Worst Super Bowl Losses: Ranking Heartbreaks Ahead of Seahawks vs. Patriots Rematch

We're just days away from one of the Seattle Seahawks or New England Patriots winning Super Bowl 2026. And with that comes a confetti-filled celebration, a Gatorade bath for the winning coach, and a fanbase ready to hold the victory over everyone else for (at least) the next year. But for every one of those celebrations, there is a locker room filled with dejected players who just lost on the biggest stage, with fans who will need to live with a year of "oh-so-close" heartache. 

But not all losses are created equal; some hurt more than others. We're going to rank the worst losses in Super Bowl history based on three major factors: the size of the favorite the losing team was, the level of late-game drama, and the impact on the fanbase.

No matter which side of our Super Bowl predictions you come down on, we can only hope for a game that provides as much excitement, jubilation, and heartbreak as the list below.

🔟 Colts vs. Saints (Super Bowl XLIV)

Saints 31, Colts 17

• The pre-game favorite: The Colts were the 5-point favorite
• The late-game drama: It wasn't all at the last minute, but it was pure heartache all the same: a second half that started with a recovered online kick by the Saints and a game sealed by a Tracy Morgan pick-6
• The fan trauma: Colts legend Payton Manning was in the prime of his career, fresh off his fifth MVP season. Instead of securing a second ring the Colts squandered a halftime lead and haven't returned to the Big Game

9️⃣ Packers vs. Broncos (Super Bowl XXXII)

Broncos 31, Packers 24

• The pre-game favorite: The Packers entered at 11-point favorites
• The late-game drama: Setting up one final drive for the Packers that ended in a turnover on downs, Broncos RB Terrell Davis capped a 157-yard, 3-touchdown day by punching one in with 1:45 left
• The fan trauma: Green Bay had won the year before, Brett Favre was the league MVP, and the Packers were double-digit favorites to start to claim a 90s dynasty; Green Bay didn't return to the big game for 13 years

8️⃣ 49ers vs. Chiefs (Super Bowl LIV)

Chiefs 31, 49ers 20

• The pre-game favorite: The Chiefs were a 1.5-point favorite in what was expected to be a competitive game
• The late-game drama: It wasn't at the final buzzer or the last drive, but the Chiefs scored 21 unanswered points over the games final 6:13 to make a final score that looks a whole lot different than the game felt
• The fan trauma: You'll have to forgive some 49ers fans if they had started to celebrate early. San Francisco headed into halftime squared up with Kansas City and took a 10-point lead into the games final frame. The 49ers drives in the fourth quarter looked like this while they squandered a lead: punt, punt, turnover on downs, interception. Whether this one hurt more than the one four years later, that's on the fans to decide - they blew 10 point leads to the Chiefs in both, but this one happened in a much shorter timeframe

7️⃣ Titans vs. Rams (Super Bowl XXXIV)

Rams 23, Titans 16

• The pre-game favorite: The Rams were 7-point favorites
• The late-game drama: The Titans had charged back from a 16-0 hole to tie the game at 16 before Kurt Warner connected with Isaac Bruce on a one-play 73-yard touchdown to jump back out to the lead. But the drama didn't end there: Tennessee managed to get back to the 10-yard line with six seconds left, but linebacker Mike Jones tackled Kevin Dyson on the one-yard line on the game's final play, securing the Rams win.
• The fan trauma: Call it whatever name you want, "The Tackle" or "One Yard Short," I can promise you Titans fans don't want to hear it. A case of so-close-but-so-far ended the Titans' push for a comeback in the franchise's only Super Bowl appearance to date

6️⃣ Rams vs. Patriots (Super Bowl XXXVI)

Patriots 20, Rams 17

• The pre-game favorite: The Rams were 14-point favorites
• The late-game drama: As time expired, Patriots kicker Adam Vinatieri hit a 48-yard field goal to secure New England's first ever Super Bowl. (Spoiler: this isn't the last time New England will show up on this list)
• The fan trauma: "The Greatest Show on Turf" became the first of many victims to fall to "The Greatest Quarterback to Ever Play the Game." The Rams entered looking for a second title in three years - and were two-touchdown favorites to get it done - but instead fell to a six-round quarterback and an undrafted kicker.

5️⃣ Colts vs. Jets (Super Bowl III)

Jets 16, Colts 7

• The pre-game favorite: The Colts were massive 18-point points, the largest blown game on this list
• The late-game drama: There wasn't any late-game drama to be known here, this was just full-game embarrassment.
• The fan trauma: No one wants to be on the team on the wrong end of the biggest upset in Super Bowl history, but that wasn't the end of it. Jets QB Joe Namath famously said, "We're going to win the game. I guarantee it." The Jets managed to keep the Colts off the scoreboard until the middle of the final frame. Just a start-to-finish shellacking for the Colts.

