Who is the greatest player in NFL history never to win a Super Bowl? Who is the greatest player in Washington’s NFL history never to win a Super Bowl?
CBS Sports recently ranked its list of the top 30 players never to win a Super Bowl. This list included current players, quarterbacks Josh Allen (Bills) and Lamar Jackson (Ravens). The rest of the list featured multiple Hall of Famers and some soon-to-be enshrined in Canton, Ohio. Three former Washington players made this list, with one coming in at No. 3. Please note that the players ranked are from the Super Bowl era, which began in 1967.
Who are these three players?
No. 22: CB Champ Bailey
Best chance: One of the best cornerbacks of his era, Bailey didn’t play in a Super Bowl until his final season. Unfortunately for Bailey, his Broncos team didn’t stand a chance against the Seahawks, who recorded one of the most lopsided wins in Super Bowl history.
Washington selected Bailey in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft. He spent five seasons in Washington before he was traded to Denver in the unforgettable Clinton Portis trade. Neither player won a Super Bowl for their new team. Bailey played 10 seasons for the Broncos, who won the Super Bowl three years after he retired. Bailey departed Washington on bad terms, but has since made peace with the organization since Dan Snyder sold the team.
No. 15: RB Adrian Peterson
Best chance: Peterson’s 122 yards and three touchdowns in 2009 NFC title game wasn’t enough to lift the Vikings past the Saints, who edged Minnesota in one of the greatest championship games in history. A crucial interception by Brett Favre late in regulation prevented the Vikings from attempting a game-winning field goal. The Saints took advantage in overtime, winning the game and capturing the franchise’s only Super Bowl title two weeks later.
Peterson is best remembered for his time with the Vikings; however, he also had a two-year stint with the Redskins, where he led the team in rushing in back-to-back seasons, accumulating close to 2,000 yards and 12 touchdowns in 31 games. Peterson finished his 15-year NFL career with 14,918 rushing yards and 120 rushing touchdowns.
No. 3: DE Bruce Smith
Best chance: Smith’s safety in Super Bowl XXV gave Buffalo a 12-3 early lead over the Giants. But the Bills would score only one more time and ended up on the short end of closest Super Bowl ever. Down 20-19 with eight seconds left, Smith and his teammates locked arms on the sideline as Scott Norwood’s 47-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right.
The NFL’s all-time leader with 200 sacks, Smith and the Bills would play in the next three Super Bowls while becoming the only team to play in the big game four straight years. But they were defeated each time by a combined score of 119-54.
Smith played 19 seasons in the NFL — 15 in Buffalo and the final four in Washington. Smith set the NFL’s all-time sack record while he played for the Redskins. While much of his time in Washington was not memorable because the franchise struggled on the field and Smith made it clear why he was still playing, he did accomplish the feat in the burgundy and gold.
Who were the rest of the top five?
- Dan Marino
- Barry Sanders
- Randy Moss
- Bruce Smith
- Anthony Munoz
Washington last played in the Super Bowl back in 1991, defeating Smith and the Bills for its third Super Bowl championship.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Ex-Washington stars named some of the best ever not to win Super Bowl