NFL Teams Who Bounced Back from Regular Season Woes

The new NFL season is now underway, and it has been interesting to see some teams do better than expected and some teams struggle. The Steelers and Chargers, both of whom have put the focus on resilient defense, certainly fall into the former camp. It remains to be seen whether they can keep it up over the course of a season. 

At the other end of the spectrum, the Ravens, a team that many had as a betting pick for the Super Bowl this season, started slowly, going 0-2 in their first two games. While such slow starts are not necessarily terminal for teams’ chances, the stats suggest it’s quite rare for an 0-2 team to go all the way after fumbling at the start of the regular season.

Yet, all is not lost for the Ravens and other teams who haven’t started as well as they hoped. Many teams have turned things around, including teams who have had 0-2 starts. While it is rare – and no team has ever won the Super Bowl with a losing record or a 0-3 start – bad patches and slow starts can be overcome. 

The Patriots’ turnaround was legendary

Perhaps the most famous example of a team with a bad start turning things around comes in 2001 with the New England Patriots. The story is etched in NFL history now. The Pats began the season with Drew Bledsoe in the quarterback position. Bledsoe got injured in the 2^nd game of the season, allowing a young Tom Brady to get a chance. After an 0-2 start with Bledsoe as the starting QB, the Pats went 11-3 with Brady, eventually winning Super Bowl XXXVI. A dynasty unmatched in modern football followed. 

Another team that had an 0-2 start was the 2007 Giants. Not only did they lose the two opening games, but they lost them in style – shipping 80 points. Yet Eli Manning and co managed to sort things out quite quickly, winning 6 in a row thereafter. The Giants finished 10-6, but they were still unfancied against the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Many consider them the worst team to get to a Super Bowl. In 2011, the Giants repeated the trick, going 9-7 through the regular season – the worst-ever record for a Super Bowl winner – before again triumphing over the Patriots. 

Four other teams have lost 6 regular season games and went on to win a Super Bowl – the Baltimore Ravens (10-6) won Super Bowl XLVII, the Green Bay Packers (10-6) Super Bowl XLV, and the 49ers Super Bowl XXIII. The Kansas City Chiefs (11-6) were the first team to lose six games in the regular season in the 17-game era and win a Super Bowl, winning Super Bowl LVIII last February.

Modern format allows for more turnarounds 

Broadly speaking, it is more common for modern NFL teams to lose 4-6 games and go on to win a championship. There are several reasons for this. First, and most importantly, is the expanded playoff format, allowing more teams to sneak through to the postseason. Secondly, teams’ tactics have changed, with more focus on players prioritizing health in the regular season and peaking in the Playoffs. 

Of course, with that expanded format, it certainly means all is not lost if your team does not top the division at the end of the season. Seven Wild Card teams have gone on to win a Super Bowl. The first was all the way back in 1980 when the Oakland Raiders won Super Bowl XV, and the last was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won it all with Tom Brady at Super Bowl LV. 

Finally, we should say that teams with a poor regular season in 2024 will start to look to the future to turn things around. Five teams posted losing records across a season but went on to win the Super Bowl the next season. They include several of the teams mentioned above – Giants, Pats, Bucs – as well as the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles and the 2003 Carolina Panthers. So, if your team is struggling across the fall and winter, all is not lost. There’s always next season.