The 9 NFL Teams That Have Racked Up The Most Playoff Losses

Every NFL fan heads into the season hoping their team will end up making the playoffs, and it’s hard to be disappointed if they do manage to make the cut. However, it’s pretty easy for frustration to build if they repeatedly come up short in the quest for a Super Bowl.

You can’t make the list of the teams with the most NFL playoff losses without having a fair amount of regular season success, but a solid campaign ends up being an afterthought if you’re not able to sustain things once the postseason rolls around.

That’s especially true if you’ve never been able to win a Super Bowl, which is the case for the franchise that recently gained sole possession of first place after extending a dubious streak to bring its most recent season to an end.

Vikings: 32

The Vikings were tied with the Cowboys for the most overall playoff losses heading into their wild card showdown with the Rams and could only avoid taking sole possession of first place with the first Super Bowl victory in franchise history.

Unfortunately, Minnesota got embarrassed in a one-sided affair where Los Angeles advanced with the 27-9 win, which marks the 24th time the Vikings have appeared in the playoffs without making it to The Big Game (a drought that now stretches for close to 50 years).

The team also has one of the worst all-time postseason winning percentages, as there are only four other squads below the .396 mark the Vikings are currently sporting.

Cowboys: 31

The Cowboys can take some solace in knowing they have appeared in more playoff games than any other NFL franchise, which is particularly impressive when you consider the team didn’t join the league until 1960.

Dallas has won the Super Bowl five times but came up short on 31 other occasions—including the past 13 attempts that have transpired during the nearly 30-year span where the Cowboys have failed to even appear in the Super Bowl (the longest one in franchise history).

Steelers: 29

The Steelers extended their one-and-done streak in the playoffs to five consecutive appearances with a loss to the Ravens, which puts them in third place ahead of another team that will still have the chance to tie things back up by the time the current postseason comes to an end.

Pittsburgh also has plenty to show for the losses thanks to its six Super Bowl victories (they also round out the Top 5 as far as postseason winning percentage is concerned at .554), but fans are understandably getting antsy when you consider the Steelers have had the chance to play for a championship in nine of the past 14 seasons but came up short every time.

Rams: 28

The Rams have had plenty of time to accrue playoff losses when you consider they have a history stretching back to 1936, and they’re firmly in the middle of the pack on the winning percentage front with a slightly less-than-average .481.

It’s only been a few years since the Rams won their first Super Bowl since relocating to Los Angeles (the second in franchise history), and as I alluded to when talking about the Steelers, they can remain in fourth place if they reign supreme yet again.

Packers: 27

The Packers have had even more time to compile playoff losses as one of the NFL’s oldest teams, and no other has won more NFL championships than the 13 the franchise has secured if you include the nine titles it can claim on top of its four wins in the Super Bowl Era.

Green Bay is also sitting in fourth place when it comes to winning percentage in the playoffs (.578), and while the Packers haven’t appeared in the Super Bowl since 2011, that ongoing drought is only half of the one that unfolded between 1968 and 1996.

Eagles: 26

As of the start of the current postseason, the Eagles have been the textbook definition of average in the playoffs by posting a 26-26 record in the 52 games they’ve played; they have a lone Super Bowl win but did earn three NFL Championships before the contest became A Thing.

Fans in Philly were subjected to a pretty rough stretch between the team’s two Super Bowl appearances in 1981 and 2005, as the Eagles came up short 11 times before finally getting over the hump (although it would take more than another decade to get their first Lombardi Trophy).

Giants: 26

Eagles and Giants fans will take every opportunity they can to put each other down, and Philadelphia has a slight edge over the Giants here when you consider New York has gone 25-26 in the postseason.

New York also claims eight championships (including four Super Bowls), and their fans will be able to brag about having fewer losses than the Eagles have had in the playoffs if Philadelphia can’t get one of its own this year.

Colts: 25

The Colts are nipping at the heels of both the Eagles and the Giants with the .479 winning percentage that comes with going 23-24 in the playoffs while winning two Super Bowls (one during their time in Baltimore in 1971 and the second—and their first in Indianapolis—in 2007).

They’ve managed to rack up nine more losses since their second championship, which includes seven consecutive postseason runs that have ended short of the title game.

49ers: 24

The 49ers can brush off this stat pretty easily when you consider they have the most playoff wins in NFL history with 38 (including five Super Bowls) and the second-highest postseason winning percentage at .613 (the Patriots lead the pack at .638).