Greatest NFL Offense of All-Time

Sure, the other offenses of All-Time were brilliant and perhaps, at times, arguably unstoppable, but no one had the mystique of the 1999-2001 GREATEST SHOW ON TURF St. Louis Rams -- everyone knew they couldn't stop them. Before Kurt Warner got hurt, he was going to smash every single-season record for QBs ever -- and easily, at that. After he got hurt, all of a sudden the backup puts up comparable stats. It was unfathomable -- teams gave up 30 and more points and were satisfied with their performances.

Lets talk the 2000 playoffs that year, the Saints lead the Rams by (what I remember as) oh maybe, three touchdowns going into the fourth quarter, a seemingly insurmountable lead, and Dan Fouts and company kept saying, "You can't be sure with the Rams." Sure enough, the Rams stormed right back to within a touchdown in a matter of minutes and would have certainly won if Hakim hadn't fumbled a punt. Sure, a year later, people have them figured out, thanks to Bill Belichick, but the fact that it took that long is just a tribute to Mike Martz and the amazing talent of that Rams offense.

Lets keep talking 2000, and reformat: St. Louis averaged 33.8 points per game in 2000, about a point more than in 1999, when the Rams were also an offensive powerhouse, and a couple more than in 2001. Those three years together guarantee the Kurt Warner/Marshall Faulk offense a permanent place in NFL history, but what makes the 2000 season stand out is that the offense did it with relatively little help from the D, which was the worst in the NFL. In their first six games, the Rams averaged 43.7 points a game. Then they were thrown for a bit of a loop when Warner missed five games with a broken pinky. However, we had the best team of all 3 in 2001 overall, despite losing the Super Bowl to one that was called "America's Game" to a team that wore Red, White, and Blue, to a team that were considered underdogs, and were "America's Team" for that game alone.

But Warner, who played only 11 games, averaged 9.9 yards per pass attempt, and his backup, Trent Green, played eight games that would have been, statistically, the envy of just about any other NFL starter. Together, the two QBs combined for 5,492 yards in the air. Faulk, meanwhile, scored 28 touchdowns; he ran for 1,359 yards, averaging 5.4 yards per carry; he also caught 81 passes for 830 yards, averaging 10.2 yards a catch. Wide receivers Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce each caught 80-plus passes.

The key here is the Rams' 2000 offense remained great despite Warner's injury and despite the fact every NFL defense knew what was coming. "The Rams created a mystique last year with how explosive they were," said Panthers safety Eugene Robinson late in the season. "Their defense could give up 35 points, and they'd put up 50 points. Everybody was like, 'Oh, man, they're the greatest thing since sliced bread.' Rightfully so. Now, all you need to do is have a very good defense, play sound ball, keep things in front, and don't give up the big play."

Right.