Some NFL teams don’t just lose — they shatter hearts in a way that lingers for decades. Whether it was a playoff meltdown, a superstar betrayal, or a season so cursed it felt personal, these squads left scars that fans still haven’t fully recovered from.
From historical collapses to decisions that made zero sense in real time, these teams left a lasting mark — and not in a good way. Here are 13 NFL squads that fans just can’t bring themselves to forgive.
13. 2021 Minnesota Vikings
They won 13 games and still felt like a fraud the whole time. That wild-card loss at home to the Giants was the final gut punch in a season full of smoke and mirrors.
12. 2011 San Francisco 49ers
They were one muffed punt away from a Super Bowl appearance, and fans still replay it in their heads. The defense was elite, the run game was rolling, and then it all slipped away in overtime.
11. 2007 Dallas Cowboys
They were the NFC’s No. 1 seed with all the talent in the world — and still face-planted at home. The Tony Romo-Jessica Simpson trip to Cabo didn’t help the narrative one bit.
10. 1995 Indianapolis Colts
They came out of nowhere and nearly pulled off a miracle run, but that dropped Hail Mary in the AFC title game still stings. Fans were ready to believe — until reality came crashing down.
9. 2020 Pittsburgh Steelers
An 11-0 start had fans dreaming of another Lombardi, but it was all downhill after that. The wild-card loss to the Browns, of all teams, was a humiliation fans still bring up in therapy.
8. 2001 St. Louis Rams
This team was supposed to be the Greatest Show on Turf, riding off into the sunset. Instead, they lost the Super Bowl to a quarterback named Tom Brady and jumpstarted a dynasty that haunted the league for two decades.
7. 1999 Jacksonville Jaguars
They went 14-2, with both losses to the same team, and then lost to that same team again in the AFC title game. Titans fans smile; Jags fans wince.
6. 2019 New Orleans Saints
Another year, another heartbreaking playoff exit. That overtime loss to the Vikings (again!) just cemented the feeling that the football gods had it out for them.
5. 2003 Kansas City Chiefs
They went 13-3 and didn’t punt once in their playoff loss to the Colts — and still lost. It was a shootout for the ages with zero defense, and fans haven’t stopped screaming into the void since.
4. 1998 Minnesota Vikings
The missed field goal heard ‘round the world. That team was electric, 15-1, and on the brink of a Super Bowl berth before it all went up in smoke.
3. 2007 New England Patriots
Yes, they went 16-0. But then they lost the one game that mattered most, and fans still have David Tyree’s helmet catch burned into their retinas.
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2. 2012 Atlanta Falcons
They had a 17-point lead in the NFC title game at home and blew it. It was the beginning of a pattern that would become all too familiar in Atlanta.
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1. 2016 Atlanta Falcons
You already know. 28-3 is more than a score — it’s a permanent tattoo on the soul of every Falcons fan.
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