The 20 Best Football Documentaries Of All Time, Including Undefeated & The U

The best football documentaries investigate the games, players, and moments that shaped the sport of American gridiron football. Sports are the ultimate reality show. They have character arcs, villains and fan favorites, weekly installments, season-long arcs, producers getting involved to improve ratings, massive finales; it’s almost a one-to-one comparison, except that sports are not scripted in the way even the best reality shows can be, and some fans may even vehemently disagree with that point. From a U.S.-centric point-of-view, the best of these “reality” shows is American gridiron football, which any American writer will simply refer to as “football”.

From the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary series to the National Football League’s own NFL Films – A Football Life documentaries, so many corners of the historic sport have been covered. Yet, every year, a new angle of the history or culture or modern impact is mined for deeper investigation. Documentaries on American football are nearly as interesting as the games, as each piece of the sport builds upon whatever came before it. The best of these football documentaries shine a critical eye on the sport while still showcasing what makes it so great.

20

Untold: Swamp Kings (2023)

Directed By Katharine English

As a piece of the Netflix sports documentary boom, Untold purports to tell lesser-known sports stories. Untold: Swamp Kings depicts how the uncompromising coach Urban Meyer transformed the struggling University of Florida Gators into a perennial contender with the help of Heisman-winning quarterback Tim Tebow. Trying to make the successful Gators organization and preternaturally talented Tebow seem like scrappy underdogs is laughable, but the documentary still gives an entertaining overview of some critical pieces of modern NFL history.

Directed By Ryan Duffy

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

Untold: Johnny Football

Release Date

August 8, 2023

Runtime

71 minutes

Director

Ryan Duffy

Producers

Carolyn Craddock

Untold: Johnny Football is a 2023 episode of Netflix’s Untold sports series following the roller-coaster life of quarterback Johnny Manziel, who went from being known as Johnny Football at Texas A&M to becoming one of the biggest busts in NFL history after his hard-partying lifestyle caught up with him. The documentary offers some insights into the mindset of Manziel at the time, but it refuses to dig deep into the man who still seems to be wrestling with his past.

18

The Dynasty: New England Patriots (2024)

Directed By Matthew Hamachek

Love them or hate them, the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady years of the New England Patriots were arguably the greatest dynasty in the NFL and certainly rank among the top five in any sport. This 10-episode miniseries tracks the team’s growth from a backwater franchise into a perennial juggernaut that everyone loved to hate. The success of the team is undeniable and clearly comes through, but what’s most intriguing is that the documentary does not shy away from showing the internal struggles that developed within the organization over the years.

17

LT: The Life & Times (2013)

Directed By Peter Radovich

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

LT: The Life & Times

Release Date

January 1, 2013

Runtime

108 minutes

LT: The Life & Times follows the exceptional and uninhibited career of Lawrence Taylor, one of the greatest football players of all time whose career as a linebacker for the New York Giants changed how offenses approached the game. Taylor’s incredible professional career was married to a personal life filled with drugs and partying. While the documentary tries to make the case, with a willing Taylor, that drug use hurt his career, the fact is Taylor could not have had a better career, which makes the documentary’s thrust strange and unconvincing.

16

Hard Knocks: New York Jets (2010)

Directed By Ken Rodgers

HBO’s Hard Knocks can be hit-or-miss depending on which team is being documented, a result of the teams having the final cut on what is shown in the documentary. The result is anything truly damning (and therefore entertaining) is always cut. One of the best is season 6, which focuses on the New York Jets. It’s one of the funniest seasons in the series thanks to the Jets’ quick-witted and foul-mouthed head coach, Rex Ryan. His fiery but loyal relationship with second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez offers some truly hilarious moments.

15

Man In The Arena: Tom Brady (2021-2022)

Directed By Gotham Chopra And Erik LeDrew

While The Roast of Tom Brady gave casual viewers a chance to get to know Tom as a person, Man in the Arena: Tom Brady gives people a chance to understand Tom as an athlete, which may very well be the “real” Tom. The ten-episode series features Tom Brady giving first-hand accounts of his nine Super Bowl appearances, ending with his final SB win with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It may be a bit too adulatory for some, but his skill on the field and fierce determination could be the greatest of any NFL player ever.

