The 2010s Could Be a Decade Without an NFL Dynasty

It's a rather neat coincidence that practically every so-called dynasty in NFL history has become synonymous with a particular decade. 

• The Green Bay Packers' four championships in the 1930s. 
• The Chicago Bears won four championships in the 1940s.
• The Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions won three championships apiece in the 1950s, with the Otto Graham-led Browns competing in six consecutive title games. 
• The Green Bay Packers won five championships in the 1960s, the final two of which were Super Bowls I and II. 
• The Miami Dolphins won three consecutive AFC titles and won back-to-back Super Bowls in the early-1970s, the first of which clinched the only perfect season in modern NFL history. 
• The Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls in a six-year span to conclude the 1970s. 
• The San Francisco 49ers won four Super Bowls in the 1980s. 
• The Dallas Cowboys won three Super Bowls in a four-year span in the 1990s. 
• The New England Patriots won three Super Bowls in a four-year span in the 2000s. 

But that may be about to change. 

With the Packers, New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks and Patriots winning the five Super Bowls since 2010, this marks the first time in NFL history in which we've had five different champions to start a decade. 

Decade	Total	Notes
2010s	5	No multiple winners
1920s	4	Canton Bulldogs won twice
1960s	4	Packers won twice
1970s	4	Dolphins won twice
1990s	4	Cowboys won twice
1930s	3	Packers and Bears each won twice
1940s	3	Bears won three times
1950s	3	Browns and Lions each won twice
1980s	3	Raiders and 49ers won twice each
2000s	3	Patriots won three times

In fact, at least one team has won three of the six championships to kick off five of the last seven decades, with only the Dolphins, Steelers and 49ers causing slight delays in the '70s and '80s. But if someone other than Green Bay, New York, Baltimore, Seattle or New England wins in 2015, this decade will still lack a two-time champion with only four years remaining before we strike 2020. 

The easy thing to do? Chalk this whole thing up to parity. But that argument loses weight when you consider that the Cowboys won their three titles with San Francisco also dominating during the early part of the free-agency era in the '90s, and the Patriots won their three titles with both free agency and the salary cap in full swing in the '00s. 

And it's not as though we haven't seen regular-season domination in similar fashion to previous decades. In fact, the Patriots are easily on track to record the highest single-decade winning percentage in modern league history. 

Team	Decade	Winning %
Patriots	2010s	.788
Browns	1950s	.742
Cowboys	1970s	.729
Colts	2000s	.719
Packers	1960s	.714
49ers	1990s	.706
49ers	1980s	.688

It's easier to dominate over a five-year span than a 10-year span, so it's not totally fair to compare the Patriots from 2010 to 2014 with past dominant teams from entire decades. But even when compared to the best regular-season teams from the first half of previous decades, the Pats still fare very well.

Team	Decade	Winning %
Dolphins	1970s	.821
Browns	1950s	.817
Patriots	2010s	.788
Packers	1960s	.765
49ers	1990s	.763
Eagles	2000s	.738
Dolphins	1980s	.719

So it's possible the only difference between this decade and previous ones is that thus far we've seen a few teams that have lacked the ability to finish well on more than one occasion. The Patriots lost the Super Bowl in 2011 and fell just short of making the game in 2012 and 2013, while the Seahawks got back to the Super Bowl but failed in an attempt to repeat in 2014 (losing, coincidentally, to the Pats). 

The Patriots, Seahawks and Packers (who rank second to New England win a post-2009 winning percentage of .706 and also have a championship this decade) all appear to have what it takes to become the dynasty of this decade, but that can't happen if they continue to beat each other up.

Just this past season, Seattle came back to devastate Green Bay in the NFC Championship before New England did the same thing to the Seahawks in the Super Bowl. 

You could also make an argument that the Patriots already are a dynasty that has spanned two decades, but keep in mind that this franchise has just one player—quarterback Tom Brady—left over from that original Super Bowl season in 2001. And with the soon-to-be-38-year-old Brady serving as the third-oldest position player in football, it's safe to say New England is running out of time to leave a full impression on this decade. 

Beyond the strange case of the Patriots, the real battle for '10s dynasty status will probably pit Green Bay against Seattle. 

The Packers have the highest-rated passer in NFL history in Aaron Rodgers, who remains in his prime at the age of 31, while the Seahawks are coming off back-to-back Super Bowl appearances with a 26-year-old superstar quarterback. And with young stars Jimmy Graham, Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Earl Thomas and Bobby Wagner all well below the age of 30, there's a lot of room for Seattle to get better. 

Both of those teams are already ahead of where the Steelers were at this exact same juncture in the '70s, so it's not too late. But beyond that, nobody's even in the conversation. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012.

Follow @Brad_Gagnon