The NFL is one of the most competitive leagues in the world. Former NFL commisioner Bert Bell said in 1952 that "the teams are so closely matched that on any given Sunday, any one team can beat any other team." A cliche was born on that day, but it holds a grain of truth. More than perhaps any other professional sport, the NFL seeks competitive balance. There are more rules, regulations and policies in place to create balance in the NFL than in any other major sport.
Despite all of this, sometimes a team is just terrible.
Five teams in the post World War II era have been so terrible in fact that they failed to record even a single victory.
The 1960 Dallas Cowboys (0–11–1)
The NFL was caught on the hop in 1959 when oil tycoon Lamar Hunt announced the creation of a new rival league, the American Football League. The AFL, it was announced, would feature eight teams. Included among those were the Dallas Texans. The Texans, who would later become the Kansas City Chiefs, threatened the NFL as they didn't have a franchise in the region.
With the AFL forcing their hand, the NFL confirmed that they too would create a Dallas Franchise. Initially called the Rangers, the rechristened Cowboys played their inaugural game in September - just seven months after being team was created. That was plainly not enough time to set up a new team.
Despite the appointment of future Hall of Fame coach Tom Landry, the Cowboys lost each of their first 10 games. They led the Pittsburgh Steelers 14-0 early in their first game, but eventually lost a close game 35-28. In fact, they were competitive in about half of their games but blown out by league powerhouses the Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and Los Angeles Rams. In their 11th game of the season, they faced the New York Giants at Yankee Stadium and managed to eke out a 31-31 tie.
They were last in the NFL in points scored, points allowed and rushing yards.
Unsurprisingly, they finished bottom of the standings in the Western Conference.
Despite the inauspicious beginning, the Cowboys began to improve. The following season they won four games and finished second from bottom after moving to the Eastern Conference.
By 1965, Landry's team were second and the following year they lost the NFL Championship to the Packers, with Landry winning Coach of the Year. They lost to the Packers in the Championship decider again the following year but remained powerhouses until the mid 1980s.
1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0–14)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were another expansion team in 1976, three years after they were confirmed as the next NFL team. Despite their location on the East Coast of the United States, the Bucs were placed in the AFC West. After 15 years as head coach of college side USC, John McKay was named Tampa's new coach. Fellow expansion team Seattle Seahawks also tried to hire McKay.
He signed former Heisman Trophy winner Steve Spurrier as his first quarterback, and picked up future Hall of Fame defensive end Lee Roy Selmon in the first round of the draft. There were bad signs for Tampa as early as training camp, with numerous players arriving out of shape.
They beat the Atlanta Falcons in an upset in the third of four preseason games, but lost each of the others. Starting tackle Dave Reavis was ruled out for the season after being injured warming up for the opener against Houston. The Bucs didn't score a single point in that game, or the next, as they dropped to 0-2 for the season. They actually led 6-0 against the Buffalo Bills in week three, but a tipped pass in the fourth quarter fell to a Bills receiver for a touchdown and the Bucs dropped the game 14-9
In week four, they scored their first offensive touchdown but Baltimore scored 42 points. They were shut out again in week five by the Cincinnati Bengals. One score losses to the Seahawks and Dolphins left them 0-7. After two more losses, they were shut out again by the Jets in New York, 34-0 to make it 10 in a row. The Steelers beat them 42-0 in week 13, and the Patriots completed the imperfect season with a 31-14 win in Tampa.
The Bucs lost 12 more games to start the 1977 season, but broke their 26-game losing streak in week 13 against the New Orleans Saints as they won 33-14 at the Superdome.
1982 Baltimore Colts (0–8–1)
The first non-expansion team on this list, the 1982 Baltimore Colts hold the unique distinction of the lowest non-zero winning percentage in professional sports history, with .056.
The Colts had won three straight AFC East titles from 1975-77, but been largely terrible ever since. In 1981 they went 2-14.
New coach Frank Kush had been appointed to try to turn things around after two decades at Arizona State and a year in the Canadian Football League with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
The Colts lost their two opening games before the NFLPA strike cut the season to just nine games, with seven games cancelled.
