14 Best Football Movies and Shows to Watch All Season Long

30 for 30: Four Falls of Buffalo

Following the Buffalo Bills’ most recent heartbreaking loss in the AFC championship game, this documentary provides a deeper look at the team. 30 for 30: Four Falls of Buffalo tells the story of a team in the early 1990s that made it to the Super Bowl four years in a row — the only team in NFL history to do so — and lost each one. It’s the Buffalo Bills’ story of triumph and heartbreak, as then-quarterback Jim Kelly leads his team to the big game with one of the NFL’s greatest offenses behind him — and still comes up short.  

80 for Brady

With 10 Super Bowl appearances and 7 wins, former NFL quarterback Tom Brady is a football legend. In 2017, he led the New England Patriots to the greatest Super Bowl comeback in NFL history against the Atlanta Falcons, who were up 28-3 in the third quarter — and that game is at the center of the feel-good comedy 80 for Brady. The film stars Jane Fonda, Sally Field, Rita Moreno, and Lily Tomlin as four best friends and Brady superfans who win a contest that takes them to Super Bowl LI in Houston, where they’ll get to see their hero play. But they also have to overcome a few obstacles along the way. 80 for Brady — produced by Brady’s production company 199 Productions — is inspired by a real group of lifelong friends who started their “Over 80 for Brady”  club to get together and watch the Patriots play each week. 

All American

With over-the-top drama and an exceptionally engaging storyline partially based on true events, All American plays out like a teen soap version of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The series follows Spencer James (Daniel Ezra), a South Central Los Angeles football star who unwillingly transfers from Crenshaw High School to a school in Beverly Hills. James struggles to acclimate to his new life while also pursuing his college football dreams. All American is a soap dressed as a high school sports drama, so if you’re more into Riverdale than football, this is a solid compromise. 

Ballers

Spend some time with Spencer Strasmore (Dwayne Johnson), a former Miami Dolphins star navigating his new career as a financial manager for other current and former NFL players on Ballers. Throughout the series, Strasmore and his colleagues move through the next stages of their lives after retiring from the NFL — with big personalities and problems in tow. Ballers, which ran for five seasons on HBO, features an impressive ensemble alongside Johnson, including Rob Corddry, Omar Miller, John David Washington (who’s a football player turned actor himself), Donovan W. Carter, Troy Garity, London Brown, Jazmyn Simon, Arielle Kebbel, Brittany S. Hall, Carl McDowell, Dulé Hill, Christopher McDonald, Taylour Paige, Richard Schiff, and many more. 

Coach Snoop

Snoop Dogg fuses tough love with paternal warmth in Coach Snoop, a story of a football league he created to help at-risk youth in the Los Angeles area. This docuseries has it all: Winners, losers, and unmissable takeaways that will stick with you for days (or maybe hours, or maybe years). As an added bonus, you get to see a rap icon dish out life lessons to developing teens in the most Snoop Dogg way imaginable. 

Colin in Black & White

Before NFL superstar Colin Kaepernick made headlines for his activism — and even before he became a starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers — he was a high school all-star in three different sports while upholding a 4.0 GPA. No big deal. Kaepernick himself narrates this drama series that recounts his teenage years navigating race, class, and culture while aspiring for greatness. Colin in Black & White stars Jaden Michael as the young athlete, while Mary-Louise Parker and Nick Offerman play his parents.

Home Team

In Home Team, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton (Kevin James) has been suspended from the NFL for a year. Rather than mope about it, Payton decides to coach his 12-year-old son’s football team to an unexpected victory. Inspired by true events, with Adam Sandler handling production, Home Team is an idyllic sports comedy — light on drama and heavy on fun and Kevin James’ dad jokes.

Last Chance U

As its name implies, Last Chance U is a story of redemption. The documentary series focuses on community college football teams filled with players facing issues that prevent them from playing Division 1 football. Unfiltered criticism, hard days of practice, and high-stakes games characterize the show, which might remind you of an extended version of Gridiron Gang. It’s not all upbeat, but it’s an authentic and often gritty look at the reality of trying to succeed as an athlete. 

Quarterback

Join the huddle of three NFL teams in this eight-part docuseries. Quarterback gives fans a look behind the scenes of what is arguably the toughest job in football, and maybe in any sport: the quarterback. The series follows the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, the Minnesota Vikings’ Kirk Cousins, and former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota (who now plays for the Philadelphia Eagles) through the 2022 season in a first-of-its-kind look at the high-pressure position. This is also the first time the NFL has allowed quarterbacks to be mic’d up all season, so you’ll get an in-depth look at their lives from the field to their homes. Come for a look at the quarterback life, stay for a charming Travis Kelce cameo.

Receiver

Every football team knows the importance of a good quarterback, but the quarterback is only as good as his receiver — and that’s what this show is all about. Over the course of eight episodes, Receiver follows four wide receivers and one tight end through the 2023 NFL season as they make their way down the field in the quest for the end zone. Find out what really goes into making that perfect catch with Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel and tight end George Kittle, and Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. 

Titletown High

The Valdosta High School Wildcats are the winningest high school football program in the country, and this eight-episode docuseries follows the team as they tackle romance, rivalries and real life while vying for their latest title during the 2020 football season. Titletown High comes from the creator of MTV’s 2006 series Two-A-Days, and features the same coach — Rush Propst — at his newest job.

Untold: Sign Stealer

Untold: Sign Stealer digs into the case of former Michigan Wolverines defensive analyst Connor Stalions, accused in 2023 of in-person sign stealing. While the NCAA allows teams to decode opponents’ play signals while watching a game in real-time or reviewing footage, it does not permit sending scouts to games to obtain footage — which is just what Stalions allegedly did. In this edition of Untold, Stalions talks about landing his dream job at the University of Michigan and addresses the NCAA’s investigation.  

Untold: Swamp Kings

When Urban Meyer took over the University of Florida’s football team as its head coach in 2005, he came prepared to completely overhaul the Gators program. In this four-part series, you’ll get an inside look at Meyer’s tough-as-nails coaching regime and the Gators’ unique brotherhood as they rise to win two BCS National Championships. “That class was one of the most passionate, rambunctious, fun-loving partiers that I’ve ever been around,” star quarterback Tim Tebow says in the series. Tune in for the epic story of the Gators’ long-awaited comeback — and in the competitive Southeastern Conference, no less. 

We Are: The Brooklyn Saints

This heartfelt four-episode docuseries follows kind, compassionate coaches as they inspire a group of hardworking kids in a youth football program in the East New York neighborhood of Brooklyn. Sweet children learning life lessons that they can take with them throughout the rest of their lives? Better get those tissues ready. We Are: The Brooklyn Saints is directed by Emmy winner Rudy Valdez and executive produced by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.

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