The 2022/23 NFL season has reached its climax and the playoffs are now underway. There are a couple of mouth-watering ties coming up from the AFC. Firstly, the Buffalo Bills will face off against last year’s Super Bowl losers, the Cincinnati Bengals, in the divisional round.
The winners of that tie will likely face Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs for a spot in the Super Bowl. Oddschecker, which compares Super Bowl odds and free offers, has made the Chiefs the favourites for success next month, but first they need to wrap up their conference.
The NFL is a game of glory and defeat, and no team likes to finish at the bottom of the league. One of the worst feelings in sports is being the team that finishes last in the standings and then has to begin their off-season with the knowledge that they weren’t good enough. Since 2015, these are the teams that have had the unfortunate experience of not making it to the playoffs or even having a winning record.
Detroit Lions – 2015
The 2015 season saw the Detroit Lions at the bottom of the standings, with a 7-9 record. Although the Lions had a winning record in 2014 and made the playoffs in 2011, they proved unable to keep the momentum going and had one of the worst offences in the league.
It was a disappointing end to what could have been a successful season.
Cleveland Browns – 2016
The following year was the turn of the Cleveland Browns to finish bottom of the league with a record of 1-15. It was a disastrous season for the Browns, who had high hopes at the start of the season with the acquisition of wide receiver Terrelle Pryor and quarterback Robert Griffin III.
The Browns finished the season with the worst record in the NFL since the expansion of the Texans in 2002 and their struggles continue to this day.
San Francisco 49ers – 2017
The 2017 season saw the San Francisco 49ers falling to the bottom of the standings. Despite having one of the best defenses in the league, the 49ers struggled offensively and finished the season with a 6-10 record.
It was a disappointing end to the season for a team that had made the Super Bowl just two years prior.
Arizona Cardinals – 2018
Five years ago, it was the turn of the Arizona Cardinals to finish bottom with a 3-13 record.
The Cardinals had drafted Josh Rosen as the number 10 overall pick in the draft and had high hopes that he would be the quarterback to lead them to success, but the season ended disappointingly.
Miami Dolphins – 2019
The 2019 season saw the Miami Dolphins finish at the bottom of the league, with a 5-11 record.
Despite the Dolphins having a roster filled with high-profile players, they were unable to turn things around and finished the season with one of the worst offences in the league.
Jacksonville Jaguars – 2020
As we all remember only too well, the 2020 season was a strange one in most sports. Global events meant that games had to be played behind closed doors, and one team that didn’t benefit from this was the Jacksonville Jaguars.
They finished rock bottom of the NFL that season, picking up just one win in 16.
Jacksonville Jaguars – 2021
So nice, they did it twice. The Jaguars have an unenviable record of finishing bottom of the NFL standings for two consecutive years. Last season, they were once again the whipping boys of the AFC, but at least they picked up two wins more than they did the previous year.
The Detroit Lions also ended the campaign with just three wins; however, they lost one less game than the Jaguars, meaning that the Florida-based outfit was the one that ended up with the wooden spoon.
Chicago Bears – 2022
And finally, we make it to the current season, where the unwanted honour goes to the Chicago Bears, who finished their campaign with a record of three wins and 14 defeats.
It looked as though the title of worst team would go to the Houston Texans but two wins in their final three games ensured that they finished with a slightly better record than the lackluster Bears.
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