Who Made the NFL’s Naughty & Nice List This Season?
Every December, NFL football turns into a holiday behavior test. Some teams stay calm and assignment sound on defense, others gift wrap extra yards and first downs like it's part of the script.
We call that gap the Naughty & Nice Index, Action Network’s yearly way of putting numbers to all that chaos. We reviewed every accepted penalty from the 2024 season and sorted out the “naughty” flags (think late hits, DPIs, roughing the passer, unnecessary roughness, unsportsmanlike conduct) from the “nice” traits (clean games, low yardage losses, consistent restraint). Each team ends up with one number, the ChristmasScore. Positive is naughty. Negative is nice.
As usual, the extremes jump out right away. Washington racked up big contact penalties and landed at the top of the Naughty List. Indianapolis played the calmest, cleanest football in the league and took the No. 1 spot on the Nice List. Most teams live in the messy middle, flashes of composure, bursts of chaos and discipline that moves week to week. It looks a lot like what you see when you compare prices and promos across our best betting sites.
Here's the full breakdown:
Key Findings
- Washington tops the Naughty List. The Commanders led the NFL in DPIs, 22 in all and an NFL high, and logged just one clean game, as clear a discipline issue as you will find.
- Indianapolis leads the Nice List. The Colts finished with the fewest penalty yards, 684, an NFL low, and four clean games, the strongest control profile of any team.
- High contact flags were the main culprit. DPI, roughing and unnecessary roughness separated the naughtiest teams from those with ordinary penalty counts. Across the top 10 Naughty teams, DPI was the most consistent driver.
- Clean games defined the Nice List. Five teams posted four or more clean games, and all five landed in the top 10 for discipline.
- The AFC showed the widest gap. The conference produced some of the naughtiest teams, Washington and Houston, and some of the cleanest, the Colts and Chargers.
- Big yardage losses signaled volatility. Every team that gave up at least 1,000 penalty yards, Baltimore, Houston, Tennessee and Detroit, landed on the Naughty List.
- Most teams sat near the middle. Twenty clubs fell inside a narrow ChristmasScore band from +20 to -20, a sign of uneven discipline from week to week.
How to Read the Lists
The Naughty List flags the 10 teams with the most disruptive discipline profiles, heavy on high contact penalties, big yardage losses and very few clean games. The Nice List, on the other hand, spotlights the 10 teams that played controlled, low mistake football, leaning on technique, composure and steady clean outings.
Each team section breaks down why it landed where it did.
NFL Naughty & Nice Index 2025
Naughty List: The 10 Naughtiest Teams in the NFL
Here are the teams that landed firmly on the Naughty List, aka the rosters whose flags, contact and timing turned routine drives into headaches. If you had skin in the game against any of these, you probably felt it.
1. Washington Commanders
Washington sits at the top with the most out-of-control penalty profile in the league. No team committed more DPIs, and very few surrendered as many yards in make or break situations.
One clean game all year says a lot. This defense struggled to dial back contact or regroup once a play started to break.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 129
- Penalty Yards: 1,071
- Defensive Pass Interference: 22 (NFL-high)
- Roughing the Passer: 6
- Clean Games: 1
2. Houston Texans
Houston’s year was shaped by physical, drive extending flags. The Texans led the league in penalty yards, and those 11 unnecessary roughness calls were momentum killers. With only one clean game, they rarely stacked full, disciplined stretches on defense.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 135
- Penalty Yards: 1,149 (NFL-high)
- Unnecessary Roughness: 11
- Roughing the Passer: 5
- Clean Games: 1
3. Tennessee Titans
Tennessee averaged nearly eight penalties per game, one of the top rates in the NFL. Ten DPIs and more than 1,000 penalty yards point to a defense chasing from behind and grabbing to catch up. One clean game just confirms how baked in the discipline problems were.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 132
- Penalty Yards: 1,030
- Penalties per Game: 7.8
- Defensive Pass Interference: 10
- Clean Games: 1
4. Baltimore Ravens
Baltimore led the league in both total penalties and penalty yards, aggressive enough that it kept hurting itself.
