The Washington Redskins have made five Super Bowls in their history:
- To conclude the 1972 season, with Republican Richard Nixon in office as President of the United States;
- At the end of the 1982, 1983, and 1987 seasons, with Republican Ronald Reagan as the sitting POTUS;
- In January 1992, during the final year of Republican George H. W. Bush’s presidency.
During the Super Bowl era, Washington has gone 272-180-3 while a Republican is in office. That translates to a .601 winning percentage, the best of any team.
But the Redskins have been a lot worse with a Democrat in office. In fact, Washington has a lowly 150-201-5, a 0.428 winning percentage that is the fourth worst of any team during the Super Bowl era. Washington’s best years came under Reagan, Bush, Ford, and Nixon, while the franchise’s worst years have been under Obama, Clinton, and LBJ. Take a look:
| President | Party | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barack Obama | Dem | 45 | 76 | 1 | 0.373 |
| George W. Bush | Rep | 59 | 72 | 0 | 0.450 |
| William J. Clinton | Dem | 55 | 74 | 1 | 0.427 |
| George H.W. Bush | Rep | 48 | 23 | 0 | 0.676 |
| Ronald Reagan | Rep | 92 | 42 | 0 | 0.687 |
| Jimmy Carter | Dem | 33 | 29 | 0 | 0.532 |
| Gerald R. Ford | Rep | 28 | 16 | 0 | 0.636 |
| Richard M. Nixon | Rep | 45 | 27 | 3 | 0.620 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson | Dem | 17 | 22 | 3 | 0.440 |
| Total | Dem | 150 | 201 | 5 | 0.428 |
| Total | Rep | 272 | 180 | 3 | 0.601 |
The table below shows each team’s winning percentage, by party in the White House, during the Super Bowl era. Here’s how to read the Washington line: The Redskins are 150-201-5 for a 0.428 winning percentage during the Super Bowl era with a Democratic president, the 29th best winning percentage. The team is 272-180-3 with a Republican in the White House, for a 0.601 winning percentage that is the best in the NFL. That is a 0.173 difference in winning percentage, the largest of all 32 teams.
| Rk | Team | Dem Rec | Dem win % | Dem Rk | Rep Rec | Rep win % | Rep Rk | Rep - Dem W% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington Redskins | 150-201-5 | 0.428 | 29 | 272-180-3 | 0.601 | 1 | 0.173 |
| 2 | Miami Dolphins | 182-180-1 | 0.503 | 16 | 270-179-3 | 0.601 | 2 | 0.098 |
| 3 | Cincinnati Bengals | 133-195-2 | 0.406 | 30 | 213-222-2 | 0.490 | 19 | 0.084 |
| 4 | San Francisco 49ers | 192-175-4 | 0.523 | 11 | 263-185-5 | 0.586 | 3 | 0.063 |
| 5 | Cleveland Browns | 125-185-0 | 0.403 | 32 | 200-234-4 | 0.461 | 22 | 0.058 |
| 6 | Los Angeles Rams | 171-188-4 | 0.477 | 19 | 237-207-4 | 0.533 | 10 | 0.057 |
| 7 | Chicago Bears | 162-193-3 | 0.457 | 24 | 224-216-1 | 0.509 | 13 | 0.052 |
| 8 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 96-127-0 | 0.430 | 28 | 63-68-0 | 0.481 | 20 | 0.050 |
| 9 | Minnesota Vikings | 194-171-6 | 0.531 | 9 | 254-196-1 | 0.564 | 6 | 0.033 |
| 10 | Oakland Raiders | 192-172-1 | 0.527 | 10 | 251-196-7 | 0.561 | 7 | 0.033 |
| 11 | New York Giants | 170-188-2 | 0.475 | 20 | 224-220-2 | 0.504 | 15.5 | 0.029 |
| 12 | Carolina Panthers | 108-114-1 | 0.487 | 18 | 69-67-0 | 0.507 | 14 | 0.021 |
| 13 | Baltimore Ravens | 116-97-1 | 0.544 | 6 | 75-61-0 | 0.551 | 9 | 0.007 |
| 14 | Philadelphia Eagles | 183-179-2 | 0.505 | 14 | 221-217-8 | 0.504 | 15.5 | -0.001 |
| 15 | Seattle Seahawks | 162-159-1 | 0.505 | 15 | 172-170-0 | 0.503 | 17 | -0.002 |
| 16 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 219-154-3 | 0.586 | 5 | 264-189-2 | 0.582 | 4 | -0.004 |
| 17 | New Orleans Saints | 154-192-1 | 0.445 | 26 | 187-239-4 | 0.440 | 27 | -0.006 |
| 18 | Buffalo Bills | 166-195-2 | 0.460 | 23 | 196-241-2 | 0.449 | 25 | -0.011 |
| 19 | New York Jets | 170-189-3 | 0.474 | 21 | 198-239-2 | 0.453 | 24 | -0.020 |
| 20 | Indianapolis Colts | 198-172-2 | 0.535 | 7 | 227-215-3 | 0.513 | 12 | -0.021 |
| 21 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 127-188-1 | 0.403 | 31 | 123-211-0 | 0.368 | 31 | -0.035 |
| 22 | Arizona Cardinals | 162-194-4 | 0.456 | 25 | 177-246-7 | 0.420 | 28 | -0.036 |
| 23 | Detroit Lions | 153-201-5 | 0.433 | 27 | 167-257-5 | 0.395 | 30 | -0.038 |
| 24 | Denver Broncos | 223-154-0 | 0.592 | 4 | 240-194-7 | 0.552 | 8 | -0.039 |
| 25 | Dallas Cowboys | 235-146-1 | 0.616 | 2 | 260-192-1 | 0.575 | 5 | -0.041 |
| 26 | Kansas City Chiefs | 194-169-1 | 0.534 | 8 | 210-218-7 | 0.491 | 18 | -0.044 |
| 27 | Atlanta Falcons | 167-195-1 | 0.461 | 22 | 175-252-5 | 0.411 | 29 | -0.051 |
| 28 | San Diego Chargers | 183-177-2 | 0.508 | 13 | 197-235-5 | 0.457 | 23 | -0.052 |
| 29 | Tennessee Titans | 182-183-1 | 0.499 | 17 | 193-243-4 | 0.443 | 26 | -0.055 |
| 30 | New England Patriots | 221-150-3 | 0.595 | 3 | 232-216-0 | 0.518 | 11 | -0.077 |
| 31 | Green Bay Packers | 234-144-5 | 0.617 | 1 | 206-223-6 | 0.480 | 21 | -0.137 |
| 32 | Houston Texans | 64-61-0 | 0.512 | 12 | 40-72-0 | 0.357 | 32 | -0.155 |
Meanwhile, the Texans have the most success in the other direction. Houston has only been around for two presidents, but the team was very bad when George W. Bush was in office, and has been about average under President Obama.