Members of the New England Patriots and New York Giants can consider themselves fortunate, since they will get an opportunity to shine on pro football's biggest stage. Some of the NFL's all-time greatest players -- despite long and decorated careers -- never got the chance to play on Super Sunday.
Randle --
a 2010 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee -- played in two NFC Championship Games (1998, 2000) but fell short for a
Vikings franchise that hasn't reached a Super Bowl since the 1976 season.
In the season
Tomlinson eclipsed Paul Hornung's scoring record, the
Chargers owned home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs, only to lose to the
Patriots. Later he
lost an AFC title game as a member of the
Jets.
The
Cardinals were two cities and 60 years removed between championship game appearances, and Dierdorf --
a 1996 Hall inductee -- went 0-3 in three playoff appearances with the St. Louis
Cardinals.
Carter was a member of one of the best teams to not reach the Super Bowl: The 1998
Vikings, who finished the regular season 15-1. Nowadays, the receiver is falling short of reaching a place in Canton.
Largent helped turn the expansion
Seahawks into a contender in a short period of time, but the
Hall of Fame receiver only got as far in the playoffs as the 1983 AFC Championship Game.
The on-field leader of the
"Air Coryell" offense, Fouts --
a 1993 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee -- got the
Chargers to the AFC title games in 1980 and 1981, but lost to the
Raiders and
Bengals, respectively.
Sanders -- a 10-time Pro Bowl selection and
2004 inductee in the Pro Football Hall of Fame -- was a member of five
Lions playoff teams, getting as far as the NFC Championship Game in 1991.
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