Seven roughing the passer flags and 16 DPIs turned into real swing sequences. Four clean games show what it looks like when they throttle back, but the season as a whole still leans toward undisciplined physical play.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 140 (NFL-high)
- Penalty Yards: 1,177 (NFL-high)
- Roughing the Passer: 7
- Defensive Pass Interference: 16
- Clean Games: 4
5. New Orleans Saints
New Orleans paired a middle tier penalty count with a spike in emotional flags. Twelve unnecessary roughness calls and 18 DPIs signal a defense leaning on contact to cover for coverage breakdowns. With only one clean game, there wasn't enough restraint to pull their NaughtyScore back.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 110
- Penalty Yards: 1,003
- Unnecessary Roughness: 12
- Defensive Pass Interference: 18
- Clean Games: 1
6. Detroit Lions
Detroit’s defensive backs played in recovery mode most weeks, finishing with 19 DPIs. Penalties stayed frequent late in games, which only magnified the damage from extended drives. One clean game kept them locked on the Naughty side of the Index.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 112
- Penalty Yards: 1,018
- Defensive Pass Interference: 19
- Unnecessary Roughness: 6
- Clean Games: 1
7. New York Jets
The Jets brought both volume and volatility. They piled up 137 penalties, with 13 unnecessary roughness flags and nine DPIs mixed in. Their penalties per game rate sat near the top of the league. Even with three clean games on the ledger, the swings from week to week were hard to miss.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 137
- Penalty Yards: 1,134
- Unnecessary Roughness: 13
- Defensive Pass Interference: 9
- Clean Games: 3
8. Dallas Cowboys
Dallas had trouble staying clean in big moments, even without a huge count of emotional flags. The Cowboys’ 128 penalties and roughly seven and a half flags per game put them among the most frequently penalized teams. Zero clean games tells you they never really got control of it.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 128
- Penalty Yards: 922
- Roughing the Passer: 2
- Defensive Pass Interference: 6
- Clean Games: 0
9. Carolina Panthers
Carolina’s secondary drove most of their Naughty profile. Fourteen DPIs and only one clean game paint the picture: a defense that saw technique slip on long drives and paid for it with flags.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 118
- Penalty Yards: 947
- Defensive Pass Interference: 14
- Unnecessary Roughness: 8
- Clean Games: 1
10. Denver Broncos
Denver’s issues came from steady, repeated contact more than one-off meltdowns. Fifteen DPIs, seven unnecessary roughness flags and three roughing the passer calls kept showing up on the stat sheet. Most of those penalties didn't change games by themselves, they just stacked up over four quarters.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 111
- Penalty Yards: 968
- Defensive Pass Interference: 15
- Unnecessary Roughness: 7
- Clean Games: 1
Nice List: The 10 Nicest Teams in the NFL
On the other side are the teams that stayed composed, trusted their technique and stayed clean under pressure. These are the 10 nicest teams of the season.
1. Indianapolis Colts
The Colts finish as the NFL’s nicest team and the cleanest outfit in the Index. They gave up the fewest penalty yards in the league and sat near the bottom in total flags, so you rarely saw a drive blown up by something avoidable. Four clean games back up the picture of a team that played on schedule and kept its composure.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 93
- Penalty Yards: 684 (NFL-low)
- Defensive Pass Interference: 6
- Roughing the Passer: 3
- Clean Games: 4
2. Las Vegas Raiders
Las Vegas stacked five clean games, tied for the most in the NFL, and handled high leverage spots without many self inflicted hits. The overall penalty count stayed low, with coverage holding up and very few roughness calls to extend drives.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 96
- Penalty Yards: 807
- Defensive Pass Interference: 7
- Roughing the Passer: 4
- Clean Games: 5
3. Arizona Cardinals
Arizona quietly put together one of the calmest discipline profiles in the league. Just 92 total penalties, four clean games and very little panic in terms of contact. Even when the results were rough on the scoreboard, the Cardinals mostly avoided the emotional flags you normally see from a team resetting its roster.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 92
- Penalty Yards: 806
- Defensive Pass Interference: 8
- Unnecessary Roughness: 4
- Clean Games: 4
4. Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers kept the whistle out of the refs’ hands more often than not. Their 98 penalties were among the lowest totals in the league, and the yardage number shows a secondary that trusted technique instead of grabbing. Four clean games anchored a year where high impact contact showed up only in spots.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 98
- Penalty Yards: 728
- Roughing the Passer: 1
- Unnecessary Roughness: 6
- Clean Games: 4
5. Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati matched the league lead with five clean games and paired it with one of the lighter penalty loads in the AFC. The 14 DPIs are the one thing that stands out, but outside of those, this was a composed profile that rarely handed opponents free first downs.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 101
