The Most Unlikely Sports Heroes of the Past 5 Years

When fans think of heroes in sports, many probably recall memories from guys such as Tom Brady putting together a fourth-quarter drive or LeBron James saving his team from a loss with an out-of-this-world performance.

However, not all sports heroes come from players who are the most talented or popular, as sometimes even the little-known guys can come up in big moments.

This piece is for them. These are the most unlikely sports heroes of the past five years—and for many of them, these heroic feats may have been the only shining moments from their careers.

Joel Ward

Like a few other athletes on this list, it's not as if right winger Joel Ward scoring a goal was shocking—he did net 19 of them during the 2014-15 regular season for the Washington Capitals—it's that he wasn't the one many expected to put a game-winner in during last year's playoffs against the New York Rangers.

Stunning the Madison Square Garden crowd by scoring with just 1.3 seconds left in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Ward's goal was a rare buzzer-beater in a sport that doesn't often see them.

It was also one that proved a guy just has to be at the right place at the right time—no matter what the last name on the back of his sweater reads.

Jeremy Lin

Go ahead and think what you want to about Jeremy Lin since his insane breakout party in 2012, but there's no denying that his underdog story and the Linsanity craze were compelling as all hell.

As an undrafted player who was cut several times, the New York Knicks scooped him up off waivers and took a chance on the kid—and boy did he ever take advantage of the opportunity.

While Lin's magical run lasted for about a month during the regular season, Linsanity was something that shot life into the Knicks that year—which was needed for the demanding fanbase and will never be forgotten.

Matt Adams

Facing the most dominant pitcher in the majors—Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw—St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Matt Adams had a difficult task when he stepped to the plate against the lefty hurler in the 2014 NLDS.

Trailing by two runs to a Dodgers team looking to even the series at two games apiece, Adams delivered one of the most clutch hits in recent postseason memory, driving a Kershaw pitch over the right field wall for a three-run homer that gave the Cards a 3-2 lead in the seventh inning—with the team holding on to win the game by the same margin.

Adams may have shown to have some power during the 2014 regular season, belting 15 homers, but no one would have imagined he would have done it in that scenario against a pitcher who's won three Cy Young Awards in the past four seasons.

Matthew Dellavedova

The Cleveland Cavs might have All-Stars LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, but it was the team's pint-sized backup point guard, Matthew Dellavedova, who came up the biggest of the bunch in this past season's NBA playoffs.

Entering the league as an undrafted player in 2014, Delly outworked, outhustled and outsmarted other players in a crafty way to earn a spot on the Cavs, playing 72 games as a rookie for a team that won just 33 games in 2013-14.

But when the Cavs needed him to play big minutes in their second-round series against the Chicago Bulls while Irving battled a minor injury, there was the Australian Dellavedova dropping 19 points in the closeout victory and filling in nicely the rest of the postseason.

Many might not have known about the name Matthew Dellavedova prior to last season, but opponents and fans know about his gritty play now.

Jacoby Jones

Throughout his eight-year NFL career, Jacoby Jones has been a decent player, but he's never been someone who's been known as an absolute stud wide receiver teams expected to come up in the clutch.

But during a playoff game against the Denver Broncos in 2013, there was Jones hauling in one of the biggest postseason catches of the past couple decades.

Strictly called The Mile High Miracle, Jones came down with a heave from quarterback Joe Flacco with under a minute left in regulation, scoring a game-tying 70-yard touchdown in the process.

The Baltimore Ravens would go on to win in double overtime and eventually won Super Bowl XLVII a few games later.

None of that would have been possible if not for Jones' ridiculous grab against Denver.

Scott Darling

If you're a fan of underdog stories, then seeing what Chicago Blackhawks backup goalie Scott Darling did in last season's postseason was a treat.

Having never played in an NHL game prior to the 2014-15 campaign, Darling appeared in 14 regular-season contests, but no one would have imagined he would see time between the pipes in the postseason.

Yet there he was, tossed into action following inconsistencies from Chicago's regular netminder, Corey Crawford, as Darling—a recovering alcoholic—started four games in the Hawks' first-round series against the Nashville Predators and went 3-1 in those starts.

