National football League fans, casual or diehard, are surprised and shocked by the red-hot start posted by the Kansas City Chiefs during NFL 2013. Sitting with a 7-0 record, a feat the was fairly unimaginable in the preseason, the Chiefs are almost perfect at online sports betting sites as they are 5-2 against the spread. With the Chiefs and the fans at Arrowhead Stadium rocking and rolling again, today we take a look at some of the record setting turnarounds from NFL seasons past.
Indianapolis Clots: QB Peyton Manning ignites a memorable winning run
Despite enjoying enormous success with the Denver Broncos, QB Peyton Manning is widely remembered for turning around what had become a beleaguered Indianapolis Colts franchise. The process began during the 1999 NFL season – Manning’s second year as the Colts starting quarterback. Indianapolis became the first team in NFL history to register a ten-win turnaround as they posted a 13-3 record. Indianapolis was a dismal 3-13 in 1997 and 1998 and the Colts opened the 1999 NFL season at 2-2 before they ran off eleven straight victories. It would take another seven years but Manning completed the Colts revival with a Super Bowl XLI Championship.
Miami Dolphins: Second NFL team to 10-win season-to-season turnaround
Going from bust to beast is normally a slow process in the NFL – just ask the Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns or Detroit Lions. That’s also evident when one considers that just two teams have produced a ten-win turnaround season. The Miami Dolphins were the second team to accomplish the feat as they went from posting a 1-15 record in 2007 to making the NFL playoffs with an 11-5 record in 2008. The Fin’s opened the season at 2-4 before winning nine of their last ten games. After eight years with the New York Jets, QB Chad Pennington headed to South Beach to guide the Dolphins turnaround. 2008 turned out to be Pennington’s most productive and last full NFL season.
St. Louis Rams: Greatest Show on Turf leads group of five nine-win teams
Although slightly more plentiful than the ten-win teams, only five NFL clubs have enjoyed a nine-win turnaround season. Of those clubs, the 1999 St. Louis Rams team may have been the most impressive. After they finished 4-12 in 1998, the “Greatest Show on Turf” produced a 13-3 regular season record and then won Super Bowl XXXIV. The Rams were piloted by a stock-boy turned Super Bowl and NFL MVP as QB Kurt Warner. Surrounded by RB Marshall Faulk along with wide receivers Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce, Warner threw for 4,353 yards and 41 TD passes.
The 2012 Colts, 1929 NY Giants, 1963 Oakland Raiders, and the 2004 Pittsburgh Steelers are the other nine-win turnaround teams. Miraculous turnaround seasons, like the ones mentioned above, are stories that help make the NFL a pro sports league that’s beloved around the world. Revival seasons like that also help fans that visit online sports betting websites make a small fortune on NFL futures wagering options. Kansas City is great example of that as they were posted with a 7.5 Over/Under total win futures line at the start of the 2013 NFL season. Handicappers who took a chance on the 2013 edition of the Chiefs are one victory away from cashing a winning wager!
