How many 0-4 teams have made the playoffs?

Week 4 has become an early benchmark for playoff chances in the NFL, but how many teams have been able to transform from 0-4 pretender to playoff contender?

The standings may not truly matter until Thanksgiving, but kicking off the NFL season on a losing streak makes it virtually impossible to make playoffs. It’s why Week 4 has become a critical benchmark for post-season success: only 3.2 percent of 0-3 teams have made NFL playoffs since 1980.

Six out of 182 NFL teams since 1980 started 0-3 and somehow managed to see the light of the post-season. FanSided’s Russell S. Baxter detailed how each of the following teams managed to turn their season around:

• The 1981 New York Jets
• The 1982 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• The 1992 San Diego Chargers
• The 1995 Detroit Lions
• The 1998 Buffalo Bills
• The 2018 Houston Texans

Remarkably, one of these teams went 0-4: it was the 1992 San Diego Chargers.

The 1992 San Diego Chargers remain the only 0-4 team to ever make NFL playoffs

Winning 91.6 percent of their last 12 games, the 1992 San Diego Chargers defined what it meant to turn a season around. New coach Bobby Ross couldn’t find his groove until Week 5, when the team went on to win 11 out of 12 of their remaining games. The Chargers didn’t just finish 11-5, but they actually won the AFC West. They then went on to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in a 17-0 shutout in the Wild Card Round, but then lost in their own 31-0 shutout against the Miami Dolphins.

Despite his early losses, Ross’ tenure with the Chargers proved to be a turning point for the franchise in the 1990s. Their 1992 playoff appearance was their first in ten years, and with Ross, the Chargers won two division titles and made the playoffs three times. In 1994, the Chargers made it all the way to their only Super Bowl appearance, where they lost 26-49.

These days, the Chargers are faring much better at 2-1, although they still rank third in the AFC West. Quarterback Justin Herbert is hurtling touchdowns to reverse the Chargers’ cursed fate, while Asante Samuel Jr. is living up the family legacy for a potential DROY nomination.

Five NFL teams have started off the 2021 season at 0-3: the Detroit Lions, the Indianapolis Colts, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the New York Giants and the New York Jets. Only time will tell which team, if any, can surpass the 1992 San Diego Chargers’ longstanding legacy.