In terms of modern history, the Los Angeles Rams are in relatively uncharted territory. Before the Rams and Jared Goff failed to make the playoffs this year, the 10 previous teams to lose the Super Bowl all ended up making the playoffs the following season. However, if one looks back far enough, they will find that the Rams are not completely alone in this feat as it used to happen relatively frequently.
What happened after those teams lost the Super Bowl and then failed to make the playoffs the following season? This is a look at how the last five Super-Bowl-losing teams did after not making the playoffs the following season. In the end, this information will be used to shed analytical light on how the Rams will do in 2020.
History Shows That Jared Goff Will Win In 2020
Carolina Panthers: Losers In 2015
The 2016 Panthers missed the playoffs the season following Super Bowl 50, where Cam Newton and the Panthers fell to Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos by a score of 10-24.
The following season, in 2017, the Panthers bounced back by making the playoffs but losing in the Wild Card round. Overall, their 2017 season was solid but ultimately disappointing in the playoffs.
New England Patriots: Losers In 2007
Oddly enough, the Patriots find themselves on this list. The 2008 Patriots missed the playoffs while going 11-5 the year after losing the Super Bowl to Eli Manning and the New York Giants by a score of 14-17.
The following year, in 2009, the Patriots lost in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. In the end, their 2009 season was disappointing in the same way that the 2017 Panthers was less than ideal.
Chicago Bears: Losers In 2006
As the Bears have been almost entirely irrelevant for quite a while, the idea that the Chicago Bears are on any modern list regarding Super Bowls would surprise many new NFL fans. The Bears lost the Super Bowl at the conclusion to the 2006 season to Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts before going 7-9 in 2007.
In 2008, their first season after missing the playoffs after a failed Super Bowl appearance, the Bears missed the playoffs for the second season in a row, going 9-7. Basically, the season was a disappointment but an improvement over the previous year where they went 7-9.
Philadelphia Eagles: Losers In 2004
The Eagles fell to the Patriots by a score of 24-21 at the end of the 2004 season. The next season saw the Eagles miss the playoffs while going 6-10. However, after missing the playoffs, the Eagles bounced back by winning a Wild Card game but ultimately fell in the Divisional Round. Eagles fans likely felt good about the season and positive about the future.
Carolina Panthers Part 2: Losers In 2003
At the end of the 2003 season, the Carolina Panthers, under Head Coach John Fox, fell to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots by a score of 29-32. The heartbreak seemed to follow into 2004, where the Panthers missed the playoffs at 7-9. However, the Panthers roared back to life in 2005, where they made it to the NFC Championship. While the season didn’t end in the same way that 2003 did, Panthers fans must have felt good about the future at that moment in time.
Los Angeles Rams: Losers In 2018
When looking at this data pool, the Rams should be able to take a lot of positives from the past. For instance, every one of the teams discussed above had a positive record in their season following the missing of the playoffs which followed losing the Super Bowl. By this metric, the Rams have a 100% chance of at least getting a 9-7 record in 2020.
Even better, four of the five teams made the playoffs in their second season since losing the Super Bowl. Therefore, history shows that the Rams have an 80% chance of making the playoffs this season. Also, two of the five teams ended up making the Divisional Round of the playoffs or better, which should give Rams fans real hope for 2020. However, the biggest caveat is that none of these discussed teams ended up making the Super Bowl. Therefore, if one was to go off of this modern history set exclusively, there is no chance of this happening in 2020.
Basically, modern history shows that the Rams are in the position to have a good-to-great season but also a unhistoric one. Of course, in the NFL, history is made seemingly every week of the season. Do Jared Goff and the Rams make history in 2020?