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    Which are the most (and least) miserable NFL fan bases? We ranked them all.

    by Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times Feb 07, 2023 14 minutes
    Fans take cellphone pictures as the New England Patriots huddle prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Dec. 12, 2022, in Glendale, Arizona.

    When you think about it, life as an NFL fan can generally be a miserable existence. After all, only one of 32 fan bases has reason to celebrate after its team's final game of the season.

    Some fan bases have experienced such exhilaration more often than others. Some have done so, but not in a long time. Some seem always on the brink of such unbridled joy, only to have their hopes crushed on a regular basis.

    And, of course, some fan bases have never had the opportunity of celebrating a Super Bowl victory.

    As the season comes to a close with Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12, we tried to determine which NFL fan bases are generally the most (and least) miserable. Our complicated, and completely made-up, formula considers such factors as recent success or failure, level of optimism for the near future and, to a lesser degree, past glory (the thinking being, the longer ago an event was, the less relevance it might have for today's fans).

    Here's how the ranking turned out (please note the years listed refer to the regular season, not necessarily when the postseason games took place), with the fan bases with most reason to be upbeat at the top and the ones that should be most deeply unhappy at the bottom:

    32. New England Patriots

    Super Bowls won: 6 (2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016, 2018)

    Super Bowl appearances: 11 (1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018)

    Conference championship appearances: 15 (6 in last 10 years)

    Playoff appearances in the last 10 years: 8 (most recent 2021)

    Playoff wins in the last 10 years:13 (most recent 2018)

    Division titles in the last 10 years: 7 (most recent 2019)

    2022 results: 8-9

    Shockingly, the Patriots haven't won a playoff game in four years. And they've had a losing record in two of the three seasons since Tom Brady left. But it's going to take a long time before all the luster wears off from the unprecedented run Brady, coach Bill Belichick and company had before that. Patriots fans are just fine.

    31. Kansas City Chiefs

    * 2022 Super Bowl participant

    Super Bowls won: 2 (1969, 2019)

    Super Bowl appearances: 5 (1966, 1969, 2019, 2020, 2022)

    Conference championship appearances: 8 (5 in last 10 years)

    Playoff appearances in the last 10 years: 9 (most recent 2022)

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