Darling didn't hold the position as the team's starter—or even appear in another game after those four games—but his play helped the Blackhawks stay alive in the playoffs and eventually hoist Lord Stanley's Cup for the third time in six seasons.

Patty Mills

Much like the aforementioned Matthew Dellavedova for the Cleveland Cavaliers, another Aussie point guard who played college hoops at St. Mary's made a name for himself during the NBA's postseason.

Before Delly did it in 2015, it was the San Antonio Spurs' Patty Mills, who, after only playing a total of 76 minutes in the five-game series against the Miami Heat in the 2014 NBA Finals, averaged 10.2 points per game and provided his team with critical buckets in clutch moments.

With no answer for how to stop Mills, the Heat witnessed the backup drop 14 and 17 points during Games 4 and 5, respectively, connecting on nine of 14 three-pointers in that time frame to help the Spurs win their fifth title since the 1998-99 season.

Chris Davis

It's not that former Auburn Tigers cornerback Chris Davis wasn't a good player, but was he the guy many believed would provide one of the most stunning game-winning scores in college football history? Probably not.

With Auburn hosting their biggest rivals in 2013, then No. 1 Alabama, we all know what Davis did to put his name in college football lore, returning a missed field goal by 'Bama kicker Adam Griffith 109 yards for a touchdown on the game's final play.

It was do or die for Davis and the Tigers, as the kid tip-toed the sideline and helped his team defeat 'Bama to keep its national title hopes alive.

Grayson Allen

When the Duke Blue Devils men's hoops team finished last season atop the podium as national champs after beating the Wisconsin Badgers, many fans probably just assumed it was highly touted freshman Jahlil Okafor who had an out-of-his-mind title game. Or Tyus Jones. Or Justise Winslow. 

They were wrong. It was that other freshman, Grayson Allen, who had the game of his life at the best time.

Allen, who was a McDonald's All-American in 2014 but didn't come with as much fanfare as the aforementioned frosh—scored 16 points in his 21 minutes of action off the bench, providing a spark for the Blue Devils in the national championship game for the Dukies against the Badgers.

While Allen might not quite yet be Christian Laettner, some are already touting him as the next great Duke star for college basketball fans to direct their hate toward.

Only time—and more clutch performances—will tell if Grayson falls under such harsh penalty from fans.

Malcolm Butler

While many criticized the Seattle Seahawks' decision to throw the ball in the waning seconds of Super Bowl XLIX against the New England Patriots, one can't discount the play made by Pats rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler to intercept the pass.

After playing in 11 regular-season games and making a small impact, Butler's game-saving, championship-winning pick will forever live on in Super Bowl lore as one of the biggest plays ever, putting him right up there with another unknown player who made a name for himself on the biggest stage—David Tyree.

Admitting he thought the game was all but over prior to the big play as a guest on NFL Network’s Total Access (via WEEI.com), Butler stunned everyone and locked up the Pats' fourth Super Bowl in the Bill Belichick-Tom Brady era.

Travis Ishikawa

Receiving just 119 total plate appearances during the 2014 regular season, when San Francisco Giants backup Travis Ishikawa came to the plate in a tie game in the bottom of the ninth against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 5 of the NLCS, many didn't think they would witness such magic.

Blasting a three-run, game-winning, series-ending walk-off homer to defeat the Cardinals and send his team to the World Series for the third time in five seasons, Ishikawa put his name alongside some of baseball's all-time playoff greats who had similar clutch moments.

Every kid dreams about hitting the game-winning homer to win a big game. Ishikawa got to live out that moment in real life. Pretty cool stuff.

Cardale Jones

After a season-ending injury to J.T. Barrett in the Michigan game, many Ohio State fans (myself included) assumed the 2014 season was all but over for the team.

Enter Cardale Jones.

After starting as the third-string quarterback during the preseason, Jones led the Scarlet and Gray on an unprecedented run to a national title, humiliating Wisconsin in the conference championship game and beating both Alabama and Oregon in the College Football Playoff.

Jones' rise to the team's starter may have been unorthodox, but he earned the gig in 2015 after winning the three most important games for Ohio State in 2014—with one of them ending with a national championship trophy.