The following is a list released by ESPN showing the worst decision made by each team in the last few years, since 2020. They have them ranked by how bad of a mistake they were. I'd like to hear your input/opinions. I'll input mine here and there when I have a strong feeling about it. ENJOY!
32) Buccaneers
Signing Russell gage to a 3-year $30 million contract - It's pretty good if this is your biggest mistake. Could be much worse which is probably why it is the 32nd ranked mistake.
31) Packers
Using first-round picks on Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt - seeing as how I haven't even heard of the Wyatt dude, I would agree
30) Steelers
Using a first-round pick on Kenny Pickett - Bosko is gonna be insufferable with the Steelers being ranked so low. However, anytime you waste a first rounder on a terrible player, you passed on a lot of talented dudes which is an underrated mistake imo.
29) Lions
Drafting Jeff Okudah with the No. 3 overall pick - Missing on a top 3 CB? oof....
28) Bills
Signing Von Miller to a six-year, $120 million contract - Big mistake but honestly understandable which is why it is 28th I'm sure. Quality pass rushers are hard to come by and he was one of the best. The 6 year part is the silly part.
27) Commanders
Drafting Emmanuel Forbes with the No. 16 pick - Never even heard of her...
26) Eagles
Signing James Bradberry to a three-year, $38 million contract - Not as big of a mistake has hiring the Joker they have as a HC...
25) Cowboys
Choosing Michael Gallup over Amari Cooper - Idk that they directly chose one over the other since money has to be taken into account.
24) Bengals
Signing Trae Waynes to a three-year, $42 million deal - Don't even know who this dude is so yep, fail
23) Saints
Handing Cameron Jordan a two-year, $27.9 million extension - His age is obviously the only thing that made this silly.
22) Chiefs
Using a first-round pick on Clyde Edwards-Helaire - For obvious reasons I have a bit more to say about this one. I never really understood it. He was a decent RB in college but had an insane cast around him that took pressure off of him and allowed him to get the yards he did. In order for a RB to be worth a first round pick they really need to be a difference maker and I never thought he would be that. Still, if that's the worst mistake they have made, I'll take it.
21) Giants
Signing Kenny Golladay to a four-year, $72 million contract - I mean I guess if you ignore the fact that they didn't want to sign Barkley to an extension then ya this would be the biggest mistake.
20) Ravens
Signing Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year, $15 million contract - That's a lot of money for a guy who hasn't been fully healthy in years and hadn't produced at a really high level for awhile.
19) Colts
Trading first- and third-round picks to the Eagles for Carson Wentz - In hindsight it was a mistake but I'm not sure that you can blame them for doing it at the time. He had definitely had a rough year or so but he had shown the ability to be a high level QB at times.
18) Chargers
Signing J.C. Jackson to a five-year, $82.5 million contract - This one was a big mess up since he ended up getting released or something like that I believe. Be Better!....or, you know...don't
17) Vikings
Failing to land any useful players on Days 1 and 2 of the draft - I'd say a lot of teams would fall into this category but they must have been particularly bad to be number 17 on the list.
16) Dolphins
Tampering with Tom Brady and Sean Payton - I mean you would think cheating would be higher on the list but I'm just a dude with a random opinion on an anonymous message board...
15) Cardinals
Signing Kliff Kingsbury and Steve Keim to contract extensions - Honestly I don't even know who the Keim dude is but assuming he was the GM or something. Why you would extend Kingsbury I'm not really sure especially then letting him go soon after.
14) Raiders
Hiring Josh McDaniels as coach - Ok, they are currently paying so much money for coaches that they no longer have on staff that they could be number 1 on the list if they lumped them all together. Silly Raiders, Championships are for the Chiefs!
13) Rams
Signing Allen Robinson to a three-year, $46.5 million contract - He definitely wasn't worth that type of money. At one time he was a solid number 2 receiver at best.
12) Seahawks
Trading two first-round picks for Jamal Adams - I'm not really sure any Safety outside of maybe Ed Reed (in my lifetime) has been worth a couple of first rounders. Silly decision.
11) Bears
Trading a second-round pick for Chase Claypool - Definitely not a good trade but you could go many different directions with the Bears recent decisions. There is a reason they are as bad as they currently are.
10) Titans
Swapping out A.J. Brown for Treylon Burks in a trade with the Eagles - A fudge up that is definitely worth of a top ten spot on this list. Money has to be taken into account with this one but player for player this one made no sense.
