INDIANAPOLIS — Falcons coach Dan Quinn has sifted through the wreckage of his team's Super Bowl collapse, and found some good in it.
He thinks the monumental loss to New England, in which Atlanta blew a 25-point lead, can serve as an inspiration for the Falcons to come back even stronger next season.
Historically, that hasn't happened.
It's been 45 years since the Dallas Cowboys first went from Super Bowl loser to champion. The Miami Dolphins did it the next season, too. No other team has successfully done it.
In fact, the last time a runner-up played in the next Super Bowl was when Buffalo endured the last of its record-breaking four consecutive losses in January 1994.