The Panthers have an opportunity to become the third Super Bowl champion in history to win 18 games, and they’d be the first since the salary cap was instituted in 1994. Meanwhile, quarterback Cam Newton could be the seventh player in history to double up as the MVP and Super Bowl MVP.
Because of that, the Panthers are a victory shy of making their case as one of the league’s greatest teams in history.
In that spirit, here’s one man’s ranking of the greatest Super Bowl champions of the salary-cap era:
1. 2004 Patriots (17-2 overall record): The Patriots completed their dynastic run, and this squad doesn’t get nearly enough attention for potentially being the greatest team of all time.