Falcons

No division title or championship came in those early decades, and for a long stretch the Falcons carried a distinction no one wants — the oldest team in major American professional sport still without a title.

They came closest twice, and both times the ending stung. Super Bowl XXXIII, after the 1998 season, ended in a 34–19 loss to the Denver Broncos. Super Bowl LI, after the 2016 season, is the one still talked about: Atlanta led the Patriots 28–3 in the third quarter, then watched New England force overtime and win 34–28.

The nickname the fan base actually uses, Dirty Birds, has nothing to do with any of that — it traces back to running back Jamal Anderson's touchdown celebration during that 1998 run. The team's oldest and sharpest rivalry belongs to the New Orleans Saints, a fixture dating to the late 1960s when both clubs entered the league within a year of each other and started measuring their seasons against one another.

Matt Ryan's name sits in the club's Ring of Honor alongside owner Arthur Blank, and division banners from the NFC South seasons of 2004, 2010, 2012 and 2016 mark the closest thing to sustained success since the move out of the NFC West.