The year 2008 in the NFL was a year of great surprises and disappointments. We saw that history was made, important falls and many coaches fired. These are the most disappointing teams of 2008.
10. Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns finished the season with a 10-6 record last year. Hopes were high in Cleveland. The dogs were beginning to think that things were looking up. Well, now not so much. They finished the season 4-12, fired their head coach, and hired another head coach, Eric Mangini, who was recently fired from the Jets.
9. Washington Redskins
Expectations for the Redskins weren’t very high this year. They just hired a new, untested head coach in Jim Zorn who brings a new offense with the verdict still pending on their quarterback Jason Campbell. Most people expected them to finish where they did, 8-8 at the bottom of the NFL’s toughest division, the NFC East.
So why is this team on this list? They started the season 6-2 with some tough road wins against Philadelphia and Dallas. They then went on to lose 6 of their last eight games. Not good. Especially in Washington.
8. Green Bay Packers
The good news is that the Brett Favre saga is finally over. The bad news is that the Packers also won this season. Aaron Rogers seemed to have done the part for him with a 93.8 QB rating. But what about intangibles?
Does Aaron Rogers have the leadership skills and fire that Brett possessed during his time in Green Bay to lead this team? Only time will tell in about 16 more years.
7. Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks have been given a run for the playoffs with 5 straight playoff appearances. Now they finished the season at 4-12 as one of the worst teams in football. What a disappointing way for Mike Holmgren to end his NFL coaching career. Now they have a new head coach that they have to adjust in to hopefully right the ship.
6. Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos began the season 3-1 and had one of the best offenses in the league. But with a defense ranked 29th in the league, they lost 3 in a row down the stretch, putting them out of position to make the playoffs and finish the season with an 8-8 record.
As a result of their poor season, the Broncos fired the face of the franchise, future Hall of Fame coach Mike Shanahan, after 14 seasons and 2 Super Bowls. He talks about a disappointing season.
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville was considered one of the top 5 teams in the league entering the 2008 season. They were ranked #5 in ESPN’s Week 1 Power Rankings. They finished with an 11-5 record last year and reached the second round of the playoffs.
This year they decided to go full circle and finished with a 5-11 record. Now they have to deal with bad free agent signings from the past, salary cap issues, and have decided to start building via the NFL draft.
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers begin the season with a 9-3 record and were already on the hunt for a playoff spot. That is until they lost the next four games in a row with the last 2 games being at home. In their final game of the season, the Oakland Raiders, of all teams, who finished the season with a 5-11 record, defeated the Bucs 34-21.
With strained player relations and only average offense, the Buccaneers fired head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Bruce Allen. The good news is that now Jon Gruden is no longer on the bench.
3. New York Jets
There was new life in New York and I don’t mean the New York Giants. I’m talking about the other New York, the Jets. They made quite a splash by signing future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre. The Jets got off to a good start at 8-3.
Talk of a New York Super Bowl started with the Jets versus the Giants. The New York Brets were alive and kicking. But the season was not over and the Jets lost 4 of their next 5 games with Brett Favre throwing 9 interceptions during this stretch. Oh, and then they fired their head coach!
2. Detroit Lions
Detroit finished with a perfect season. Sort of like the Dolphins ’72 season in reverse, 0-16. They went down in the history books as the only team to go 0-16. Sure, no one expected much from this team other than to go all year and not win 1 game. One? Man. It sure sucks to be a Lions fan these days.
1.Dallas Cowboys
And then there was one. The only. America’s team! The Dallas Cowboys were many people’s preseason favorites to win the Super Bowl. This team finished the 2007 season with a 13-3 record with one of the losses being a pointless play in the last game of the season. His team is packed with superstars on both sides of the ball.
Yeah, but when you have a bunch of heads on your team like TO and Pacman Jones, you’re bound to have some problems. I always defended Terrell Owens and tried to give him the benefit of the doubt.
But if you destroy the chemistry in the locker room of every team you go to, then maybe you have some issues that need to be addressed. The issues with Terrell Owens complaining about not getting the ball and the distractions from Pacman Jones were too much for this team.
Not to mention, Wade Phillips probably isn’t the right coach for a place like Dallas. It takes someone a little tougher, similar to Parcells or Cowher, in the big D.
Going from being a Super Bowl favorite to not even making the playoffs is just bad. And not only did they not make it to the playoffs, but Philadelphia destroyed them in the last game of the season (44-6) when they had everything to play for. That’s what I call a disappointing season!