NFL’s Bottom 10 Teams Heading Into the 2025 Season

The New York Jets are the best of the worst on this list, but they’re not a complete bottom-feeder the way they have been in some years. If Justin Fields takes off, then this team could make some noise in 2025, but it’s hard to calll that a squad that won five games and finished with the ninth-worst point differential in the league anything other than below-average. A lot of the really bad teams in the NFL last season are either on this list or made massive upgrades to make themselves better.

9. Jacksonville Jaguars

Travis Hunter is a massive upgrade for the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Trevor Lawrence’s return should help as well, but there are some pretty real concerns about this team. Last season, they had the sixth-most points allowed in the league, and the offense should improve, but they are also working from an abysmal position. This is a team that has to work back from a lot for them to be in contention again, and I’m not sure if Lawrence is going to be that guy either. He hasn’t performed like a superstar during the past couple of years, and I need to see him play at a high level to believe again.\

8. Las Vegas Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders should be better than they were last season, but they are still a severely flawed roster that has tons of question marks. Geno Smith and Ashton Jeanty should supercharge this offense, but they allowed the seventh-most points in the NFL last season, and I’m not sure if that will improve much in 2025. They’re working from a tough starting position, and their QB room does lack the youth that other teams can lean on to assume progression. Is Smith going to get better in his mid-30s or will he get worse? The offense most likely isn’t going to make up for that awful defense.

7. New York Giants

The addition of Russell Wilson should bring stability to the QB room, and I like what the New York Giants did in the draft, but they also have a lot of questions they’ve yet to answer. The defensive line is brilliant, but the offensive line and receiving depth aren’t strong enough to make up for what will likely be an average to below-average passing attack. This team needs a year to figure things out. Don’t give up if you’re a Giants fan; this team held the fourth-worst point differential in the NFL last season, and they’ve graduated from bottom-feeders to a tough team to play on Sunday.

6. Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers have a formidable quarterback in Bryce Young, but do they have enough to win this season? I have to see the hot finish to last year translate over a full season, and I also have to see a defense that allowed 534 points last season be something other than atrocious this year. Carolina is a team that could overperform this ranking, but with how heavy of a role the previous season played in this ranking and the sheer glut of teams that project to be solid, there’s not much room for them to be higher on this list.

5. Indianapolis Colts

I do not like the Indianapolis Colts’ QB room at all, and that plays a massive role in this projection. Richardson is extremely injury-prone and likely won’t play the full season, which might open the door for Daniel Jones to get extended playing time, and he has been a bottom-three starter in the NFL over the past two seasons. Their offensive weapons are awesome, but will it really be enough for them to win games this year? The Colts’ defense surrendered the ninth-most points in the NFL (427), and if that defense doesn’t improve, they could be picking number one overall next year.

4. New England Patriots

The New England Patriots were arguably the worst team in the NFL last season when you evaluate their roster, but Drake Maye found a way to be a competitive QB despite that. New England had the 11th-worst defense in the NFL by points allowed last season and finished with the third-fewest points scored, but I do acknowledge their upside. Out of all of the teams on this list, the Patriots would be the one that I’d pick to have the highest ceiling, but their median outcome and floor are a lot lower due to the same reason: a young QB who has shown upside but is still a relative unknown in the NFL.

3. Tennessee Titans

The Tennessee Titans made a massive improvement with Cam Ward, but he is a rookie QB who will play on a team that had a terrible offense and atrocious defense. The Titans had the third-most points allowed in the NFL last season; their offensive weapons aren’t going to elevate Ward and make his life easy, and I think they’re going to struggle with winning games. This isn’t a critique of Cam Ward or the quarterback he will be; the Bears and Patriots picked QBs in the top three and found themselves near the bottom of the NFL a year later. Be patient with a young QB.

2. Cleveland Browns

The Cleveland Browns have arguably the worst QB room in the NFL, and I expect them to be near or at the bottom in points scored. Myles Garrett is the only reason I have them ranked at number two and not number one, as he’s a defensive game-changer who has now been paired with Mason Graham. This team is not ready to contend, won’t be for the next year or so, and needs to figure out how to assemble a respectable offense again. Deshaun Watson is a disaster, their running game isn’t very strong, and I’m not sure if there’s any reason to pay attention to them in 2025.

1. New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints went from a normally bad team with some fun players but a mediocre QB room to a team that has zero chance of doing anything of importance in 2025. Derek Carr’s sudden retirement forces them to start either a rookie in Tyler Shough or two QBs who have no business being a starter in the NFL with Spencer Rattler or Jake Haener. I hope this team performs better than I expected and that I can be made fun of for this take, but with the Saints having a bottom 10 defense in points allowed last year and not a single reliable QB, they could be historically bad in 2025.