- Penalty Yards: 780
- Defensive Pass Interference: 14
- Roughing the Passer: 3
- Clean Games: 5
6. Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta kept things tidy. A low overall penalty count plus three clean games was enough to land comfortably on the Nice List. With only three DPIs on the entire season, the Falcons’ secondary avoided the panic grabs that showed up all over the Naughty side.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 99
- Penalty Yards: 828
- Defensive Pass Interference: 3
- Unnecessary Roughness: 6
- Clean Games: 3
7. Los Angeles Rams
The Rams matched the league high with five clean games and stayed in a reasonable range on total flags. Seven roughing the passer calls kept things from looking even better, but in the big picture they didn't let penalties knock them off schedule.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 104
- Penalty Yards: 923
- Roughing the Passer: 7
- Defensive Pass Interference: 9
- Clean Games: 5
8. Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota turned in a steady discipline profile. Four clean games, very few frustration flags and a general sense that they knew how to get lined up without grabbing. DPI was the one recurring leak, but the rest of the numbers stay on the clean side.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 112
- Penalty Yards: 865
- Defensive Pass Interference: 10
- Unnecessary Roughness: 2
- Clean Games: 4
9. Jacksonville Jaguars
Jacksonville finished with one of the lowest penalty totals in the league and rarely turned early downs into self made problems. The 11 DPIs stand out, but disciplined play on first and second down helped keep those mistakes from snowballing.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 99
- Penalty Yards: 788
- Defensive Pass Interference: 11
- Roughing the Passer: 3
- Clean Games: 2
10. Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City put together a quietly disciplined year for a team under the national microscope every week. The Chiefs stayed on the lower end in total penalties and logged four clean games, a good sign for anyone backing an offense that already lives in high leverage spots.
Key Data
- Total Penalties: 110
- Penalty Yards: 954
- Defensive Pass Interference: 10
- Unnecessary Roughness: 8
- Clean Games: 4
Expert Insight
“What stands out is not how many flags a team racks up, it's what those flags say about how they handled pressure. The teams at the top of the Naughty List didn't just commit penalties, they kept finding the same kind of mistakes, late hits, DPIs and roughing calls that stall their own momentum and change a drive.
On the other side, the Colts, Chargers and Raiders mostly did the opposite. They played through swings without grabbing, hitting late or talking themselves into 15 yarders. If anyone earned a stocking full of gifts this year, it's the teams that avoided handing out free yards,” said an Action Network football analyst.
What The Index Means For Bettors
The Naughty and Nice split is a discipline snapshot for all 32 teams. Some clubs spent the year gifting extra downs with contact, while others stayed clean enough that you barely noticed the officials.
From a betting angle, that shows up on the margins. Naughty teams are more likely to extend opponents’ drives on third and long, swing field position with one mistake or keep a total alive with an unnecessary flag. Nice teams are a little easier to trust to get off the field, protect a lead late or avoid blowing up a good script with a personal foul.
You're not betting this chart on its own, but it's one more data point to stack with injuries, matchup edges and price. The same patience we're grading on the field is what you want when you're line shopping with our reviewed operators and deciding how to use something like a DraftKings promo code or a Caesars Sportsbook promo code.
Methodology
The NFL Naughty & Nice Index uses full season penalty data from NFLPenalties.com to grade discipline across all 32 teams.
Each team is measured in five areas:
- total penalties
- total penalty yards
- penalties per game
- high impact flags, unnecessary roughness, unsportsmanlike conduct, roughing the passer, defensive pass interference
- clean games, defined as three or fewer penalties
High impact flags are rolled into one number, NaughtyFlags_Total, to capture the penalties most likely to swing a drive. All metrics are normalized on a 0 to 100 scale. Two composite scores come out of that. NaughtyScore leans on how often and how severely a team hurt itself, NiceScore leans on clean games and overall restraint.
ChristmasScore = NaughtyScore minus NiceScore.
Positive scores point to a naughtier profile. Negative scores point to cleaner play. Teams are then ordered from 1, naughtiest, to 32, nicest.
For full data tables, formulas and scoring, see the complete study: 2025 Naughty & Nice Index: Full Dataset.
Sources
Penalty data was collected from NFLPenalties.com for the 2024 regular season. Team-level and game-level references were verified against publicly available NFL statistics. All calculations, normalizations and composite scoring were conducted by Action Network.
