If the "replacement games" are discounted, the Chiefs won the title the last week of the regular season from the Seahawks. As this was one of only four Chiefs wins, they do not make the playoffs and the lineal title remains ununified. Redskins 1/17/88 Defeated the Vikings in the NFC Championship Game. Won Super Bowl XXII. Giants 9/5/88 For the second consecutive year, the title changed hands on MNF the first week of the season. The same week, the "Players Title" changed hands to the Browns. 49ers 9/11/88 SF 20, NYG 17 Week 2. The same week, the Jets won the Players Title from the Browns. Falcons 9/18/88 ATL 34, SF 17 Week 3. The Players Title remained with the Jets. Cowboys 9/25/88 ATL 20, DAL 26 Week 4. The Players Title remained with the Jets. Saints 10/3/88 Defeated the Cowboys on MNF. The Players Title did not changed hands following a 17-17 Jets-Chiefs draw. The Bengals defeated the Jets the following week, while the Saints finally defended the true title against the Chargers. The Players Title moved from the Bengals to the Patriots Week 7. The Players Title moved from the Patriots to the Bills Week 8. Rams 10/30/88 LAR 12, NO 10 Week 9. Eagles 11/6/88 LAR 24, PHI 30 Week 10. The Players Title moved from the Bills back to the Bengals Week 13. Redskins 12/4/88 WAS 20, PHI 19 Week 14. Cowboys 12/11/88 DAL 24, WAS 17 Week 15. The Oilers defeated the Bengals the same week. Eagles 12/18/88 PHI 23, DAL 7 Week 16. The Browns defeated the Oilers the same week. Unification would come in the Super Bowl. AFC Wild Card: The Oilers eliminate the Browns and take the Players Title. Bears 12/31/88 Defeated the Eagles in the NFC Divisional Round. The Bills also defeat the Oilers. 49ers 1/8/89 Defeated the Bears in the NFC Championship Game. In the AFC Championship, the Bengals defeat the Bills for the Players Title. The 49ers Won Super Bowl XXIII to unify the titles. Rams 10/1/89 LAR 13, SF 12 Week 4. Bills 10/16/89 Defeated the Rams on Monday Night. Falcons 11/5/89 BUF 28, ATL 30 Week 9. 49ers 11/12/89 ATL 3, SF 45 Week 10. Packers 11/19/89 GB 21, SF 17 Week 11. Chiefs 12/10/89 KC 21, GB 3 Week 14. Chargers 12/17/89 SD 20, KC 13 Week 15. The Chargers placed last in the division and missed the playoffs. The 49ers defeated the Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV. Cowboys 9/9/90 SD 14, DAL 17 week 1. First lineal title of the Aikman era. Giants 9/16/90 NYG 28, DAL 7 Week 2. Week 5 would make the Giants the first official title holder to get a bye, a week after the 49ers. Eagles 11/25/90 The 49ers' unbeaten season start ended the same week to the Rams. Bills 12/2/90 PHI 23, BUF 30 Week 13. The Rams would lose to the Saints the following week, who would then lose to the Steelers. Redskins 12/30/90 BUF 14, WAS 29 Week 17. The Steelers lost the same week to the Oilers on Sunday Night Football. Unification would once again come in the Super Bowl. 49ers 1/12/91 Defeated the Redskins in the division round. The Oilers lost in the first round to the Bengals, who here lost to the Raiders. Giants 1/20/91 Defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The Raiders lost to the Bills the same week. The Giants Won Super Bowl XXV. Rams 9/8/91 LAR 19, NYG 13 Week 2. Saints 9/15/91 Defeated the Rams on Sunday Night. Bears 10/27/91 CHI 20, NO 17 Week 9. Dolphins 11/24/91 MIA 16, CHI 13 Week 13. Chargers 12/15/91 MIA 30, SD 38 Week 16. Broncos 12/22/91 DEN 17, SD 14 Week 17. Bills 1/12/92 Defeated the Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. Redskins 1/26/92 Won Super Bowl XXVI. Cowboys 9/7/92 Defeated the Redskins on MNF. Eagles 10/5/92 Defeated the Cowboys on MNF. Chiefs 10/11/92 PHI 17, KC 24 Week 6. Cowboys 10/18/92 KC 10, DAL 17 Week 7. Rams 11/15/92 LAR 27, DAL 23 Week 11. 