12 NFL teams that have never won a Super Bowl heading into 2023 season
The NFL has crowned 57 Super Bowl champions through the years, and yet over one-third of the league remains without a Lombardi Trophy in its collection. After the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl in the 2022-23 season, 12 teams are still waiting for their first chance to reach the top of the NFL mountain.
As we head into the meat of the 2023 NFL offseason, which teams have yet to win (or even reach) a Super Bowl, and which teams maybe stand the best chance of getting on the board this season for Super Bowl LVIII?
Which 12 NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl?
(in order of 2022 record)
1. Houston Texans
The Houston Texans finished the 2022 season with a record of 3-13-1. Although they have renewed hope as a franchise with the arrival of head coach DeMeco Ryans and new draft pick CJ Stroud and Will Anderson Jr., I think it’s safe to say the Texans will remain on this list for at least another year until we see how this young staff/roster can progress.
2. Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals finished their 2022 season 4-13 and going into the 2023 campaign, they look like one of the worst all-around rosters in the entire NFL. A young coaching staff led by Jonathan Gannon is going to have to navigate this season potentially without star QB Kyler Murray, who is recovering from a knee injury.
Although the Cardinals have had some decent teams in recent years, you can probably take it to the bank that they’ll be on this list again next year.
3. Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are essentially the NFL’s version of the Chicago Cubs, pre-2016. They have a devout and passionate fan base, yet it seems like it will take a miracle from the football gods to get this team a Lombardi. The Browns were 7-10 last season. If Deshaun Watson can find a way to reach the level of play we saw from him back in 2017-2019, Cleveland might have an outside shot of getting on the board.
4. Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a candidate to go from worst to first this coming season, but are they a Super Bowl contender? I would say that’s not overly likely. Just like the Browns, the Falcons went 7-10 last year, but I don’t think this is a roster that’s built to take teams like Philadelphia down in the postseason. Then again, you never know, because Arthur Smith and the Titans did exceptionally well with their dominant ground game just a couple of years ago, reaching the AFC Championship. Could the Falcons be similar?
5. Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers went 7-10 last year and I think they are poised to be one of the more improved teams in the NFL this year. Although I think they’re contenders to win the NFC South, I’m not sure I’m taking them as legitimate candidates right now to win the Super Bowl. New head coach Frank Reich and new quarterback Bryce Young have a bright future together. Perhaps the discussion about the Panthers will be different a year from now.
6. Tennessee Titans
Yet another team that went 7-10 last season on this list, the window for the Tennessee Titans that opened up in 2019 appears to have closed shut and disappeared. I don’t view this current version of the Titans as a legitimate Super Bowl contender, even if you don’t really want to play a Mike Vrabel team late in the season or in the playoffs. I think the Titans are good enough to possibly have a winning record again this season, but probably not win the first Super Bowl in franchise history.
7. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars went from holding the number one overall pick in both the 2021 and 2022 NFL Draft to now being legitimate contenders in the AFC. We saw Jacksonville win a playoff game last year and give the Kansas City Chiefs all they could handle in the Divisional round. The Jags have a Super Bowl-winning head coach and one of the best QBs in the league. It would be odd to see Jacksonville win its first Super Bowl just because of how much this franchise has struggled through the years, but I think they’re a contender.
8. Detroit Lions
I’m not sure where the Detroit Lions sit on this list for me as far as possibly winning it all this year. I don’t realistically see it happening, but I am simultaneously very high on the Lions right now. Is Jared Goff a limiting factor? He’s been to the Super Bowl before. I could see the Lions, who were 9-8 last season, reaching the second round of the playoffs, but I’m not sure this is a Super Bowl champion in 2023-24.
9. Los Angeles Chargers
It’s borderline impossible to take the Chargers seriously as Super Bowl contenders. Especially after the choke job we saw in last year’s playoffs against Jacksonville. I will believe the Chargers as title contenders when I see it.
10. Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals are the one team on this list that has gotten closest to getting off the list in recent years with a close Super Bowl loss to the Rams in the 2021-22 season. The Bengals remain one of the top teams in the AFC and one of the top Super Bowl contenders right now.
11. Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings shockingly won 13 games a season ago. Albeit, 11 of those games were one-score games and the Vikings had an 11-0 record in one-score games in the regular season. As good as this team’s record was last year, I don’t — in any way — see them as a legitimate title contender in 2023.
12. Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a few bounces of the ball away from being one of the most legendary NFL franchises of all time as opposed to the butt of Super Bowl jokes. Just like the Bengals, the Bills are one of the best all-around teams in the AFC and a true contender to beat the Chiefs and win Super Bowl LVIII if they can reach their full potential.