Created By NFL FIlms

The first two episodes of the lauded A Football Life documentary series were dedicated to Bill Belichick, the long-time coach of the New England Patriots and one of the winningest coaches in NFL history. The documentary is primarily focused on the 2009 season as he deals with personal and professional issues with everyone from his teammates to his girlfriend. It’s a deep look into one of the most talented and enigmatic coaches to ever walk on the field, and succeeds by putting Belichick in center frame rather than the Patriots organization.

13

30 For 30: Pony Excess (2010)

Directed By Thaddeus D. Matula

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

Pony Excess

Release Date

December 11, 2010

Runtime

102 minutes

While it’s now a moot point because of the NIL changing how NCAA players can be compensated, paying college athletes was once considered a terrible taboo that was grounds for fines, firings, and even victories being scrubbed. Volume I, episode 30 of 30 for 30, Pony Excess, depicts the rise and fall of the SMU Mustangs football team in 1987 after it was discovered the university was paying players under the table. The college received the “death penalty”, which banned the school from competing for a year. It’s a fascinating insight into a football era now completely gone.

12

30 For 30: The Band That Wouldn’t Die (2009)

Directed By Barry Levinson

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

The Band That Wouldn’t Die

Release Date

October 13, 2009

Runtime

53 minutes

Director

Barry Levinson

Producers

Jason Sosnoff, Lee Bonner, Bill Simmons, Connor Schell, Joan Lynch, Stan Flint, Erin Leyden, John Dahl

• 
  
• 
  

Directed by Academy Award-winning director Barry Levinson, The Band That Wouldn’t Die is the second episode of 30 for 30 and profiles the Baltimore Colts just as the team is leaving the city for Indianapolis in 1984. The team’s band stayed in the city, keeping alive the football spirit despite the tremendous loss Baltimore felt. The Band That Wouldn’t Die shows the detrimental effects of an NFL team moving cities. It also gives an important history lesson about why the Baltimore Ravens have had such great success in such a short time.

11

30 For 30: Small Potatoes: Who Killed The USFL (2009)

Directed By Mike Tollin

Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL? is the third episode of 30 for 30 Volume I. Through new interviews and archival footage, the documentary tracks the rise and fall of the United Stated Football League, which had a brief flare-up in the mid-1980s. It’s a fascinating documentary on its own and a good explainer about how other organizations constantly try and fail to dethrone the NFL. The real reason to watch is the interview with Donald Trump, a team owner at the time, who leaves the interview mid-conversation, a tactic he would reapply many times over the years.

Directed By Peter Coyote, Joe Madden, And Joe Namath

Full Color Football: The History Of The American Football League is as close as the NFL has come to a Ken Burns-style documentary of American gridiron football. The five-hour documentary series is specifically about the American Football League, its founding, ten-year history, and eventual merger with the National Football League. It is critical viewing for any football fan, giving an in-depth overview of the history of the league and will give answers to anyone who ever wondered why there is an AFC and an NFC.

9

Happy Valley (2014)

Directed By Amir Bar-Lev

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

Happy Valley

Release Date

November 14, 2014

Runtime

98 minutes

Director

Amir Bar-Lev

Producers

John Battsek, Jonathan Koch

Football is not all heroics and victory. In the long history of the sport, there have been shocking and disturbing moments. One of the most awful came out of Penn State, a bastion of American football. Happy Valley covers the Penn State child sex abuse scandal at the university that was uncovered in March 2011, which saw the arrest of Jerry Sandusky, forced the retirement of long-time coach Joe Paterno, and incurred huge sanctions on the once-storied football team. It’s appointment viewing for every football fan, depicting how even a beloved pastime can hide monstrous crimes.

8

Hard Knocks: Dallas Cowboys (2008)

Directed By Charlie Askew And Rob Gehring

The fourth season of Hard Knocks, which follows the Dallas Cowboys, is as entertaining as the HBO documentary series comes. This season has everything football and TV fans could want. There’s a hyperactive rookie, Martellus Bennett, who shrugs off the surprising cruelty of his coaches. The ever-wild Pacman Jones has no filter. Tony Romo opens a window into the analytical intelligence and quick wit that would later serve him well as a commentator. There’s just enough here to make for a completely absorbing watch all the way through.