49ers 11/22/92 SF 27, LAR 10 Week 12. Cowboys 1/17/93 Defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. Won Super Bowl XXVII. Redskins 9/6/93 Picked up their revenge on MNF. Cardinals 9/12/93 PHX 17, WAS 10 Week 2. Cowboys 9/19/93 DAL 17, PHX 10 Week 3. Falcons 11/21/93 DAL 14, ATL 27 Week 12. Oilers 12/5/93 ATL 17, HOU 33 Week 14. Chiefs 1/16/94 Defeated the Oilers in a divisional game. Bills 1/23/94 Defeated the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. Cowboys 1/30/94 Won Super Bowl XXVIII. Lions 9/19/94 Defeated the Cowboys on MNF. Patriots 9/25/94 NE 23, DET 17 Week 4. Raiders 10/9/94 LAD 21, NE 17 Week 6. Dolphins 10/16/94 LAD 17, MIA 20 Week 7. Bears 11/13/94 CHI 17, MIA 14 Week 11. Vikings 12/1/94 CHI 27, MIN 33 Week 14. Lions 12/17/94 DET 41, MIN 19 Week 16. Dolphins 12/25/94 Defeated the Lions on Sunday night. Chargers 1/8/95 Defeated the Dolphins in a divisional game. 49ers 1/29/95 Won Super Bowl XXIX. Lions 9/25/95 SF 24, DET 27 Week 4. Packers 10/15/95 DET 21, GB 30 Week 7. First title of the Favre era. Lions 10/29/95 GB 16, DET 24 Week 9. Falcons 11/5/95 DET 22, ATL 34 Week 10. Bills 11/12/95 ATL 17, BUF 23 Week 11. Patriots 11/26/95 NE 35, BUF 25 Week 13. Saints 12/3/95 NO 31, NE 17 Week 14. Falcons 12/10/95 NO 14, ATL 19 Week 15. Panthers 12/17/95 ATL 17, CAR 21 Week 16. First title in team history. Redskins 12/24/95 CAR 17, WAS 20 Week 17. Redskins would miss the playoffs, creating a split title for the first time since 1990. The Cowboys beat the Steelers in Super Bowl XXX. Eagles 9/1/96 PHI 17, WAS 14 Week 1. The Bears defeated the Cowboys the same week. Packers 9/9/96 Defeated the Eagles on MNF. The Redskins retook a title - the Super Bowl XXX title - from the Bears the same week. Vikings 9/22/96 GB 21, MIN 30 Week 4. Giants 9/29/96 MIN 10, NYG 15 Week 5. Eagles 10/13/96 PHI 19, NYG 10 Week 7. Bills 11/10/96 BUF 24, PHI 17 Week 11. The Bills ended the Redskins' winning streak the week before, so this was a unification game. Colts 12/1/96 BUF 10, IND 13 Week 14. Bengals 12/22/96 IND 24, CIN 31 Week 17. The Bengals missed the playoffs. The Packers beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. Ravens 9/7/97 CIN 10, BAL 23 Week 2. First title in franchise history, unless you count the original Browns. The Eagles beat the Packers the same week, but would lose to the Cowboys the following night on MNF. Chargers 9/28/97 BAL 17, SD 21 Week 5. The Cowboys lost to the Giants the following week. Chiefs 10/16/97 SD 3, KC 31 Week 8. Jaguars 11/9/97 KC 10, JAX 24 Week 11. First lineal title in team history. The Giants lost to the Oilers the same week. The following week, the Jags won a unification game. Bengals 11/23/97 JAX 26, CIN 31 Week 13. Eagles 11/30/97 CIN 42, PHI 44 Week 14. Giants 12/7/97 NYG 31, PHI 21 Week 15. Vikings 12/27/97 Defeated the Giants in a Wild Card game. 49ers 1/3/98 Defeated