The 10 Best NFL Teams of the Last Decade
3. 2007 Indianapolis Colts
nERD: 13.14
Record: 13-3, lost Divisional Playoffs
Peyton Manning makes two appearances in the top-five of this list, which is pretty darn impressive. Despite winning Super Bowl XLI the year before, the Indianapolis Colts suffered no hangover doldrums. They roared to their fifth consecutive AFC South title that season, and even improved on their record from the previous year.
The offense was good enough to rank second in the league this year by Adjusted Offensive NEP per play. Manning ranked second among quarterbacks in Total NEP and Passing NEP per drop back this season. Joseph Addai ranked third and Kenton Keith twelfth among running backs in this metric this season as well, and both wide receiver Reggie Wayne and tight end Dallas Clark were top-10 options at their positions to boot. This was a balanced and lethal offense.
Add in a seventh-place rank in Adjusted Defensive NEP per play, and you had the makings of a dynastic team that could have won back-to-back titles. Despite both defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis having down years, safeties Bob Sanders and Antoine Bethea earned Pro Bowl honors on the backs of 235 shared total tackles that year.
The Colts would be booted by the just-as-dangerous San Diego Chargers that year in only the first round of the playoffs, despite their opposition going into the game without either their starting quarterback or the league's leading rusher.