9) Patriots
Hiring Matt Patricia and Joe Judge as the lead architects for the offense - Any time the Patriots mess up I have little sympathy. This one was rough to watch though.
8) Falcons
Signing Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract - I mean yeah, if you planned on taking a QB in the draft because you thought they were super talented, why did you spend so much money on a QB during free agency. Seems like very poor planning at a minimum and complete lack of competency at a maximum. Even if Penix ends up working out, they completely messed up their cap situation to get this deal done. Makes no sense.
7) Texans
Trading DeAndre Hopkins to the Cardinals - This ended up being rough for both parties involved. I do have a hard time blaming teams for trading away high profile WR who are going to be asking for a lot of money. Teams have shown over and over that you do not need a dominant/highly paid WR to be a competitive or even a SB winning team. Using that money elsewhere makes sense so I think this one is a bit overrated.
6) Jaguars
Hiring Urban Meyer as coach - Only three words......What. A. Trainwreck.
5) Panthers
Trading DJ Moore and multiple first-round picks to the Bears to move up to draft Bryce Young with the No. 1 overall pick - Yeah, Idk what they were thinking here. If he had been a prospect like Trevor Lawrence then I may be able to understand but I don't think anyone should have been thinking he was going to be a true game changing QB.
4) 49ers
Trading three first-round picks to move up for Trey Lance - Again, why? He played decent football at the FCS level. I'm not saying an FCS QB can't get it done because it is definitely possible but the sample size was small and not insanely impressive.
3) Jets
Trading for Aaron Rodgers - They could have just put down "Jets doing Jets things" and we would have been able to figure out the rest.
2) Broncos
Trading for (and extending) Russell Wilson - His production and attributes seemed to fall off a cliff as soon as he was traded. It does seem like it might have just been a bad fit since he is doing pretty well in the Black and Gold.
1) Browns
Trading for Deshaun Watson and signing him to a five-year, $230 million contract - This will go down as one of, if not THE, worst deals in NFL history. I have no sympathy for them because of the things he did in Houston and the Browns knew about it when they traded for him. Occasionally people get what they deserve and this just happens to be one of those cases.
Hope you guys enjoyed the list and maybe a couple of the notes. DISCUSS!
32) Buccaneers
Signing Russell gage to a 3-year $30 million contract - It's pretty good if this is your biggest mistake. Could be much worse which is probably why it is the 32nd ranked mistake.
31) Packers
Using first-round picks on Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt - seeing as how I haven't even heard of the Wyatt dude, I would agree
30) Steelers
Using a first-round pick on Kenny Pickett - Bosko is gonna be insufferable with the Steelers being ranked so low. However, anytime you waste a first rounder on a terrible player, you passed on a lot of talented dudes which is an underrated mistake imo.
29) Lions
Drafting Jeff Okudah with the No. 3 overall pick - Missing on a top 3 CB? oof....
28) Bills
Signing Von Miller to a six-year, $120 million contract - Big mistake but honestly understandable which is why it is 28th I'm sure. Quality pass rushers are hard to come by and he was one of the best. The 6 year part is the silly part.
27) Commanders
Drafting Emmanuel Forbes with the No. 16 pick - Never even heard of her...
26) Eagles
Signing James Bradberry to a three-year, $38 million contract - Not as big of a mistake has hiring the Joker they have as a HC...
25) Cowboys
Choosing Michael Gallup over Amari Cooper - Idk that they directly chose one over the other since money has to be taken into account.
24) Bengals
Signing Trae Waynes to a three-year, $42 million deal - Don't even know who this dude is so yep, fail
23) Saints
Handing Cameron Jordan a two-year, $27.9 million extension - His age is obviously the only thing that made this silly.
22) Chiefs
Using a first-round pick on Clyde Edwards-Helaire - For obvious reasons I have a bit more to say about this one. I never really understood it. He was a decent RB in college but had an insane cast around him that took pressure off of him and allowed him to get the yards he did. In order for a RB to be worth a first round pick they really need to be a difference maker and I never thought he would be that. Still, if that's the worst mistake they have made, I'll take it.
21) Giants
Signing Kenny Golladay to a four-year, $72 million contract - I mean I guess if you ignore the fact that they didn't want to sign Barkley to an extension then ya this would be the biggest mistake.
