The Jacksonville Jaguars have a strong claim as the team with the quickest start as a franchise in modern professional sports. After a relatively average inaugural season that saw the team go 4-12, the Jaguars miraculously squeaked into the playoffs in 1996 and orchestrated two of the biggest upsets in playoff history before falling to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.
The Jaguars were a perennial playoff team for the next several seasons, culminating in one of the most dominant campaigns in recent memory in 1999. The Jaguars went 14-2 and only one team kept them from making the Super Bowl – the Tennessee Titans.