4️⃣ Bills vs. Giants (Super Bowl XXV)

Giants 20, Bills 19

• The pre-game favorite: The Bills were 7-point favorites
• The late-game drama: It doesn't get more late game than this: the Bills had a 47-yard kick as the clock expired to win their first franchise Super Bowl in their first appearance. Kicker Scott Norwood's attempt missed, wide right.
• The fan trauma: Rumor has it you can't ever utter the words "Wide Right" to Bills fans, even when you're trying to describe how to take a turn. That's how bad this one was. The league's #1 offense, first Super Bowl, game on the line, and the kick to win it all goes wide right. Worse, it was the first of four straight Super Bowl losses for Buffalo.

3️⃣ Seahawks vs. Patriots (Super Bowl XLIX)

Patriots 28, Seahawks 24

• The pre-game favorite: Pick 'em
• The late-game drama: Set up by one of our best "forgotten" Super Bowl plays, the Seahawks had the ball on the Patriots' five-yard line. Then, superstar running back Marshawn Lynch picked up four yards on first down. Second-and-goal from the one-yard line, easy play call, right? Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell to the rescue (for Patriots fans). The Seahawks dialed up a pass, which Malcolm Butler intercepted, ending the drive.
• The fan trauma: Fans, sports panel shows, and even team members were left asking, "Why didn't they hand it to Marshawn?" as they witnessed the Patriots rip victory from the jaws of defeat. Emmitt Smith called it the worst play call in the history of football.

2️⃣ Falcons vs. Patriots (Super Bowl LI)

Patriots 34, Falcons 28

• The pre-game favorite: Patriots entered as -3, but were in a 21-3 hole at halftime
• The late-game drama: Could call this "the second-half drama" instead. After jumping out to a 28-3 lead that will live in infamy for falcons, and analytics having them as high as a 99.7% chance to win the game, things turned for the worse: New England rallied for 25 unanswered points, forcing overtime. Brady and Co. engineered a 75-yard, eight-play touchdown drive to secure the victory.
• The fan trauma: It's so bad that Falcons fans don't even like March 28 (28/3), and the mention of "28-3" whips them up into a frenzy. Atlanta led for 58 minutes of the game - the first Super Bowl game to ever go to overtime - and couldn't close the deal. It brought Atlanta's Super Bowl record to 0-2, and fans of the Dirty Birds haven't had another sniff of the Big Game since.

1️⃣ Patriots vs. Giants (Super Bowl XLII)

Patriots 28, Seahawks 24

• The pre-game favorite: The Patriots were 12-point favorites
• The late-game drama: David Tyree's famed "Helmet Catch" with 1:15 left, a 32-yard bomb from Eli Manning, who was actively working to avoid a sack. It's widely considered the greatest catch in Super Bowl history: while being hauled down by Rodney Harrison, Tyree secured the ball against his helmet, extending the drive and keeping alive a drive that ended with a 13-yard Plaxico Burress touchdown with 35 seconds left.
• The fan trauma: Look, I get it, no one feels bad for Patriots fans. But this one would sting any fanbase, as New England entered a perfect 18-0 with a chance to become the first and only team in NFL history to finish 19-0, joining the 1972 Miami Dolphins as the only team to finish an entire season undefeated. It could have been the greatest season in the history of the sport, but instead it ended in a last-minute loss to a Wild Card team, enabled by a fluke play.

*️⃣ Honorable mentions

Those are my 10 worst Super Bowl losses of all time, but lots of fan bases will feel their team belonged on the list, and maybe they have a chance. The unthinkable upsets, final play heartbreaks, and great collapses impact us all differently. Here are a few games that came close, but didn't quite take the final cut. 

• Super Bowl XLIII: Steelers 27, Cardinals 23
• Arizona was minutes from its first Super Bowl after Larry Fitzgerald reeled in an iconic 64-yard touchdown. What felt like destiny changed in the final seconds when Santonio Holmes put the Steelers back on top with a tiptoe catch in the corner of the end zone.
• Super Bowl LVII: Chiefs 38, Eagles 35
• Eagles QB Jalen Hurts played what might be the best game ever by a losing QB, throwing a touchdown and adding three more on the ground. A controversial defensive holding call gave the Chiefs a fresh set of downs, allowing them to milk the clock and kick the game-winning field goal with just eight seconds remaining.
• Super Bowl XIII: Steelers 35, Cowboys 31
• A clash to be the "Team of the Decade," the Cowboys were trailing by four points in the third when a drop by Jackie Smith on a wide-open touchdown pass ("the sickest man in America!"). Like the Patriots above, hard to feel bad for the Cowboys, who had won two of the prior six Super Bowls