The Most Undeserving Sports Scapegoats

Everyone seems to love to point the finger toward someone else, claiming that it was another person's fault for something bad happening.

Sports is absolutely no different, as we've seen plenty of people get blamed for things that, in some cases, aren't entirely their misdoings.

And because of that, I decided to take a look at some of those who are undeserving of such blame, as these are the sports scapegoats who have been unfairly judged.

Honorable Mention: Derrick Rose

Want to know what former NBA MVP Derrick Rose has in common with a few of the other people on this list? He's actually criticized because of his own success, with expectations inflated due to the immense talent that he has.

Whether that's fair or not is another discussion. But as it stands right now, even with his Chicago Bulls being viewed as a title contender this season, D-Rose is looked at as the scapegoat based off of how the team performs, with or without him.

Rose is a top-10 player in the league when healthy, so here's to hoping he gets back on track and beats the injury bug that has been bothering him the past few years.

Scott Norwood

Some of us probably remember when the Buffalo Bills made four straight Super Bowl appearances in the early '90s, proving to have a stronghold on the AFC during that time.

Unfortunately, we also remember the team losing all four games, with their best chance at winning one coming in the waning moments of Super Bowl XXV against the New York Giants in 1991.

With eight seconds left and trailing 20-19, Bills kicker Scott Norwood pushed his game-winning attempt wide right from 47 yards out, leaving the Giants to soak head coach Bill Parcells with Gatorade following the win.

And while many want to point the finger at Norwood for his miss, the guy had only hit five of nine attempts from 40 yards or longer that season, proving that Buffalo's coaching staff and the kicker's teammates were just as responsible for not getting the ball closer to the goal posts for his try.

Still, the miss is one of the most devastating in Super Bowl history.

Jose Mesa

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Look, as a Cleveland sports fan, I can understand the venom that fellow Indians fans have toward former closer Jose Mesa.

But after having one of the most historic seasons for a reliever in 1995, helping the team win 100 games and reach the World Series, fans were quick to forget his contributions just two years later as the team found themselves in the Fall Classic once again.

With Mesa giving up a tying sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth in Game 7 of the '97 World Series against the Florida Marlins, many believe that it was his fault the Tribe didn't win their first world championship since 1948.

However, upon further review, fans might want to toss some hate toward the team's second baseman at the time, Tony Fernandez, who saw a pretty routine ground ball get by him in the bottom of the 11th inning, leading to the winning run reaching base.

Those two hiccups proved that it truly was a team effort in the loss.

Nick Anderson

Although he was never a star, former NBA shooting guard Nick Anderson did have decent numbers throughout his 13-year career and was the type of complementing player that most title-winning teams have.

Known for his shooting, Anderson had the chance to mark his place as a hero in the eyes of Orlando Magic fans during the 1995 NBA Finals.

Unfortunately, he failed, missing critical free-throws with 11 seconds left during Game 1, leading to a home loss that could have changed the outcome of the series had he knocked them down.

While fans have no problem calling out Anderson for his misses, they might want to look at the seven turnovers that then-star Shaquille O'Neal had during the game or the team going just 9-for-30 from deep instead.

Anderson's misses might have come at the most inopportune time, but those other possessions counted just as much earlier, too.

Steve Smith

One of the most heartbreaking things that can happen to an athlete is scoring on his or her own team, giving free points to the opposition.

It's even worse when those points come in a big game, though.

For former Edmonton Oilers defenseman Steve Smith, he found that out firsthand, as he put a puck off of his goalie, Grant Fuhr, and into the back of his net during Game 7 of a series against the Calgary Flames in 1986.

The goal came with just under 15 minutes left in the deciding game, with the Oilers unable to recover and being ousted due to Smith's mistake.

Like others on this list, though, Smith's misfortune was just the biggest mistake of a team that had seven games to help sway the balance in the series, with his being the most memorable and recognized.

LeBron James

He might be the most scrutinized athlete of all time, so fans and media putting blame on LeBron James during the 2011 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks was nothing new for the superstar.

In fact, that season James had accepted it, as he openly admitted that he was playing the villain role in hopes of proving people wrong following The Decision in the summer of 2010, when he joined forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat.

While basketball might consist of five players from one team on the floor, it was James who was singled out and ridiculed for his poor performances—especially in the fourth quarters of games—which was the storyline for everyone during the Heat's series loss to the Mavericks.

James tried his best to swat the blame, but it was obviously getting to him a little bit.

After the loss, though, James played two straight years of some of the best hoops anyone has ever seen, winning back-to-back titles and league MVPs to silence the doubters of his championship pedigree and clutch gene.

Grady Little

CHARLES KRUPA/Associated Press

It's Game 7 of the 2003 American League Championship Series and the Boston Red Sox are on the verge of reaching the World Series, all while defeating the hated New York Yankees in the old Yankees Stadium.

With then-manager Grady Little making a trip to the mound to chat with ace Pedro Martinez—who was tiring after throwing over 100 pitches—Little made the decision to keep Pedro in the game.

