Browns, Jets, Dolphins face franchise-altering decisions after nearly 25 years of futility
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Go back to the start of the 2001 NFL season.
Miami Dolphins head coach Dave Wannstedt was entering his second season, replacing the legendary Jimmy Johnson. Both the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets were just getting started. The Browns hired Butch Davis to replace Chris Palmer as head coach, and the Jets moved on to Herm Edwards from the Al Groh and Bill Belichick debacle.
Hopes were as high as ever for all three teams. The future looked bright.
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New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan speaks with referees before the start of a game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field on November 17, 2011. (Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports)
Fast forward nearly 25 years, with not much progress being made in any of the three franchises. As the 2025 season draws to a close, the Dolphins, Browns and Jets will all have losing records, miss the playoffs and have a total of zero Super Bowl appearances.
The Browns are often derided by NFL fans as a mocked franchise due to the amount of futility the franchise has experienced since the start of the 2001 season.
Cleveland became the second team in NFL history to go winless for a season. The Browns had 39 starting quarterbacks during this period; including three different players this season, Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. The Browns had nine different head coaches during that span and made three playoff appearances, including one playoff win. The team finished last in the postseason in 2023.
It’s bad for Cleveland, but their only playoff win during that stretch is exactly one more than the Dolphins have won since the start of the 2001 season.
Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders reacts on the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
The Dolphins have only made the playoffs five times, and names like Jay Fiedler, Daunte Culpepper, Chad Pennington, Jay Cutler, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Tua Tagovailoa have started in Miami. Quinn Ewers became the franchise’s 26th starting quarterback. There have been 27 since Dan Marino hung up his cleats after the 1999 season.
Mike McDaniel represented the eighth head coach the Dolphins have had on the sidelines, and while the team showed bright spots with Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill connecting on the field, the same amount of success hasn’t been achieved in Miami since the Marino era.
New York has also entered the same field. Although the Browns and Dolphins have had their ups and downs in recent years, most of New York’s success came in the 2000s.
SHEDEUR SANDERS’ CRAZY 2025 STARTED WITH A DRAFT BUT ENDS WITH HOPE AFTER DIFFICULT RETURNS
New York Jets’ Darrelle Revis #24 reacts with Jordan Jenkins #48 before the game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on December 24, 2016 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Billie Weiss/Getty Images)
The Jets made six playoff appearances from 2001 to 2010 and were on the brink of the Super Bowl twice with Mark Sanchez at quarterback, Darrelle Revis locking down wide receivers and Rex Ryan on the sideline. The Jets have had 12 losing seasons since 2010. They failed to make the playoffs and finished above .500 just once.
Not to mention New York has gone through seven head coaches during that span.
It’s chillingly surprising that three historic franchises have similar uselessness to the amount of parity in the NFL right now. At least there have been 12 different Super Bowl winners with 19 different teams appearing in the game.
And that doesn’t mean there isn’t excitement in every series. The Jets’ acquisition of Brett Favre was big news. The Browns drafted Johnny Manziel, a polarizing figure in college football and the NFL. The Dolphins had a strong running back in Ricky Williams and defensive stars like Jason Taylor and Zach Thomas.
But it never worked.
Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams (34) runs with the football as Green Bay Packers safety Nick Collins (36) lines up to tackle during overtime on Sept. 21, 2010 at Lambeau Field. (Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports)
Although 2001 was a year of great change for all three teams, more difficult decisions may be made when 2025 ends and the 2026 season officially begins.
McDaniel, Kevin Stefanski and Aaron Glenn are on the hot seat with their respective teams. The Dolphins only changed their general manager (Chris Grier) in the middle of the year. Glenn is in his first season as head coach, but rumors differ as to whether he will remain in 2026.
All three teams could be in the market for a quarterback change.
Despite his huge contract, the Dolphins benched Tagovailoa for the final few games of the season. The Browns didn’t look ready for Sanders or Gabriel as QB1 heading into 2026, especially with Deshaun Watson and his albatross still under contract. The Jets have tried three different quarterbacks in 2025 as well, but a high pick in the draft could lead them to pilot someone like Fernando Mendoza.
Cleveland Browns quarterback Charlie Frye (9) is sacked by Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Napolean Harris (50) at Cleveland Browns Stadium on August 11, 2007. (Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports)
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Things can always change for these three franchises, but as the 2025 season draws to a close and the new millennium begins, many things have remained the same and it looks like nothing will change in the near future.
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