Franchises with the longest championship droughts

The year was 1947, and the Cardinals were in Chicago the last time they won a title. They moved to St. Louis in 1960 and Phoenix in 1988 but have reached the Super Bowl only once during that time. Under Bruce Arians the team looked like a potential contender until a disappointing 2016 campaign, and things haven't changed much since.

Cleveland's last World Series win dates back to 1948, and since that time the team has come up short in a few World Series. The Indians have played much better since manager Terry Francona's hiring in 2013 and finished above. 500 in 2015 for a third consecutive winning season, propelling the club to a run through the American League in 2016. Unfortunately for Cleveland, in the World Series another franchise ended its long title drought at the Indians' expense: the Chicago Cubs. But they kept trying: In 2017, they were knocked out of the playoffs by the Yankees and last year were swept by Houston in the division series.

The Rochester Royals, now known as the Sacramento Kings, won the NBA Finals in 1951. Sacramento has quite a playoff drought going, as it last reached the postseason in 2006 and has traded players like DeMarcus Cousins to signal a further extended rebuild.

Detroit won an NFL championship in 1957 but has never reached a Super Bowl since the AFL-NFL merger. The Lions have reached the playoffs only three times in the 21st century but were able to turn things around following a brutal decade with Matt Millen running the show. While the team did make the playoffs in 2016 after star wide receiver Calvin Johnson retired following the 2015 season, one of the reasons Johnson cited for said retirement was the team's lack of success.

After winning the NBA Finals in 1958 as the St. Louis Hawks, this organization hasn't done much in the postseason. The Hawks have made the playoffs for a decade straight now, but they've done little once they've gotten there. Former centerpiece Paul Millsap went off to Denver, and Atlanta looks nowhere close to ending this drought anytime soon.

Young Vikings fans can't remember the organization's four Super Bowl losses, with the most recent in 1976. Minnesota has produced some exciting teams over the years, but the organization has rarely any playoff success to speak of since the last Super Bowl run. Making matters worse, they have struggled with quarterback issues and lost their decade-long face of the franchise, Adrian Peterson, in 2017.

Formerly the Washington Senators, the Rangers have never won a World Series. They came oh so close in Game 6 of the 2011 classic before Lance Berkman and David Freese ruined their celebration. Age and injuries turned over that World Series team, but the Rangers have been a player in the American League. However, lately they haven't looked like a legitimate threat in the AL.

The Oilers won the AFL championship in 1961, and since then it's been an up and down time for the organization that now resides in Nashville. Of course, Titans fans remember the Super Bowl XXXIV loss to the Rams quite well after Kevin Dyson came up just 1 yard short of tying the game and now continue to be hopeful that Marcus Mariota can lead them to prominence.

The Chargers have only one title in their history, an AFL championship earned in 1963. Since then, fans have sat through sporadic and painful playoff showings, including a Super Bowl XXIX appearance and the elite teams of Marty Schottenheimer and Norv Turner that simply couldn't get over the hump. The latest downfall was their 41-28 pummeling by the Patriots in the AFC divisional-round game. 

Cleveland won an NFL championship in 1964, and some would argue the 1995 squad under Bill Belichick was well on its way to making noise until the wheels fell off with the organization headed to relocation. The franchise has had a revolving door of head coaches and quarterbacks since but finally has some hope in its young signal-caller, Baker Mayfield, who helped lead the Browns to a 7-8-1 record in 2018.

The Falcons reached Super Bowl XXXIII with head coach Dan Reeves at the helm but lost to the team Reeves formerly coached, the Denver Broncos. Two seasons ago, Atlanta made it back to the Super Bowl and looked to have the drought all but ended with a 28-3 lead over the Patriots. However, New England had other ideas, coming back to force overtime, where the Pats defeated the stunned Falcons. With former MVP Matt Ryan still running the show, Atlanta hopes it can get back to the Super Bowl, but its 2018 record of 7-9 was not encouraging.

The Bills won the AFL championship in 1965, but since then they've been close but no cigar. Bills fans suffered through the organization's unprecedented four consecutive Super Bowl losses from 1990-93. The organization hadn't reached the playoffs since 1999 until making it to the wild card after the 2017 season only to lose to Jacksonville. And that 1999 appearance? It's one Bills fans are still trying to forget, after losing to the Titans on the Music City Miracle kickoff return.

Bengals fans get more frustrated with each passing year by the team's playoff failures. Cincinnati has lost in the wild-card round of the playoffs in six times of late, including a crushing implosion against Pittsburgh after leading the Steelers in the wild-card game following the 2015 regular season. While some fans were upset that the team is still stuck with Andy Dalton at quarterback, his performance that season was terrific. The Bengals are still searching for their first Super Bowl win .

With the rich history of the Maple Leafs, it's hard to believe the team last won Lord Stanley's Cup in 1967. They've rarely even come close since that time, but with first-overall pick Auston Matthews continuing to live up to the hype and the addition of free-agent John Tavares, things are looking way up, with the team currently holding a second-place spot in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference

The Suns have been rebuilding in recent seasons in hopes of winning their first title. They reached the NBA Finals in 1976 and 1993. The 2014-15 squad regressed after winning 48 games the previous season, and 2015-16 was even worse, finishing with the second worst record in the Western Conference. The downward trend continued in the past two seasons, with the Suns having the worst record in the West both years, but with Devin Booker and first-round pick Josh Jackson, there is some optimism.

Not since Joe Namath's guarantee in Super Bowl III have the Jets reached the promised land. They did make it to the conference finals four times since that win but haven't gotten any closer.

Padres fans are still waiting for their team to win a World Series. The team has gotten to the final series only twice in its history, most recently in 1998, and hasn't been remotely close since. But the Padres do hold some key young talent that may reverse fortunes in the not-so-distant future.