the Vikings in a divisional game. Packers 1/11/98 Defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. Broncos 1/25/98 Won Super Bowl XXXII. First lineal title since 1991. Giants 12/13/98 Ended the Broncos' 14-game winning streak Week 15. Ended the season with a winning streak to save a .500 season but did not make the playoffs. The Broncos beat the Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII. Redskins 9/19/99 WAS 50, NYG 21 Week 2. The Broncos lost to the Dolphins on the first Monday Night of the season. Week 4: The Bills defeated the Dolphins on Monday Night. Cowboys 10/24/99 WAS 20, DAL 38 Week 7. The previous week, the Bills lost to the Raiders. Colts 10/31/99 DAL 24, IND 34 Week 8. First Manning-era lineal title; second time holding any lineal title since 1980. The same week, the Dolphins won back the Super Bowl XXXIII title. Week 10: Dolphins lose to Bills. Week 11: Bills lose to Jets. Week 12: The Colts win a unification game. Bills 1/2/2000 IND 6, BUF 31 Week 17. Titans 1/8/2000 Defeated the Bills in an AFC Wild Card game (the "Music City Miracle" game). Rams 1/30/2000 Won Super Bowl XXXIV. NOTE: NFLHISTORY.NET DATA ENDS HERE. Data for 2000 and 2001 is sketchy and from ESPN. Chiefs 10/22/2000 KC 54, STL 34 Week 8. Raiders 11/5/2000 OAK 49, KC 31 Week 10. Broncos 11/13/2000 Defeated the Raiders on Monday Night Football. Chiefs 12/17/2000 KC 20, DEN 7 Week 16. Falcons 12/24/2000 ATL 29, KC 13 Week 17. Falcons missed the playoffs. The Ravens defeated the Giants in Super Bowl XXXV. 49ers 9/9/2001 SF 16, ATL 13 Week 1. The lineal title was still split when 9/11 delayed the season. Both titles changed hands the first week back. Rams 9/23/2001 STL 30, SF 26 Week 2. The Bengals defeated the Ravens the same week. The following week, the Chargers beat the Bengals, then the Browns beat the Chargers, then the Bengals beat the Browns, then the Bears beat the Bengals. Saints 10/28/2001 NO 34, STL 31 Week 7. The Bears finally held onto the Super Bowl XXXV title the same week. Jets 11/4/2001 First title held by a New York team since 9/11. The following week, the Bears finally lost to the Packers, then the Packers lost to the Falcons. Patriots 12/2/2001 NE 17, NYJ 16 Week 12. First title of Brady era and first since '95. The Falcons lost to the Rams the same week. Both teams would make the playoffs and would hold their titles through the Super Bowl, first time that had ever happened. The Patriots Won Super Bowl XXXVI. NOTE: NFL.COM TAKES OVER INFO Chargers 9/29/2002 NE 14, SD 21 Week 4. Broncos 10/6/2002 SD 9, DEN 26 Week 5. Dolphins 10/13/2002 MIA 24, DEN 22 Week 6. Bills 10/20/2002 BUF 23, MIA 10 Week 7. The Bills would finally retain the following week. Patriots 11/3/2002 NE 38, BUF 7 Week 9. Raiders 11/17/2002 NE 20, OAK 27 Week 11. Dolphins 12/15/2002 OAK 17, MIA 23 Week 15. Vikings 12/21/2002 MIA 17, MIN 20 Week 16. Only Culpepper-Moss era title and first since the 97-98 playoffs. The Vikings missed the playoffs. The Buccaneers defeated the Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII. Giants 10/26/2003 NYG 29, MIN 17 Week 8. By this time, the Bucs had lost to the Panthers Week 2, who had lost to the Titans the week before this. Falcons 11/9/2003 ATL 27, NYG 7 Week 10. The Giants would not win another game. Saints 11/16/2003 ATL 20, NO 23 Week 11. Eagles 11/23/2003 NO 20, PHI 33 Week 12. First McNabb-era title and first since 1997. This lineal title came on the heels of Rush Limbaugh's comments on McNabb. The Titans finally lost to the Jets the following week, who then lost to the Bills, who lost it back to the Titans. 