AFC Championship Appearances

With the game coming up tomorrow against Denver and New England, here are some statistics on who has, and who hasn't been to the AFC/AFL Championship game since 1960.

According to NFL records, the only team in the AFC that has never been to the AFC Championship is the Houston Texans, the other 15 teams in the AFC have all appeared in at least one game.

The Seattle Seahawks, Cleveland Browns, and Baltimore Colts are the only NFL teams to appear in both the AFC and NFC/NFL Championship games since Seattle relocated to the NFC in 2002 and the Browns and Colts moved into the AFC after the NFL/AFL Merger in 1970.

The only team that has never lost in the AFC Championship game is the Cincinnati Bengals.  They have made 2 appearances, in the 1981 season against San Diego, winning 27-7, and in the 1988 season against Buffalo, winning 21-10.  Both times Cincinnati advanced to the Super Bowl, they faced the San Francisco 49ers and lost both times.

The teams that have never won the AFC championship are :  Cleveland (0-3), Jacksonville (0-2), and Seattle (0-1).

The top 5 teams that have appeared in the most AFC/AFL Championship games (including this year's match up) are:

1. 15 - Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7)
2. 14 - Oakland Raiders (5-9)
3. 11 - New England Patriots, including tomorrow's game (7-3)
4. 9 - San Diego Chargers (2-7)
5. 9 - Denver Broncos, including tomorrow's game (6-2)

The team that has won the most AFC Championship games is the Pittsburgh Steelers who have won 8 championship games.

The team that has lost the most AFC/AFL Championship games is the Oakland Raiders losing 9 championship games.

Here is the complete list, including win/loss records, of the teams that have appeared in the AFC/AFL Championship game, ranked by win percentage:

1. 1.000 - Cincinnati Bengals (2-0)
2. .750 - Buffalo Bills (6-2)
3. .750 - Denver Broncos (6-2)
4. .750 - Kansas City Chiefs/Dallas Texans (3-1)
5. .714 - Miami Dolphins (5-2)
6. .700 - New England Patriots (7-3)
7. .533 - Pittsburgh Steelers (8-7)
8. .500 - Indianapolis/Baltimore Colts (3-3)
9. .500 - Baltimore Ravens (2-2)
10. .375 - Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers (3-5)
11. .357 - Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders (5-9)
12. .200 - New York Jets (1-4)
13. .222 - San Diego Chargers (2-7)
14. .000 - Seattle Seahawks (0-1)
15. .000 - Jacksonville Jaguars (0-2)
16. .000 - Cleveland Browns (0-3)

The AFC Championship game was known as the AFL Championship game prior to 1970 when the AFL and NFL merged to form the NFL we know today.  So not all the wins by a team represent the appearances they made in the Super Bowl, which was not started till the 1966 season.

That should get you ready for the AFC Championship game tomorrow, and be on the lookout for the NFC/NFL Championship appearances tomorrow.