NFL Rock Bottom Moments and the Preseason Field Goal Everyone’s Talking About

Not every NFL season ends in glory; in fact, far from it. Some years are so rough that they become part of team lore for all the wrong reasons. These NFL seasons are marked by dismal records, underwhelming performances, and disappointed fan bases, seasons where almost nothing went right, and even the wins felt pitiful.

The most embarrassing seasons and moments in league history are here. We'll cover teams that couldn't put together more than a single victory, teams that started with high hopes but crumbled fast, and rosters that looked competitive on paper but never delivered on the field. Plus, we'll discuss the recent record-breaking field goal that, embarrassingly, happened outside of the actual NFL season.

247 Tempo sourced these examples using information from ESPN, Bleacher Report, Total Pro Sports, and other reputable sports outlets. Let's check out these embarrassing moments now.

This post was updated August 12th, 2025, to reflect additional information.

While this didn't occur during a full NFL season, that's precisely why this event is embarrassing. Jacksonville's 2025 preseason got a viral highlight thanks to its rookie kicker, Cam Little. He ended up kicking a 70-yard field goal, which is one of the longest ever recorded in any NFL setting. However, it doesn't necessarily count or matter, given the fact that it didn't happen during the actual season. Here's hoping Little can break his record during an actual game!

• Record That Year: 1-15
• Coach: Jimmy Johnson

The Dallas Cowboys are generally a good football team. However, they've had their ups and downs, and perhaps their lowest point was 1989 when they won only one single game. This was right after the team was purchased by current owner Jerry Jones, and they had all-time-great NFL coach Jimmy Johnson on the sidelines.

• Record That Year: 0-14
• Coach: John McKay

It was in 1976 when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers debuted as part of the National Football League, and it was a disaster. They simply could not get their team and staff to work as one, and they went down in history for it. They were shut out five times, they lost eight games by at least 20 points, and they only played three games that were decided by seven points or less. Even worse, they never scored more than 20 points in a game during that season.

• Record That Year: 0-16
• Coach: Rod Marinelli

Although they had a great 2023 season and made it to the postseason for the first time in ages, success is a relatively new flavor for the Lions in recent years. For a long time, they were considered to be one of the worst teams in a division where the Green Bay Packers ruled supreme. Nothing was worse for them in recent memory than their abysmal 2008 season.

• Record That Year: 1-15
• Coach: George Seifert

This was one of the worst seasons in the history of the Carolina Panthers. The team won only one game that year, and it was the season's very first game. As a bonus, the team also set the record for the most consecutive losses at that time. That streak wasn't broken until the other embarrassing football seasons of the 2008 Lions and the 2017 Cleveland Browns. The season was so bad that fans stopped showing up to games, and the audience was pitiful during their final loss of the season to the New England Patriots.

• Record That Year: 0-16
• Coach: Hue Jackson

The Cleveland Browns made history as the most recent team to lose every single game in a season and only the second team to lose during the era of 16-game regular seasons. The 2017 season was a continuation of a depressing set of years for the team. During the 2016 season, the team had won only one game.

• Record That Year: 1-15
• Coach: Ron Meyer

The 1991 season was the worst that the team has had since they arrived in Indianapolis in 1984, and it continues to be their worst season since that year. Their only win was a narrow victory against the New York Jets, and it ended as a nailbiter at 28-27.

• Record That Year: 1-15
• Coach: Cam Cameron

The Dolphins worst season ever was in 2007 when they had a record of 1-15. They only managed to avoid a winless season by squeaking out a win during overtime on week 15.

• Record That Year: 1-13
• Coach: Harvey Johnson

The Bills only won one of 13 games that year. They also only scored 21 touchdowns, which was the third-fewest at that time.

• Record That Year: 1-15
• Coach: Rich Kotite

They won only one of 15 games that year. Even worse was the fact that they had one of the highest payrolls in the league at that time.

This team managed to win two games, but most of the others were embarrassing. They had the worst defense in the league, allowing 28.5 points per game.

While they did win some games and end up with a record of 4-12, it wasn't easy. The quarterback, David Carr, was sacked a record 76 times that year, and the season was tough to watch.

As a football fan today, it's hard to believe that the KC Chiefs were ever less than stellar. However, in 2012, they only mustered a record of 2-14. They didn't have the lead in any contest until the ninth game of the season.

The Packers have been pretty good for a long time now. But in 1986, they only had a record of 4-12. That was with quarterback Randy Wright, who threw 23 interceptions.

The Saints only won one game that year. In addition to poor play, there was also a drug problem in the locker room. It was so bad that it required the team to trade away essential players.