A Rare Sight: Both 2016 Super Bowl Teams will Miss 2017 Playoffs
OPENING KICKOFF
For starters: perspective on the big news
Carolina and Denver made history again. For only the third time, both participating Super Bowl teams have failed to make the following season’s playoffs.
Entering Week 16 we already knew the defending NFC champion Carolina Panthers wouldn’t be playing past New Year’s Day — when the NFL’s regular season ends for all 32 teams.
Same now goes for the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos, after their 33-10 loss on Christmas night at Kansas City.
The only other years in which both Super Bowl combatants watched the following season’s playoffs entirely on TV were 1999 (Denver and Atlanta) and 2003 (Tampa Bay and Oakland).
Carolina, at 6-9, sits in last place in the NFC South. It hadn’t missed the playoffs since 2012.