7

30 For 30: Catholics Vs. Convicts (2016)

Directed By Patrick Creadon

Catholics vs. Convicts is the 13th episode of 30 for 30 Volume III, and takes a look at the 1988 football game between Notre Dame and the University of Miami, two powerhouses that could not be more different in playstyle and in culture. Director Patrick Creadon attended Notre Dame at the time and his roommate helped make the infamous t-shirt that serves as the title for this documentary. It was nominated for Outstanding Documentary at the 69th Primetime Emmys and depicts one of the most in-depth analyses of a single game of football, often called one of the sport’s best.

Created By NFL Films

A football documentary in conversation with The Band That Wouldn’t Die, A Football Life – Cleveland ’95 looks at the Cleveland Browns’ 1995 season. After coming off a banner season, the organization is rocked by strife and owner Art Modell’s mishandling of the team’s finances, which leads him to move the team to Baltimore to become the Ravens. The Cleveland Browns are one of the least winning teams in modern NFL history and this documentary exposes some of the structural reasons behind the team’s troubles that linger to this day.

5

30 For 30: Four Falls Of Buffalo (2015)

Directed By Ken Rodgers

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

Four Falls of Buffalo

Release Date

December 12, 2015

Runtime

102 minutes

• 
  

  William Fichtner

  Narrator (voice)

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  

Four Falls of Buffalo is the fifth episode of 30 for 30 Volume III, and follows the Buffalo Bills of the NFL from the early 1990s to the mid-1990s. In that time, the Bills went to four consecutive Super Bowls and lost each time. The players and coaches from those years look back on the games in candid interviews. Some have regrets, while others are proud they were able to make that many championship games at all. Kicker Scott Norwood, who missed a crucial field goal, tearfully recounts the time the city gathered to cheer him on after the game.

4

30 For 30: Year Of The Scab (2017)

Directed By John Dorsey

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

Year of the Scab

Release Date

June 18, 2017

Runtime

78 minutes

Director

John Dorsey

Volume III, episode 20, Year of the Scab, follows the events of the 1987 players’ strike which led to the Washington Redskins fielding a roster of replacement players that eventually led to the Redskins winning the Super Bowl. Years later, the players of that team are interviewed and discuss their feelings on being considered “scabs” by fans and other players. It’s a unique and oft-forgotten piece of football history and reveals the hidden animosity that can sometimes arise between players, the fans, and the owners.

3

30 For 30: The U (2009)

Directed By Billy Corben

Movie

My Favorite Movies
My Watchlist

The U

Release Date

December 12, 2009

Runtime

102 minutes

• 
  
• 
  

  Luther Campbell

  Himself – Hip Hop Artist, 2 Live Crew

• 
  
• 
  

The U is the seventh episode of the first Volume of 30 for 30 that follows the evolution of the University of Miami Hurricanes football team in the 1980s when new coach Howard Schnellenberger bucked culture and tradition by recruiting a slew of Black players to reshape the team into a juggernaut. The only thing more exciting than the swagger and attitude of the players on the field is the real feelings of inspiration and courage shown by the staff and team of players who brought their underrepresented lives to the predominantly white campus of the University of Miami.

2

Last Chance U (2016)

Directed By Greg Whiteley And Adam Ridley

Last Chance U is a Netflix documentary series that follows junior college football programs where players have one last chance to earn a spot on a Division I team and chase their goals of the NFL. The first season is the best, where the documentary crew follows the East Mississippi Community College Lions. The head coach, Buddy Stephens, is a true character, unable to control his temper, which eventually reflects on the team. It’s a moving and occasionally shocking look at how desperate some are to reach the next level of football.

1

Undefeated (2011)

Directed By Daniel Lindsay And T.J. Martin

Undefeated follows the struggles of the Manassas Tigers of Memphis, Tennessee, a high school football team desperate for a winning season after years of losing ones. A new coach, Bill Courtney, arrives and manages to turn the team around both on the field and off. The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 84th Ceremony. One of the best football documentaries ever, it’s a moving and often joyous tale about perseverance and redemption.