When games resumed, some teams got their starters back faster than others and Baltimore were not one of the lucky teams.
They faced near full strength Jets and Bills teams who scored a combined 57 points without reply. The Bengals and Vikings then won in close games, before the Colts managed a 20-20 draw against the Packers. The Chargers and Dolphins polished off a terrible season for Baltimore with wins in weeks eight and nine of the strike-shortened season.
In 1983, the Colts improved to 7-9 after drafting John Elway with the number one overall pick, but traded the Stanford star to Denver after he refused to play for them. In the following off season, the team shockingly relocated to Indianapolis, famously moving all of their gear in 14 Mayflower trucks in the middle of the night.
2008 Detroit Lions (0-16)
The Detroit Lions in the 2000s were one of the most inept franchises in American sports. After posting a reasonable 9-7 record in 2000, the Lions were under 0.500 in every season until 2011. 2008 was the nadir of that terrible run.
Two of their draft picks were held out of the season due to crimes committed before being drafted, while Safety Caleb Campbell wasn't eligible to play in the NFL until 2010 because of military service commitments.
Despite those missteps, the Lions famously went through pre-season undefeated, raising hopes of an improved record under third year coach Rod Marinelli.
Three different quarterbacks started games for the Lions, Dan Orlovsky, Jon Kitna and Daunte Culpepper. None managed more touchdowns than interceptions, and they combined for just 3,299 passing yards. The highlight of the season was probably kicker Jason Hanson going 21/22 on the season. That and the performance of future First-Team All-Pro receiver Calvin Johnson, who managed 12 touchdowns and 1,331 receiving yards in a historically bad team.
A two-point loss to the Minnesota Vikings in week six was the closest they came to a win, but they were never shut out. Those two points came from a safety when quarterback Orlovsky was sacked out of bounds in the end zone. In week nine, they led Chicago 23-13 at halftime, but were shut out in the second half as Rex Grossman led the Bears to a comeback win. Lions centre Dominic Raiola was fined in week 14 for a rude gesture aimed at Detroit fans.
The Lions would begin climbing, albeit slowly, out of the hole in coming years. The number one overall pick received by virtue of having been by some distance the NFL's worst team became quarterback Matthew Stafford. Stafford would provide years of excellent service before being traded to the LA Rams for current starter Jared Goff and a haul of picks. The Lions' promising 2023 season is, in large part, built on the 2008 campaign.
2017 Cleveland Browns (0-16)
The Browns had managed just one win in the previous season, meaning that they possessed the number one overall pick, which they used on standout Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett. Garrett was one of three first round picks made by the Browns. The others were safety Jabrill Peppers and tight end David Njoku.
The season started with an NFL record 13th consecutive opening day defeat to the AFC North divisional rival Pittsburgh Steelers. The Browns made it 21-18 late, but the Steelers ran out the clock to seal victory. Week three saw another three-point defeat, this time to the Indianapolis Colts. Another close loss came in week five against the New York Jets. After missing two late field goals, the Browns lost by three points again.
An overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans in which neither side scored a touchdown followed in week seven. Another overtime loss, this time to the Green Bay Packers, came in week 14 as the Browns became the first team ever to start consecutive seasons 0-13. Week 17 saw the Browns fighting to avoid a winless season against the Steelers. 24-28 down late in the fourth quarter, receiver Corey Coleman dropped a wide open pass at the 11-yard line to surrender possession on downs and effectively end the game.
The Browns first win of 2018 wouldn't come until week three, meaning that by that point, they had failed to win 52 of their last 57 games, and possessed the longest postseason drought of any NFL team, 15 years.
Fans organised a parade in honour of their team's ineptitude. The parade route was a circle, signifying both the number zero and the never-ending nature of their suffering. The parade raised $17,000 for charity.
Having, obviously, earned the number one pick again, the Browns selected Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield. With their second first-rounder, they added Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward. The Browns finished the next season 7-8-1, and third in the AFC North. After coach Hue Jackson was fired in week nine, Cleveland went 5-2 through the back half of the season.
After a backslide in 2019, the Browns finally had a winning season in 2020 and reached the playoffs. They beat the Steelers in the wild card round before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round.