Aug 27 2008
NFL Rivalries
Many rivalries exist in the NFL. These are usually the can’t miss games of the season. The oldest rivalry is between the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. It goes all the way back to 1922. There is never any love lost between these two teams.
Another huge rival is the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns. The two cities are separated by only 132 miles. I’m sure there is much fuzzy area between the two cities where loyalties are divided. It’s like pitting neighbor versus neighbor.
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Oakland Raiders is an unusual rivalry. The Kansas City Athletic baseball team packed up and moved to Oakland, became the A’s and Kansas City’s bitterness towards Oakland began.
The New England Patriots and the New York Jets are two teams that dislike each other. Many coaches have deserted one team for the other. Eric Mangini, the Jets current head coach, served as a defensive coordinator for the Patriots.
The Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins have been rivals since Dallas came into the league in 1960. It could be the classic cowboys and indians matchup.
There are many more but those are the major ones. Rivalries are good for the league. It can keep interest in a game when there otherwise might not be any. Sometimes, as long as you beat your rival, your season might not be so bad after all.
