Historical Performance Of Last Undefeated Team In The NFL

By Charlie Mullan

Mar 14th, 2024 7:22 AM EDT

As the NFL season enters its sixth week, only two teams remain undefeated. The San Francisco 49ers and the Philadelphia Eagles are the only teams yet to be beaten, but which will be the last remaining undefeated team?

Whether it's the 49ers or the Eagles, they should be wary because that honour seems to be cursed. The last undefeated team in the last 16 seasons are 0-21 when it comes to winning the Super Bowl. 

The 2006 Indianapolis Colts are the last team to win the Super Bowl having been the last undefeated team that season. That Colts team, coached by Tony Dungy with Peyton Manning leading the offense, started the season 9-0 before they were beaten 21-14 by the Dallas Cowboys in Texas. 

In Super Bowl XLI in Miami, The Colts recovered from Devin Hester running the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown, to beat the Chicago Bears 29-17. The NFL is not about how you start a season, it's about how you finish it. 

Can either the 49ers or Eagles break the jinx and do what Indianapolis did and win Super Bowl LVIII? The 49ers are favourites with many of the leading NFL betting sites to hoist the Vince Lombardi in Las Vegas on 11 February. 

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The NFL schedule makers have served us up a treat this year with the 49ers travelling to Philadelphia on Sunday 3 December. Will either or both still be undefeated by then? At Bookies.com, we have analysed each team's schedule before their Week 13 clash at the Lincoln Financial Field.  

The Eagles and 49ers have shown that there are different ways to get to 5-0. Philadelphia, who lost Super Bowl LVII to the Chiefs in February, have been less convincing than the 49ers so far this season.

While San Francisco have scored 30 points or more in each of their opening five games and their average winning margin is 19.8, four of the Eagles five victories have been by nine points or fewer. 

But being the last undefeated team in a season does not led to Super Bowl glory. In the last 21 seasons, 27 teams have been the last undefeated team, but only the Colts have finished the season with the Vince Lombardi trophy. A total of 23 teams lost in the playoffs, while three failed to reach the postseason altogether.  

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49ers Proving Unstoppable On Both Sides Of The Ball

Last weekend's home game against the Cowboys looked to be the trickiest game on San Francisco's immediate schedule. Dallas were 3-1 and were the only team with a winning record the 49ers face until their Week 10 clash with the Jaguars, a week after their bye which will give them those carrying injuries a chance to get healthy. Finding a weakness in this 49ers team is as difficult as trying to beat them. 

Brock Purdy is leading the Niners' offense brilliantly and the young quarterback has yet to lose a game he has completed. His only loss remains the defeat to the Eagles in last season's NFC Championship game when he got injured early in the contest. With so many weapons around Purdy in the huddle, hopes are high that the 49ers can win their sixth Vince Lombardi trophy.

Running-back Christian McCaffrey is making a strong claim to win this season's MVP award. CMC has now scored in 14 consecutive games, and is now four short of Lenny Moore's NFL record of 18 which was set between 1963 and 1965. Will McCaffrey find the end zone this Sunday when the 49ers travel to Cleveland?

Eagles Need To Learn From Last Season

If the 49ers and Eagles were to meet this weekend, the 49ers would be favourites with NFL betting sites to win. But the Eagles have a few weeks to improve on offense and defense before they go head-to-head with San Francisco. 

One of Philadelphia's strengths on offense is the 'Tush Push' or 'Brotherly Shove' play which has been criticised by other teams in the league. Moves have been made to ban the play where quarterback Jalen Hurts is pushed and sometimes pulled into the end zone by his team-mates. 

But while it's legal, head coach Nick Siriani will continue to use it when his team find themselves close to the opponent's end zone. Siriani's side were the NFL's last undefeated team last season and they managed to get to the Super Bowl, only to lose to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. This weekend, the Eagles will look to improve their record to 6-0 against the 2-3 Jets in New York.

About the Author

Charlie Mullan

More About Charlie

UK-based stats man Charlie Mullan brings previous expertise from the Press Association, DraftKings, Betfair, SportPesa, Hull Daily Mail and more where he has crunched soccer data for many seasons, creating content to support odds providers and market makers in the European betting industry. Charlie has more than a decade of experience using in-depth stats to make informed picks across the biggest games in the EPL and European soccer leagues.

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