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.

19 Untold: Johnny Football (2023)

Directed By Ryan Duffy

Untold: Johnny Football

Documentary

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

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

Hard Knocks - Season 6

TV-MA

Documentary

Reality

Sports

Release Date: August 11, 2010
Network: HBO
Series: Hard Knocks
Episodes: 5

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

Tom Brady looking out over the field in Man in the Arena

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.

14 A Football Life: Bill Belichick A Coaching Mastermind (2011)

Created By NFL FIlms

A Football Life - Season 1

Documentary

History

Release Date: September 15, 2011
Network: NFL Network
Series: A Football Life
Episodes: 9

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

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

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.

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