The 12 NFL Teams That Have Never Won a Super Bowl
All 12 NFL teams without a Super Bowl win through LX, their appearances, the four that have never reached one, and why older league titles still matter.
Twelve NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl: the Cardinals, Falcons, Bills, Panthers, Bengals, Browns, Lions, Texans, Jaguars, Chargers, Vikings and Titans. Buffalo and Minnesota have each reached the game four times without winning; four other franchises have never appeared. The NFL’s 2026 assessment confirms that 12 of its 32 teams still lack a Super Bowl title.
Updated October 18, 2026. Records cover Super Bowls I–LX, through the 2025 season. The 2026 season is still in progress.
All 12 teams without a Super Bowl win
The years below are season years, not the calendar years in which the Super Bowls were played. For example, Cincinnati’s appearance for the 2021 season took place in February 2022. Team names are current; earlier appearances remain part of the same franchise’s record.
| Team | Super Bowl record | Super Bowl appearances, by season |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Cardinals | 0–1 | XLIII — 2008 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 0–2 | XXXIII — 1998; LI — 2016 |
| Buffalo Bills | 0–4 | XXV–XXVIII — 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 |
| Carolina Panthers | 0–2 | XXXVIII — 2003; 50 — 2015 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 0–3 | XVI — 1981; XXIII — 1988; LVI — 2021 |
| Cleveland Browns | 0–0 | None |
| Detroit Lions | 0–0 | None |
| Houston Texans | 0–0 | None |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 0–0 | None |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 0–1 | XXIX — 1994, as the San Diego Chargers |
| Minnesota Vikings | 0–4 | IV — 1969; VIII — 1973; IX — 1974; XI — 1976 |
| Tennessee Titans | 0–1 | XXXIV — 1999 |
Sources: ESPN’s franchise appearance totals and complete Super Bowl results.
Seattle’s 29–13 victory over New England in Super Bowl LX did not change this list: both franchises had already won the game. Philadelphia remains the most recent first-time winner, having beaten New England in Super Bowl LII after the 2017 season. Our history of Super Bowl champions lists every winner by season.
Which teams have never even reached a Super Bowl?
The Browns, Lions, Texans and Jaguars are the four current franchises with no Super Bowl appearances, according to ESPN’s tally.
Their histories are not equivalent. Houston began play in 2002 and Jacksonville in 1995. Cleveland and Detroit were already championship-winning teams before the Super Bowl existed. Describing all four as “never champions” would erase that distinction.
No Super Bowl win does not mean no league championship
The first Super Bowl followed the 1966 season, under an agreement that initially kept the AFL and NFL’s schedules separate. Six teams on this list hold earlier NFL or AFL championships:
- Arizona Cardinals: NFL champions in 1925 and 1947, while based in Chicago. Those titles belong to the franchise now in Arizona. (Hall of Fame history)
- Cleveland Browns: AAFC champions in all four of that league’s seasons, 1946–1949; NFL champions in 1950, 1954, 1955 and 1964. (Hall of Fame history)
- Detroit Lions: NFL champions in 1935, 1952, 1953 and 1957. (Hall of Fame history)
- Buffalo Bills: AFL champions in 1964 and 1965. Buffalo then lost the 1966 AFL title game to Kansas City, missing a place in the first Super Bowl. (Hall of Fame history)
- Los Angeles Chargers: AFL champions in 1963, as San Diego. (Hall of Fame history)
- Tennessee Titans: AFL champions in 1960 and 1961, as the Houston Oilers. (Hall of Fame history)
Minnesota requires a separate explanation. Bud Grant’s Vikings won the 1969 NFL championship, then lost Super Bowl IV to Kansas City, the AFL champion. Their league title therefore falls within the Super Bowl era, before the leagues combined their regular-season schedules in 1970. It is an NFL championship, not a Super Bowl victory. See our NFL championship history for how the title’s meaning changed across eras.
How close have they come?
Buffalo’s four consecutive appearances produced no trophy, but the first ended just one point short: Giants 20, Bills 19 in Super Bowl XXV. Scott Norwood’s late 47-yard field-goal attempt went wide right. (ESPN)
Tennessee’s defining image is Kevin Dyson reaching toward the goal line as Mike Jones brought him down on the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV. The Rams won 23–16. A touchdown would have created a chance to tie with the extra point—not automatically won Tennessee the championship. (Titans’ account)
Atlanta held a 28–3 third-quarter lead in Super Bowl LI before losing 34–28 in overtime, the largest comeback in Super Bowl history. Our account of that comeback traces how the lead disappeared.
Relocations and franchise history
The Houston Oilers’ championships belong to the Titans, not the Houston Texans. The Oilers relocated to Tennessee in 1997 and adopted the Titans name in 1999; the Texans are a separate expansion franchise. (Hall of Fame; ESPN)
Cleveland’s case is different. Under the agreement surrounding Art Modell’s move to Baltimore, the Browns’ name, colors and history stayed in Cleveland. Baltimore’s Super Bowl victories do not remove the Browns from this list. (Hall of Fame Browns history)