The 2023 NFL season is nearing its end, with the Super Bowl just weeks away. One team will have a chance to etch itself into the history books and earn the title of the best team in the 2023 season.
With the Super Bowl being such an elusive and difficult-to-win achievement, it’s been a long time since some teams have won it — with some having never won it. What are the longest Super Bowl droughts in NFL history?
What Are the NFL’s Longest Super Bowl Droughts?
Out of all 32 NFL franchises, only 20 have won the Super Bowl. In addition to the 12 that haven’t won one, four haven’t even made it to the big game. Those four include the Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans, Cleveland Browns, and Detroit Lions.
However, the longest Super Bowl win drought goes beyond just the Super Bowl era. The Arizona Cardinals, who have never won a Super Bowl, haven’t won an NFL title in 76 seasons. Their last NFL championship came in 1947, 19 years before the NFL and AFL merged to form the Super Bowl Era in 1966.
Despite not winning a championship, the Cardinals did make it to the Super Bowl in 2009 when they faced the Pittsburgh Steelers and lost 27-23.
Next up after the Cardinals is the Lions, who have never even made it to a Super Bowl. The Lions’ last championship came back in 1957 when they won the NFL Championship. This means it has been 65 seasons since their last title. In 2023, the Lions won their first-ever NFC North title and will face the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game.
The next four teams with the longest drought have never won a title, pre- or post-Super Bowl era. The Minnesota Vikings lead the way with a 63-season drought, becoming a franchise in 1961. The Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Chargers, and Tennessee Titans all were formed in 1966, holding a 58-season championship drought.
The Browns also hold a 58-season drought, having won the NFL Championship in 1964. They have never made a Super Bowl but do have eight NFL Championship wins, with five coming from 1946-1950. The Browns have just one playoff win since 1994.
MORE: List of Most Super Bowl Wins by Team
The Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals both have never won a Super Bowl and hold 57- and 56-season droughts. The Bills became a franchise in 1966 and the Bengals in 1968. For the Bills, they’ve made four Super Bowls, losing all of them in a row. The Bengals, on the other hand, have lost three Super Bowls, most recently in 2021.
The longest Super Bowl drought of a team that has won one is the New York Jets, who currently hold a 55-season Super Bowl drought with their most recent win in the 1968 season, winning Super Bowl III.
The Jets are followed up by the Miami Dolphins with a 49-season drought, with their most recent Super Bowl coming in the 1973 season. The Dolphins won the 1972 Super Bowl as well, going undefeated at 17-0, the only team to ever do such a thing.
The final three teams to never win a Super Bowl are the Jaguars, Texans, and Carolina Panthers. The Jaguars and Panthers were both formed in 1995, holding 29-season droughts. The Texans, the NFL’s most recently formed franchise, were formed in 2002 and hold a 21-season drought.
While the Texans and Jaguars have never made a Super Bowl, the Panthers have made two, losing both. They made the 2003 Super Bowl and 2015 Super Bowl, losing to the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos, respectively.
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