Four current NFL teams, including franchises that have relocated or been renamed, have never appeared in a Super Bowl: the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Houston Texans, despite the fact that both the Browns (1950, 1954, 1955, 1964) and Lions (1935, 1952, 1953, 1957) had won NFL Championship Games prior to...
The most recent season in which a team has never made it to the Super Bowl is 2016. The Patriots lost 26-16 to the Falcons in the first ever Super Bowl played at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
New England was the first franchise to win three consecutive Super Bowls when they defeated Denver 4-2 in Santa Clara, California in February 2019.
The Patriots are also the only team to defeat Pittsburgh, Miami, Chicago, Indianapolis, San Francisco, and Seattle during the postseason. They are the first team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to do so.
In addition to winning the first three Super Bowls, New England has the longest active playoff run of any team with nine games remaining on their schedule. They are one victory away from tying Dallas' record for most wins in a single season.
The Texans have the opportunity to go down as the greatest team in NFL history with a chance at winning their first Super Bowl.
Since winning the title in 1957, the club has only won one postseason game, in 1992, and has never moved past the NFC Championship Game. They are the oldest NFL club that has not been in the Super Bowl, as well as the only franchise that has been in operation during the Super Bowl era and the only NFC team that has not appeared. The Patriots are the only other team that is still active in the NFL but plays in the AFC.
The Lions have the most losses in the Super Bowl with six, tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers. They have also had the most first-place votes (10) in the MVP Award balloting, more than any other team.
To date, the Lions are the only team that has never earned a playoff win. They are 1-8 in postseasons overall and have never made it past the first round of the playoffs.
Detroit finished second in its division three years in a row from 1950 to 1952, but failed to make the playoffs each year. They returned to the postseason in 1953, when they were defeated by Chicago 22-0 in the first round. From 1954 to 1956, the Lions again finished second in their division but failed to qualify for the playoffs each season.
In 1957, the Lions defeated Chicago 14-7 in the championship game at Miami's Joe Louis Stadium. After two decades of futility, this marked the beginning of the New York Giants' decline into obscurity.
There are 13 NFL teams with no bowl victories, although only the Texans, Jaguars, Lions, and Browns have never played in one. Each NFL team's Super Bowl appearances, victories, winning seasons, defeats, and losing seasons are shown here. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the most all-time Super Bowl victories with six.
The Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans franchise entered the NFL in 1960; however, they didn't become full members of the NFL until two years later. They originally played their home games at Tulane University's Green Stadium before moving into Tennessee's Liberty Stadium in 1964. The Titans relocated to Nashville for the 1982 season and became the inaugural winners of the NFC Championship Game. The franchise was sold and renamed the Houston Oilers in 1999; however, they were removed from the market after just three seasons due to poor sales ratings and financial difficulties. The Baltimore Ravens took over as the new owners of the name, logo, and history of the franchise.
The Jacksonville Jaguars joined the NFL in 1994 as an expansion team. They played their first game on September 7, 1995, against the Chicago Bears at Jack Murphy Stadium in Murphy, Florida. The Jaguars lost that game 24-3. Their current home stadium, EverBank Field, opened its doors in 2001. The Detroit Lions also joined the NFL as an expansion team in 1950.
The Browns went on to win three NFL titles, practically dominating the league in the 1950s, and one more in 1964. However, the squad has yet to play in a Super Bowl. The most recent season the Browns participated in was 2014 when they were defeated by San Francisco in the first round of the NFL Playoffs.
A Cleveland team has only been involved in five all-time Super Bowls. The Browns' record is 0-5. The last time they played in the Big Game was in 1999 when they lost to Atlanta 37-36 in overtime. Running back Gerald Riggs Jr. scored the game-winning touchdown with less than two minutes left in regulation.
Also in 1999, the Browns had one of football's greatest players in their lineup: Bill Belichick. He led the Browns to a victory over Houston in the final game of the regular season before going on to guide New England to a 21-20 win over Miami in Super Bowl XXXVI.
Before he became the Patriots head coach, Belichick spent three seasons with the Browns. He originally joined the Browns as an assistant defensive coach under Romeo Crennel after spending nine years as the head coach of the Boston College Eagles.
After their early seasons, the Jaguars have been less successful, with only three playoff appearances and one division title since 2000. Jacksonville is one of four NFL teams, along with Detroit, Houston, and Cleveland, that have never competed in a Super Bowl. The others are the 49ers, Raiders, and Bengals.
The Jaguars came close to reaching their first Super Bowl in 1999, when they lost to New England 24-2. Quarterback Mark Brunell led the charge for Jacksonville, completing 21 of 30 passes for 273 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 51 yards and another score that day. Wide receivers Jimmy Smith and Don Davis each had nine receptions as Brunell threw no interceptions. New England's defense was too much for the Jaguars to handle as they used the bootleg more than 100 times that game.
Jacksonville will be playing in its second Super Bowl this year after defeating Pittsburgh 26-14 in the AFC Championship Game. It will be the first championship game appearance for the Jaguars, who became eligible when Indianapolis declined to play in 2017. This will also be quarterback Blake Bortles' first career playoff win.
Bortles played well throughout the season, throwing for 2,891 yards with 20 touchdowns against eight interceptions. He also ran for five scores. Center Brandon Linder and left guard Andrew Norwell were named to the 2018 Pro Bowl after they both started all 16 games this year.
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