No fan base is happy after a loss, but there are different levels of disappointment. Determining who are the worst feeling fanbases is a combination of what their expectations were for the team and how they had performed recently. It is not just about a team’s record, as a fanbase that expected their team to lose would not feel as down as a fanbase that thought their team had an easy win and lost. Injuries can also be a factor, if your team had a crushing injury that could propel that team on the list. Also how you lose is very important, getting blown out or losing by a hail mary are both crushing losses, much more than losing by 10. Ultimately, the worst thing is the feeling that your team’s season just ended, losses or injuries that lean a fanbase into thinking that way, are the teams at the top of the list.
Honorable Mention
Bears: 19-28 loss to the Packers. The Bears dropped another game against their rival, marking the eighth straight game they have lost to them. But this game was much more winnable than most of the others, the Packers were heavily struggling having lost seven of their previous eight games, and the Bears held a 10-19 lead. But the Packers stormed back in the 4th, helped by a Justin Fields interception when the Packers were only up by one 20-19, with 2:48 left in the game. The Bears had plenty of opportunities to put away their rivals, but ultimately lost their sixth straight game. Bears fans still have to be happy about Justin Field’s emergence this year, but they can’t be happy about how this last week went.
Texans: 14-27 loss to the Browns. Texans fans are used to winning and most of the time expect to lose, but even bracing for it some losses still sting extra. This is one of those losses, the Texans played well enough to win, their defense was incredible only letting up six points. Their downfall was due to not one, not two, but three defense/ special teams touchdowns, the Browns scored on a punt return, interception, and fumble to build their lead. The fact that this was the first game back for their old quarterback, Deshaun Watson, and they gave him his first win in over 700 days, makes it sting a little more. Texans quarterback Kyle Allen had his second rough game in a row, since filling in for benched quarterback Davis Mills, turning the ball over three times, his second straight game with three turnovers. Not much to root for or be excited for over in Texas.
#3 Jaguars
14-40 loss to the Detroit Lions. Just when Jaguars fans had hope, they had won two out of their last three games, including their most impressive win; a last second come from behind win over the Ravens. Trevor Lawrence just had the best game of his career, and they get to play the Lions for a chance to be only two games out of the last wild card spot! Jags fans had to be super excited about this opportunity to officially turn their season around and make a run at the playoffs. That did not happen. They instead got absolutely steamrolled by the Lions to remind all of their fans that this team is still a year away, at best. The Jaguars just could not get the Lions consistently off the field as the Lions converted 8 of 12 third downs, and smoked their defense for 437 yards, the Lions did not even punt once. The offense was not much better, fumbling on the second play of the game and entered the half with only six points, already down 6-23. This loss, virtually wipes away any chance the Jaguars had at the playoffs, and it was against a winnable Lions team, albeit they had been on a roll. The dissolution of hope can be very disparaging, coupled with the reality being served in blow out fashion, Jaguar fans are one of the worst feeling fan bases this week.
#2 Broncos
9-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Holy cannoli, the Broncos keep finding ways to top themselves in devastating losses! Last week it was getting man handled by the Panthers, this week it was a last second loss to a team who lost their quarterback in the first quarter. The Ravens may be the team that revolves around their quarterback the most. The entire offense is designed with Lamar Jackson’s running being the center piece. When Jackson got hurt and was replaced by Tyler Huntley, the Broncos immediately became the favorites to win. The Broncos offense, unfortunately, was not up to the challenge of making the game a shoot out against the backup quarterback, only mustering nine points as the Ravens continued to hang around. With five minutes left on their own nine yard line, Huntley led a 91 yard touchdown drive to take the lead for good with 28 seconds left. The Broncos defense, which had been amazing all game, finally cracked and the Broncos lost another one score game, their seventh of the year. The Broncos still have the worst scoring offense in the NFL averaging a sad 13.8 points per game, nearly two full points behind the second worst Texans (15.7). If the Broncos had scored exactly 18 points in regulation in every game, which would make them the 5th lowest scoring team, their record would be 10-2 and they would have the number one seed in the AFC. Instead, they have the 3rd worst record in the NFL and now seems like a good time to remind you that the Broncos do not have their own first or second round picks this year due to the Russell Wilson trade. A crushing loss, a sad season, and a very disappointed fan base.
#1 Saints
16-17 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. An absolutely brutal loss for the Saints, particularly because it shouldn’t have been a loss. The Saints dominated for 55 minutes of the game, only to collapse at the end and suffer a heartbreaking loss. Throughout the game, the Saints dominated the Buccaneers but routinely made mistakes to keep the Bucs in the game. In the second quarter, on 3rd and 9 on the Bucs 39 yard line, Andy Dalton hits Chris Olave with a perfect pass for 20 yards but the wide open receiver dropped it, forcing the Saints to punt, leaving 3-7 points off the board. The next possession, on 3rd and 2 on the Bucs 19, Dalton found Jarvis Landry for a touchdown but he dropped it, making the Saints settle for a field goal and leaving 4 more points off the board. At halftime, the Saints were up 10-3 but could have easily been up 17-3 or 21-3. In the fourth quarter, with six minutes left on 2nd and eight, veteran running back Mark Ingram broke a run to the outside and looked to have a clear path to the first down but instead ran out of bounds a yard short. The Saints failed on the ensuing third and one and that mental error saved the Buccaneers at least 2 minutes of extra clock to work with. Then after the Bucs cut the score to 10-16, on third and 17, Taysom Hill dropped a would-be third down pass to seal the game. In all, while Tom Brady should get lots of credit with back to back touchdown drives, the Saints blew the game. It is not just the fact that the Saints choked away a game to their biggest rival but also the consequences resulting from it. The Saints now to last place in their division, and two games behind the Buccaneers, an absolutely massive blow to any remaining playoff hopes. You need a lot to go wrong to throw away a guaranteed victory, and the Saints did it, when you also throw in seeding implications, they were an easy choice for the number one worst feeling fan base.