20) Ravens
Signing Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year, $15 million contract - That's a lot of money for a guy who hasn't been fully healthy in years and hadn't produced at a really high level for awhile.
19) Colts
Trading first- and third-round picks to the Eagles for Carson Wentz - In hindsight it was a mistake but I'm not sure that you can blame them for doing it at the time. He had definitely had a rough year or so but he had shown the ability to be a high level QB at times.
18) Chargers
Signing J.C. Jackson to a five-year, $82.5 million contract - This one was a big mess up since he ended up getting released or something like that I believe. Be Better!....or, you know...don't
17) Vikings
Failing to land any useful players on Days 1 and 2 of the draft - I'd say a lot of teams would fall into this category but they must have been particularly bad to be number 17 on the list.
16) Dolphins
Tampering with Tom Brady and Sean Payton - I mean you would think cheating would be higher on the list but I'm just a dude with a random opinion on an anonymous message board...
15) Cardinals
Signing Kliff Kingsbury and Steve Keim to contract extensions - Honestly I don't even know who the Keim dude is but assuming he was the GM or something. Why you would extend Kingsbury I'm not really sure especially then letting him go soon after.
14) Raiders
Hiring Josh McDaniels as coach - Ok, they are currently paying so much money for coaches that they no longer have on staff that they could be number 1 on the list if they lumped them all together. Silly Raiders, Championships are for the Chiefs!
13) Rams
Signing Allen Robinson to a three-year, $46.5 million contract - He definitely wasn't worth that type of money. At one time he was a solid number 2 receiver at best.
12) Seahawks
Trading two first-round picks for Jamal Adams - I'm not really sure any Safety outside of maybe Ed Reed (in my lifetime) has been worth a couple of first rounders. Silly decision.
11) Bears
Trading a second-round pick for Chase Claypool - Definitely not a good trade but you could go many different directions with the Bears recent decisions. There is a reason they are as bad as they currently are.
10) Titans
Swapping out A.J. Brown for Treylon Burks in a trade with the Eagles - A fudge up that is definitely worth of a top ten spot on this list. Money has to be taken into account with this one but player for player this one made no sense.
9) Patriots
Hiring Matt Patricia and Joe Judge as the lead architects for the offense - Any time the Patriots mess up I have little sympathy. This one was rough to watch though.
8) Falcons
Signing Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract - I mean yeah, if you planned on taking a QB in the draft because you thought they were super talented, why did you spend so much money on a QB during free agency. Seems like very poor planning at a minimum and complete lack of competency at a maximum. Even if Penix ends up working out, they completely messed up their cap situation to get this deal done. Makes no sense.
7) Texans
Trading DeAndre Hopkins to the Cardinals - This ended up being rough for both parties involved. I do have a hard time blaming teams for trading away high profile WR who are going to be asking for a lot of money. Teams have shown over and over that you do not need a dominant/highly paid WR to be a competitive or even a SB winning team. Using that money elsewhere makes sense so I think this one is a bit overrated.
6) Jaguars
Hiring Urban Meyer as coach - Only three words......What. A. Trainwreck.
5) Panthers
Trading DJ Moore and multiple first-round picks to the Bears to move up to draft Bryce Young with the No. 1 overall pick - Yeah, Idk what they were thinking here. If he had been a prospect like Trevor Lawrence then I may be able to understand but I don't think anyone should have been thinking he was going to be a true game changing QB.
4) 49ers
Trading three first-round picks to move up for Trey Lance - Again, why? He played decent football at the FCS level. I'm not saying an FCS QB can't get it done because it is definitely possible but the sample size was small and not insanely impressive.
3) Jets
Trading for Aaron Rodgers - They could have just put down "Jets doing Jets things" and we would have been able to figure out the rest.
2) Broncos
Trading for (and extending) Russell Wilson - His production and attributes seemed to fall off a cliff as soon as he was traded. It does seem like it might have just been a bad fit since he is doing pretty well in the Black and Gold.
1) Browns
Trading for Deshaun Watson and signing him to a five-year, $230 million contract - This will go down as one of, if not THE, worst deals in NFL history. I have no sympathy for them because of the things he did in Houston and the Browns knew about it when they traded for him. Occasionally people get what they deserve and this just happens to be one of those cases.
Hope you guys enjoyed the list and maybe a couple of the notes. DISCUSS!
Last edited: