The Dallas Cowboys famously finished last year with the worst defense in the league, allowing 511 points over 17 games. Certainly nothing to brag about, though it does make you pause a bit when you realize that’s 30 points per game.
But it’s also not like the Cowboys are the first team to ever finish with the most points allowed. In fact, every year one team gets to crown itself king of the Defensive Ineptitude Society. And that gives us the opportunity to look at how all those teams fared in the season following their last-place finish in points allowed.
Here’s an overview, going all the way back to 2010, of the teams finishing last in points allowed and what their record looked like the following season.
| Worst defense of the Year | Following Season | |||||||
| Team | Year | W/L | Points Allowed | W/L | Change | Points Allowed | Change | |
| DAL | 2025 | 7-9-1 | 511 | – – | – – | – – | – – | |
| CAR | 2024 | 5-12 | 534 | 8-9* | 3 | 380 | -154 | |
| WAS | 2023 | 4-13 | 518 | 12-5* | 8 | 391 | -127 | |
| CHI | 2022 | 3-14 | 463 | 7-10 | 4 | 379 | -84 | |
| NYJ | 2021 | 4-13 | 504 | 7-10 | 3 | 316 | -188 | |
| DET | 2020 | 5-11 | 519 | 3-13-1 | -2 | 467 | -52 | |
| MIA | 2019 | 5-11 | 494 | 10-6 | 5 | 338 | -156 | |
| LV | 2018 | 4-12 | 467 | 7-9 | 3 | 419 | -48 | |
| HOU | 2017 | 4-12 | 436 | 11-5* | 7 | 316 | -120 | |
| SF | 2016 | 2-14 | 480 | 6-10 | 4 | 383 | -97 | |
| NO | 2015 | 7-9 | 476 | 7-9 | 0 | 454 | -22 | |
| LV | 2014 | 3-13 | 452 | 7-9 | 4 | 399 | -53 | |
| MIN | 2013 | 5-10-1 | 480 | 7-9 | 2 | 343 | -137 | |
| TEN | 2012 | 6-10 | 471 | 7-9 | 1 | 381 | -90 | |
| TB | 2011 | 4-12 | 494 | 7-9 | 3 | 394 | -100 | |
| DEN | 2010 | 4-12 | 471 | 8-8* | 4 | 390 | -81 | |
A few things to note here:
- None of the teams here achieved a winning record in the year listed. The 2025 Cowboys and 2015 Saints came closest with seven wins, thanks in large part to their high-powered offenses which both finished No.2 in yards in those years.
- The average team improved by 3.3 wins (median: 3) the following season and 13 of 15 teams (87%) improved their W/L record.
- Every single team reduced their points allowed, with an average reduction of -100 points.
- Four teams even managed to make the playoffs the following year, though backing into the playoffs with an 8-8 or even 8-9 record not really something to write home about.
Every team of course went about fixing their situation differently.
New Head Coach
Washington in 2024 brought in Dan Quinn as a defensive-minded head coach, as did Chicago a year earlier, when they brought in Matt Eberflus to fix their defense. And head coach changes are pretty popular among this group of teams: Detroit brought in Dan Campbell in 2021, the Raiders brought in Jon Gruden in 2019 in an attempt to right the ship, the 49ers in 2017 opted for Kyle Shanahan, and the list goes on.
Free Agency Spending Spree
Nine of the teams listed here ended up in the top five in free agent spending in the year following their last place finish in points allowed:
- #1 Free agency spenders: 2020 Dolphins, 2012 Buccaneers
- #2: 2022 Jets, 2017 49ers
- #3: 2024 Commanders, 2013 Titans
- #4: 2019 Raiders, 2015 Raiders
- #5: 2023 Bears
Draft defensive talent
Like the Cowboys, who drafted five defensive players in the first four rounds, other teams also went heavy on defensive talent. The 2019 Raiders also drafted five defensive players in the first four rounds, the 2022 Jets, 2020 Lions, and 2011 Broncos each drafted four.
Other areas
Scheme changes, changes on the defensive coaching staff, trades for veteran players, and many other improvements were implemented by the teams above to improve their performance the following season.
The Cowboys made wholesale changes to their defensive coaching staff, signed 14 free agents and added two more veterans via trade, jettisoned a lot of defensive starters from 2025, changed their scheme, and drafted defensive players galore. Will it be enough? Who knows, but if history is anything to go by, their chances look good.
A 3.3 win improvement would get them to 10 wins and maybe playoff contention. Reducing points allowed by 100 points would mean a reduction of almost six points per game. In 2025, those six points would have been worth three extra wins and a 10-7 record. And all of that is just taking the average of some very bad teams in the past. Be better than average and anything is possible.
For the 2026 Cowboys, the only way is up!