49ers 12/21/2003 SF 31, PHI 28 Week 16. Seahawks 12/27/2003 SEA 24, SF 17 Week 17. First lineal title since 1984, 1988 if the "Players Title" is counted. Packers 1/4/2004 Defeated the Seahawks in a Wild Card game. Eagles 1/11/2004 Defeated the Packers in a Divisional game. The same week, the Titans lost to the Patriots. Panthers 1/18/2004 Defeated the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game. Patriots 2/1/2004 Won Super Bowl XXXVIII to unify the titles. Steelers 10/31/2004 NE 20, PIT 34 Week 8. First lineal title of any kind since 1990. Patriots 1/23/2005 Defeated the Steelers in the AFC Title Game. Won Super Bowl XXXIX. Panthers 9/18/2005 NE 17, CAR 27 Week 2. Dolphins 9/25/2005 CAR 24, MIA 27 Week 3. Bills 10/9/2005 CAR 14, BUF 20 Week 5. Raiders 10/23/2005 BUF 17, OAK 38 Week 7. Chiefs 11/6/2005 OAK 23, KC 27 Week 9. Bills 11/13/2005 KC 3, BUF 14 Week 10. Chargers 11/20/2005 BUF 10, SD 48 Week 11. Dolphins 12/11/2005 MIA 23, SD 21 Week 14. The Dolphins would miss the playoffs. The Steelers beat the Seahawks in Super Bowl XL. However, unification would come in the first game of the new season. Steelers 9/7/2006 MIA 17, PIT 28 Week 1. Jaguars 9/18/2006 PIT 0, JAX 9 Week 2. Perhaps the lowest-scoring change of titles ever, and possibly the first time a defending champion is shut out. Second lineal title in team history; last was in 1997. Colts 9/24/2006 JAX 14, IND 21 Week 3. Cowboys 11/19/2006 IND 14, DAL 21 Week 11. Saints 12/10/2006 NO 42, DAL 17 Week 14. First lineal title since Katrina; first title change on NBC Sunday Night Football (although the Steelers' win over the Dolphins was on NBC). Redskins 12/17/2006 WAS 16, NO 10 Week 15. Rams 12/24/2006 WAS 31, STL 37 Week 16. Missed the playoffs. The Colts beat the Bears in Super Bowl XLI. Panthers 9/9/2007 CAR 27, STL 13 Week 1. Texans 9/17/2007 HOU 34, CAR 21 Week 2. First lineal title in team history. Colts 9/24/2007 IND 30, HOU 24 Week 3. Merged with Super Bowl XLI title. Patriots 11/4/2007 NE 24, IND 20 Week 9. Giants 2/3/2008 Won Super Bowl XLII. Ended the Patriots' attempt to go 19-0. Browns 10/13/2008 NYG 14, CLE 35 Week 6. Redskins 10/19/2008 CLE 11, WAS 14 Week 7. Steelers 11/2/2008 PIT 23, WAS 6 Week 9. Colts 11/6/2008 IND 24, PIT 20 Week 10. Chargers 1/3/2009 Defeated the Colts in a Wild Card game. Steelers 1/10/2009 Defeated the Chargers in a Divisional game. Won Super Bowl XLIII. Bears 9/20/2009 PIT 14, CHI 17 Week 2. Falcons 10/18/2009 CHI 14, ATL 21 Week 6. Cowboys 10/25/2009 ATL 21, DAL 37 Week 7. First time title was contested in new Cowboys Stadium. Packers 11/15/2009 DAL 7, GB 17 Week 10. First time a Packers team not quarterbacked by Brett Favre won the title in 20 years. Steelers 12/20/2009 GB 36, PIT 37 Week 15. Missed the playoffs. The Saints beat the Colts in Super Bowl XLIV. Ravens 10/3/2010 BAL 17, PIT 14 Week 4. The Saints lost to the Falcons the previous week. Patriots 10/17/2010 BAL 20, NE 23 (OT) Week 6. The same week, the Falcons lost to the Eagles (first lineal title of any