Odds of Any Team Going 0-16 in 2020 Set at +2200; Jaguars Listed at +2800, Redskins at +5000

By Eric Rosales in NFL Football
Updated: December 20, 2022 at 9:39 am ESTPublished:

- Odds released on chances an NFL team goes 0-16 in the 2020 season
- Washington, Jacksonville targeted as teams that could go 0-fer
- Read below to find out if you should wager on any team going winless this season
Forget the glory of victory. Today, we bask in the agony of defeat.
We’ll leave the odds of a team going undefeated in the upcoming NFL season to the talented Mr. Coyle, because, here, it’s all about misery, and checking the odds of an NFL team going 0-16 in 2020.
Odds on NFL Team Going 0-16 in 2020
Will an NFL team go 0-16 in the regular season? | Odds |
---|---|
Yes | +2200 |
No | -10000 |
*Odds from May 12
Since 1944, there have been exactly five teams that have put up a doughnut in the regular season. Does a new decade bring about a sixth?
History Not on Your Side
Save for the 1990s, there has been just one team going winless each decade in the NFL starting with the 1960 Dallas Cowboys. That’s a lot of NFL teams that have managed to fall into at least one W in a season.
In the 2000s, the standard bearers for futility are the 2008 Lions and the 2017 (and always) Cleveland Browns. From that Lions 0-16 season to present day, however, there are only two teams to even have just one win in a year: the 2009 St. Louis Rams, and the 2016 … Cleveland Browns.
All-Time Winless Teams NFL History
Team | Year | Record |
---|---|---|
Cleveland Browns | 2017 | 0-16 |
Detroit Lions | 2008 | 0-16 |
Baltimore Colts | 1982 | 0-8-1 |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1976 | 0-14 |
Dallas Cowboys | 1960 | 0-11-1 |
*since 1944
It’s almost impossible to field a roster built to lose everything. Players still play for pride and their livelihoods. In a no-guaranteed contract world, no one packs it in.
Ravens @ Dolphins Week 1
Ravens 59 Dolphins 10Lamar Jackson
17/20 324 yards 5 TD
Mark Ingram
14 carries 107 yards 2 TD
Hollywood Brown
4 catches 147 yards 2 TD
Marc Andrews
8 catches 108 yards 1 TDRyan Fitzpatrick
14/29 185 yards 1 TD 1 INT pic.twitter.com/ZqWqhqfAc5— weiner city (@weinermouf) March 11, 2020
Take last year. The Miami Dolphins looked like the worst football team ever assembled, getting historically blasted the first few weeks of the year. They finished an absolutely pedestrian 5-11.
Lowly Bengals Don’t Look Winless Bad
The team expected to struggle most is the Cincinnati Bengals, who went 2-14 a year ago. They feature the top pick of the draft in quarterback Joe Burrow, who’s got a talented group of skill players in AJ Green, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd, with Joe Mixon at RB.
Got excited thinking about how Joe Mixon and Joe Burrow are the only QB/RB duo in the league with the same first name. With that, I clipped a bunch of random plays from Mixon last season and I think they'll be a lot of fun to watch together this season. pic.twitter.com/xQftGswqPU
— Russell Brown (@RussNFLDraft) May 8, 2020
That’s already leaps and bounds ahead of the ’08 Lions and ’17 Browns, who had Jon Kitna and Deshone Kizer as their Week 1 starters.
With the 12th-lightest strength of schedule in the league, and it’s no wonder that they’re not pegged specifically in the winless props. But there are a few teams that are: the Washington Redskins and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Redskins / Jaguars 0-16 Odds
Team | Yes Odds | No Odds |
---|---|---|
Washington Redskins | +5000 | -10000 |
Jacksonville Jaguars | +2800 | -10000 |
Odds from May 12
How Ugly Can it Get?
Both teams are likely listed because of the instability at the pivot position.
Dwayne Haskins has looked like a young developmental prospect, far from the other young studs who have taken off (like Daniel Jones of the Giants).
Bad 3rd down play for Dwayne Haskins. Had an open receiver on the right that could have scored a TD but he missed it and took a sack instead. Still a lot to learn. #Redskins pic.twitter.com/0JPqmBtaXB
— Samuel Gold (@SamuelRGold) December 1, 2019
Meanwhile, a talent exodus has crippled a Jacksonville franchise that’s a couple of years removed from being a legit Super Bowl contender. Gone is almost every vital piece of the “Sacksonville” defense, and they’re left with the promising but unheralded Gardner Minshew III at pivot, after the Nick Foles experiment lasted just four starts.
MINSHEW MAGIC CONTINUES 👨🏻
Jacksonville comes back and beats the Broncos 26-24!
(Via – @Jaguars)
🏔 Anyone play Gardner today in Mile High?
pic.twitter.com/EVer2rXrVU— Follow @mkf (@FantasyDraft) September 29, 2019
As promising as his rookie campaign was, he has flash-in-the-pan potential.
Looking at Strength of Schedule
While Washington faces the eighth-toughest slate in the NFL this year, there are factors worth considering. Though Haskins may still be raw and their offensive weaponry gets bare after second-year receiver Terry MCLaurin, this is a team with one of the top defensive fronts in the NFL, bolstered with the addition of no. 2 pick Chase Young.
Rookie showing out with the SACK #WASvsDAL@budlight | #BudLightCelly pic.twitter.com/HTq2ebGDek
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) December 29, 2019
New head coach Ron Rivera adds stability and (hopefully) culture to this team, and their defense could be the difference in games against the Cardinals, Browns, Bengals, and Lions this year. Also, they’ve got the Panthers, another team in flux, on the calendar.
@jaguars navigating an easy schedule https://t.co/wOYfFi2G4h pic.twitter.com/2Bd3cWSJgY
— Blake🥋 (@BlakeBortles05) May 8, 2020
As for the Jags, there’s almost no way you can bet against them going winless, not after getting the easiest first half strength of schedule in the NFL. They’ll get their crack at a win against a slate that includes the Dolphins, Bengals and Lions. And while the schedule does tighten up in the second half, they still have the Browns in the home stretch.
What’s the Best Bet?
I don’t recommend betting any team to go winless this year, and there’s no value in betting no. If I was forced to pick between the Redskins or Jaguars to go 0-16, I would take the Jaguars.
While Washington has some heavy competition, there is at least a semblance of a workable defense and legit talent that Rivera can mold. On the other end, there’s not much of a safety net that Jacksonville could fall back on if Minshew struggles or gets hurt.

Sports Writer & Editor
Having worked in and around sports since 1997, Eric is truly a knowledgeable expert. The two-time journalism grad specializes in all things NBA and NFL. From TSN.ca to CTV's Olympic Broadcast Consortium, Eric's work has appeared in local and national publications alike.