Biggest Postseason Letdowns of the Past Decade
We all know that the postseason is where athletes and teams make names for themselves—win or lose.
When teams can finish the job and earn the right to be called champions, everyone takes notice and praises them for eternity. But when a loss occurs—especially in a heartbreaking fashion—questions about mental toughness and the future are tossed around.
As we've seen over the years, there have been plenty of instances where teams flat-out blew it, putting themselves in the conversation about the biggest postseason letdowns of all time.
Our hearts go out to them all.
Los Angeles Clippers (2015)
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The Los Angeles Clippers' collapse in the 2015 Western Conference Semifinals against the Houston Rockets is literally one of a kind.
More than surrendering a 3-1 series lead, the Clips managed to blow a 19-point lead with under three minutes left in the third quarter of Game 6 just to put themselves in the precarious position of a Game 7—which they lost thanks to some hot shooting by the Rockets.
The defeat cost L.A. its first trip to the Western Conference Finals, led to plenty of questions and, with this season's first-round debacle against the Portland Trail Blazers after injuries to stars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, has left the team searching for answers for the not-so-distant future.
Would the Clippers have been good enough to defeat the Golden State Warriors in last year's playoffs? Who knows? But they had the talent and experience to make things very interesting, had it not been for a serious letdown.
Philadelphia Phillies (2011)
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Like you'll see with other teams on this list, on paper the Philadelphia Phillies were leaps and bounds better than the St. Louis Cardinals, featuring one of the deepest and most talented pitching staffs ever.
Riding the combined 70 wins of their starting five, the Phillies won an MLB-best 102 games during the regular season and seemed to have the right recipe to win their second World Series title in four years.
Somehow, though, the Phils came across a 90-win Cardinals team who just had their number, as St. Louis stole the National League Division Series in five games behind some of their own dominant pitching, eventually going on to win the World Series that same year.
It was a major heartbreak for Philly fans—who have endured plenty over the years.
San Jose Sharks (2014)
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One of only a handful of teams to surrender a 3-0 series lead in the playoffs, the San Jose Sharks learned just how difficult closing a team out can be during a first-round matchup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2014.
After outscoring the Kings 13-5 in the first two games to take a 2-0 series lead, things took a turn for the worse for nearly the remainder of the series, with the closeout game being a 5-1 thrashing to add insult to injury for San Jose.
Anytime a team joins the short list of franchises to blow a three-game lead in a playoff series, it qualifies as a postseason letdown of epic proportions.
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New York Mets (2006)
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Finishing the 2006 regular season with an MLB-high 97 wins, the New York Mets were supposed to make a serious bid for a World Series title. It's too bad the St. Louis Cardinals had other ideas.
Meeting in the National League Championship Series, St. Louis seemed more than overmatched by the Mets and their potent lineup of Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, David Wright and Jose Reyes, with New York finishing with 14 more regular-season victories than the NL Central-winning Cardinals.
Games aren't won on paper, though.
Miraculously quieting the Mets' hitters, the Cardinals not only stunned New York to capture the NL crown but went on to beat the Detroit Tigers in five games in the Fall Classic, too, making them a Cinderella team that perhaps had just been destined to win it all.
As amazing as the Cardinals' run was, the Mets' letdown was even more remarkable.
Dallas Mavericks (2007)
5 of 10Believe it or not, there was a time when the Golden State Warriors weren't the class of the NBA and making history with every single shot.
While Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are lighting up the league these days, back during the 2006-07 NBA season, the Dubs were just an eighth-seeded squad looking to compete against a 66-win Dallas Mavericks team who looked destined for a return trip to the NBA Finals.
Golden State wasn't having any of it.
Shutting down league MVP Dirk Nowitzki thanks to a game plan drawn up by then-head coach Don Nelson—who had revenge on his mind after previously coaching the Mavs—the Warriors became the first No. 8 seed to knock off a No. 1 in postseason history in a seven-game series.
That team may be a distant memory, but it showed how passionate Warriors fans can be at home in Oracle Arena.
Boston Bruins (2010, 2013)
6 of 10All any athlete, coach or fan wants is a chance—and the Boston Bruins had theirs ripped away by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final.
With Chicago leading the series, 3-2, Boston was on the verge of forcing a decisive Game 7 for all the marbles to hoist Lord Stanley's Cup.
It wasn't meant to be, as the Blackhawks shocked the hockey world in a matter of just 17 seconds.
Trailing Game 6 by a goal, Chicago flipped the script in a hurry, netting those two goals quicker than it takes to order a cup of coffee and holding on in the final minute to win its second title in four years.
Some fans might say Boston's blowing a 3-0 lead to the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern semis in 2010 was a bigger letdown, but one that comes in a do-or-die game in a championship round stings so much more.
Oklahoma City Thunder (2016)
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The Oklahoma City Thunder just experienced one of the worst feelings in all of sports, collapsing in epic fashion to cost themselves a chance at an NBA title this season.
After leading a Golden State Warriors team with an NBA-record 73 regular-season wins in the Western Conference Finals by a 3-1 margin, OKC just couldn't close the door on the reigning champs, allowing them to come all the way back to stun the Thunder.
The Warriors became just the 10th team in league history to overcome such a series deficit, only adding salt to the wounds of the Thunder.
Now Oklahoma City has an offseason of questions regarding its future with superstars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.
Brazil Men's Soccer (2014)
8 of 10If someone had told any sports fan that the Brazilian men's soccer team would be throttled 7-1 by Germany in the 2014 World Cup semifinals, there's a good chance that person would have laughed and said, "No chance."
That's exactly what happened to the Selecao on their home turf, though, as they were mentally beat down by the Germans, leaving the field embarrassed and humiliated in front of their countrymen.
It was something that had never been seen in World Cup history—especially from a team like Brazil.
Washington Capitals (Alex Ovechkin Era)
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The question has to be asked: Will Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin ever win a Stanley Cup title? Will he ever even play in a Stanley Cup Final?
Following another defeat in 2016 as the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed, it's a legit concern.
The three-time NHL MVP is one of the top players in the league, enjoying some of the best individual success anyone has ever seen, which will eventually lead Ovie into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
However, Ovechkin wants to make sure he joins that elite Hall of Fame list with a championship ring—which has eluded him to this point after years of frustrating postseason losses.
This year's meltdown has to be one for the ages, as the Caps not only lost after winning the Presidents' Trophy after earning the most points in the regular season, but had the loss come to Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins—who's generally regarded as Ovechkin's rival.
New England Patriots (2007)
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16-0.
That was the regular-season record of the New England Patriots as they entered the NFL playoffs in 2007. After winning their two postseason games and earning a trip to Super Bowl XLII against the New York Giants, everyone and their mother thought the Pats would become the first 19-0 team in league history.
Things don't always go as planned, though.
In one of the most stunning upsets in Super Bowl history, the G-Men held the previously unstoppable Patriots offense to just 14 points, winning 17-14 to earn the first of two titles against New England in the past nine Big Games.
Entering the game as huge underdogs, no one thought New York could even keep things close, let alone rain on the Patriots' pre-planned championship parade—and ruin the chance to make history.
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