kind held by an Eagles team not quarterbacked by Donovan McNabb in 13 years), who lost to the Titans the following week, who lost to the Chargers the week after that. Browns 11/7/2010 NE 14, CLE 34 Week 9. The Chargers finally retained the Super Bowl XLIV title the same week. Jets 11/14/2010 NYJ 26, CLE 20 Week 10. First lineal title of any kind held by the Jets since 2003. Patriots 12/6/2010 NYJ 3, NE 45 Week 13. The Chargers lost to the Raiders the same week, who lost to the Jaguars the next week, who lost to the Colts the week after that. Jets 1/16/2011 Defeated the Patriots in a Divisional game. The Jets had beaten the Colts the previous week. Steelers 1/23/2011 Defeated the Jets in the AFC Championship Game. Packers 2/6/2011 Won Super Bowl XLV. Chiefs 12/18/2011 GB 14, KC 19 Week 15. Raiders 12/24/2011 OAK 16, KC 13 Week 16. First time the Raiders held the main title in six years. Chargers 1/1/2012 SD 38, OAK 26 Week 17. Missed the playoffs. The Giants beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI, but lost the opening game of the season to the Cowboys, who then lost to the Seahawks. Falcons 9/23/2012 ATL 27, SD 3 Week 3. The Seahawks finally retained the same week, albeit controversially, but then lost to the Rams the following week, who lost to the Dolphins two weeks later. Saints 11/11/2012 ATL 27, NO 31 Week 10. The Dolphins lost to the Colts the previous week. 49ers 11/25/2012 SF 31, NO 21 Week 12. The Colts lost to the Patriots the previous week. Rams 12/2/2012 SF 13, STL 16 Week 13. Vikings 12/16/2012 MIN 36, STL 22 Week 15. First title since the Culpepper-Moss era. The 49ers beat the Patriots the same week, but lost to the Seahawks the following week. Packers 1/5/2013 Defeated the Vikings in a Wild Card game after losing to them Week 17. 49ers 1/12/2013 Defeated the Packers in a Divisional game. The Falcons defeated the Seahawks the same week, then the 49ers beat the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game. Ravens 2/3/2013 Won Super Bowl XLVII. Broncos 9/5/2013 BAL 27, DEN 49 Week 1. First lineal title in 11 years. Colts 10/20/2013 DEN 33, IND 39 Week 7. First lineal title held by a Colts team not quarterbacked by Peyton Manning in 17 years. Rams 11/10/2013 STL 38, IND 8 Week 10. 49ers 12/1/2013 STL 13, SF 23 Week 13. Seahawks 1/19/2014 Defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. Won Super Bowl XLVIII. Chargers 9/14/2014 SEA 21, SD 30 Week 2. Chiefs 10/19/2014 KC 23, SD 20 Week 7. Raiders 11/20/2014 KC 20, OAK 24 Week 12. Rams 11/30/2014 OAK 0, STL 52 Week 13. First time a defending champion is shut out since 2006; most points scored to win a lineal title since 2000 (at least in a regular season game), and the most lopsided change of titles since 1949. Cardinals 12/11/2014 ARI 12, STL 6 Week 15. Seahawks 12/21/2014 SEA 35, ARI 6 Week 16. Patriots 2/1/2015 Won Super Bowl XLIX, although mired in the "DeflateGate" scandal. Broncos 11/29/2015 NE 24, DEN 30 Week 12. Raiders 12/13/2015 OAK 15, DEN 12 Week 14. Packers 12/20/2015 GB 30, OAK 20 Week 15. Cardinals 12/27/2015 GB 8, ARI 38 Week 16. Seahawks 1/3/2016 SEA 36, ARI 6 Week 17. Panthers 1/17/2016 Defeated the Seahawks in a Divisional game. First lineal title since 2007. Broncos 2/7/2016 Won Super Bowl 50 (Peyton Manning's last game). Current title-holder.