The result? Martinez struggled and gave up two runs after the visit which tied the game, ultimately sending it into extra innings.

It was there that Aaron Boone hit a homer off of Tim Wakefield that clinched the series and sent the Yanks to the Fall Classic.

Many fans, and the Red Sox front office, blamed Little for the call to stick with Martinez, and the decision cost him his job after the season.

Let's not forget, though, Boston held a 4-0 lead after four innings, so there was more than just Little's decision that could have led to such a devastating loss.

Jackie Smith

When the announcer says the words, "Bless his heart, he has to be the sickest man in America," that typically means something really bad just occurred.

In the case of Hall of Fame tight end Jackie Smith, that's exactly what happened during Super Bowl XIII, as he dropped a sure, game-tying touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers that made him the culprit for the Dallas Cowboys' 35-31 loss.

However, upon further review, fans might want to remember the first-quarter fumble by Cowboys running back Drew Pearson in Steelers territory and the two sacks that Dallas quarterback Roger Staubach had while driving, too.

Smith's play might be the one that gets the most attention, but the 'Boys had a number of other opportunities that they wasted, too.

Fred Merkle

While former New York Giants first baseman Fred Merkle's hiccup might not be the worst play on this list, it definitely wins for the funniest name.

That's because it's known as "Merkle's Boner."

Name aside, Merkle's, um, mishap, came during the 1908 season, as he scored what was assumed to be the winning run against the Chicago Cubs, as fans rushed the field in exuberance as they celebrated winning the pennant.

The problem, though, was that Merkle never touched second base on his path toward home plate, nixing the run.

The game was replayed two weeks later, with the Cubbies coming out on top and capturing the franchise's last World Series title—yes, 106 years ago.

Jay Cutler

Is there a more hated quarterback in the NFL right now than Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears?

Some may say Tony Romo, but he never got benched for all of the criticism that he has received since taking over the starting spot in Dallas back in 2007.

Cutler, though, experienced that this past weekend, with the coaching staff believing that backup Jimmy Clausen gave the team the best chance to win—which didn't work.

And while the Bears have had a forgettable season that has seen them go just 5-10, Cutler isn't the one who's to blame for it all going sour.

Let's not forget that the Chicago defense gave up 106 points over a two-game stretch earlier this year, surrendering 50-plus points in back-to-back games and being historically bad.

If Cutler's at fault, so is everyone else on the opposite side of the ball, because they're not giving him a chance to win.

Andres Escobar

One of the most unfortunate cases of a scapegoat was former Colombian national soccer team captain Andres Escobar, whose error ended up costing him his life.

For those who have seen the 30 for 30 documentary entitled The Two Escobars, the entire story is outlined as to what really happened, though.

Sure, Escobar mistakenly knocked a cross into the back of his own net in a match against the United States during the 1994 World Cup, but even before that, he and his teammates were on edge following threats from gamblers back in their native country who had lost money in the team's opening-game loss.

With the team entering the tournament at No. 2 in the world rankings, the entire Colombian side fell flat. Yet, sadly, it was Escobar who was scrutinized and held responsible for the poor performance.

Bill Buckner

There's no mistaking the error that former Boston Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner had during the 1986 World Series against the New York Mets.

It was, no doubt, one of the worst luck plays in the history of sports, with the ball hopping up and passing his glove for the Mets to win Game 6, tying the series at three games apiece.

And while Buckner was hated—he has since been embraced and forgiven—the blame can't be put entirely on him.

That's because the Red Sox entered the bottom of the ninth inning with a two-run lead and needed just one out to end the Curse of the Bambino.

Instead, even with Mets players filtering down to the clubhouse in anticipation of losing, the team got a few baserunners that led to the stunning comeback, including a wild pitch that tied the game.

Even with Buckner's error that lost the game, Boston had Game 7 two days later to capture their title, and after getting out to a 3-0 lead going into the bottom of the sixth, they still found themselves losing.

Yes, Buckner's play was a turning point at the worst time ever, but it wasn't the only deciding factor in losing that series.

Steve Bartman

While many of the aforementioned scapegoats were unfairly blamed for an unfortunate situation, no one absorbed more blame than Chicago Cubs fan Steve Bartman following Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS against the Florida Marlins.

With the Cubs holding a 3-0 lead in the eighth inning, just five outs from reaching the World Series, Bartman sparked a ridiculous string of events when he reached over and interfered with Cubs player Moises Alou, who had a chance to catch a foul ball.

With Alou slamming his glove to the ground and giving a disgruntled look toward Bartman, fans lashed out at the poor guy, as they cursed at him and threw beer and food at him.

All this happened as the Cubs gave up eight runs following the incident, leaving Bartman as the biggest scapegoat in sports history.

With the Marlins winning Game 7—where they overcame a 5-3 deficit to clinch the pennant—many more people lashed out at Bartman and wanted a piece of him.

While unfortunate, it wasn't Bartman who mishandled grounders and gave up the lead in Game 7, so not all the blame can be put on the kid—though it's too late at this point.