1980 Soviet Hockey Team

12 Biggest Collapses of the Past 35 Years

Much is made of what a scrappy group of overachievers the U.S. team was in 1980. That’s true. But there are two sides to every coin, and the collapse of the Soviets was nothing short of epic. After all, they had won 21 straight Olympic contests, they had defeated a team of NHL All-Stars 6-0 in 1979, and crushed this same U.S. team in a 1980 exhibition game, 10-3. But after the US scored a goal with one second left in the first period to tie the score at 2, the Soviet coach replaced goalie Vladislav Tretiak. Tretiak was considered by many to be the best goalie in the world, and the move raised the spirits of the U.S. team, which saw that it was getting under the Soviets’ skin. Nonetheless, the Soviets took a 3-2 lead into the third period. But the U.S. scored a power-play goal to tie it, then Mike Eruzione hit a slapshot to give the U.S. the lead. The Soviets panicked, and started to play wildly. After several tense minutes, the U.S. pulled off the shocker. The Soviet newspaper, “Pravda,” made no mention of the game the next day.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Douglas Ball)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.

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Biggest Collapse... It is rare to see an epic collapse in sports. These are highly trained professionals and, most of the time, they know how to finish a game or a season.

But part of what keeps sports interesting is the old adage, "It ain't over until it's over."

We were all reminded of that recently when the Red Sox blew a nine-game lead and the Braves an 8 ½-game lead in the season's final month, and the Cowboys and Eagles both blew 20-plus-point second-half leads.

But wait, there is more. Here are some more epic collapses from athletes and teams who seemingly had things all wrapped up, until they watched in horror as it all slipped away.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Michael Perez/Patrick Semansky/Tony Gutierrez/Jeff Roberson)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
1993 Dolphins The team started 3-1, but lost Dan Marino to injury in Week 5. They didn’t miss a beat with Scott Mitchell filling in, however, as he led them to a 7-2 mark. But then Mitchell got injured, and in came 39-year-old Steve DeBerg. DeBerg actually led the team to two wins, but after the Leon Lett snow game, the wheels came off. The Dolphins lost two close games with DeBerg at the helm before Mitchell returned and put up great numbers. But the Dolphins still could not win. They lost two more games, and went into the final week of the season needing a win over the hapless Patriots to make the playoffs. They lost that game in overtime, their fifth straight loss overall, and missed the playoffs. —Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
2002 Saints They had a 9-4 record and needed to win one of their last three to make the playoffs. In Week 14, they took on the 3-10 Vikings and lost on a last-minute touchdown and two-point conversion. No big deal, though, because their next game was against the lowly 1-13 Bengals. Somehow, though, the Saints could only manage 13 points against a defense that surrendered 28.5 ppg and lost again. Their regular season final was at home against a 6-9 Panthers team. They went out with a whimper, falling, 10-6, and missing the playoffs with a 9-7 record.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Tom Uhlman)

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2007 Mets Up seven games with 17 to play, the Mets went into a tailspin. They lost 12 of their next 17, including five of six to the horrid Nationals. The Phillies, meanwhile, caught fire, and the two division rivals entered the last game of the regular season tied for the NL East lead. The Phillies beat the Nationals, while the Mets got walloped by the last-place Marlins. The Mets would blow a 3 ½-game lead to the Phillies the very next September, and haven’t sniffed the playoffs since.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

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1995 Angels They led the Mariners by 11 ½ games on August 16th, but went 8-27 over their next 35 games, which included two nine-game losing streaks, to fall out of first. They rebounded the last week of the season to tie the Mariners, and the two teams faced off in a one-game playoff. The Mariners won, 9-1.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

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Jean Van de Veld... Van de Velde was aiming to become the first Frenchman to win the British Open since 1907, and with one hole left, he was all but assured his place in history. Instead, he made history of a very different kind. Holding a 3-stroke lead, all he needed to assure victory was a double-bogey on the final hole, a hole he had already birdied twice. But he fell apart, smashing one shot into the grandstand, one into the woods, and one into the water. He recorded a triple-bogey on the hole, leading to a playoff which he lost to Paul Lawrie. He has not finished higher than 19th at a Major since.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Str)

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2003 Minnesota V... They started the season 6-0 and would lead the NFL in offense as both Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss had spectacular seasons. But then they struggled over their next nine games, going 3-6. Nonetheless, all they had to do was knock off a 3-12 Cardinals team in the final game of the regular season. The Vikes had an 11-point lead with two minutes remaining. The Cardinals scored a TD to cut it to 17-12, then recovered the onside kick. With six seconds left, the Cardinals needed a TD and were 28 yards from the end zone. Cade McNown rolled out right and heaved it into the back of the end zone. Nate Poole hauled it in to eliminate the Vikings and give the NFC North title to the Packers. —Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Paul Connors)

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1992 Oilers The Oilers’ run-and-shoot offense was doing plenty of both on January 3, 1993 in a wild-card game against the Bills. Warren Moon was unstoppable in the first half, throwing for 220 yards and 4 TDs. The Bills, meanwhile, were playing without QB Jim Kelly, and were down 28-3 at the half. Things got worse in the third quarter. All-Pro running back Thurman Thomas went down with an injury, then the Oilers returned an interception for a touchdown to make it 35-3 in the third quarter. The game was all but over. But then the Oilers forgot how to play football. After the Bills scored to cut it to 35-10, it was obvious they were going to attempt an onside kick… obvious to everyone besides the Oilers, that is. Houston failed to insert a hands team, the Bills recovered, scored quickly, and suddenly it was 35-17. The collapse was on. A shanked punt, two interceptions, a complete meltdown by the Oilers’ defense, and suddenly the score was 35-31. The Bills had scored 28 points in just under seven minutes. The fourth quarter started with the Oilers clinging to a four-point lead. After a Bills TD, the shell-shocked Oilers forced overtime with a field goal. But in overtime, Steve Christie kicked a 32-yard field goal for the Bills. The Oilers fired their defensive coordinator the next day.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Bill Sikes)

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Greg Norman, 199... Norman had already made a name for himself by blowing a Sunday lead at six previous Majors, but this seemed to be a lead that even he couldn’t surrender. He was six strokes ahead with 18 holes to play in the '96 Masters. But Sunday went from jubilant to funereal real quickly, as Norman completely collapsed. His first shot of the day landed in the trees. It only went downhill from there. He shot a disastrous 78. Nick Faldo, meanwhile, shot a brilliant 67 to win by five strokes. It was Faldo’s third and final Masters victory. Norman never again came close to wearing the green jacket.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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1999-2000 Trail ... The Blazers had taken the mighty Lakers to a Game 7, and held a 15-point lead with 10 minutes left. But the Blazers suddenly couldn’t hit a bucket, missing an incredible 13 consecutive shots, and the Lakers scored 15 unanswered points to tie the game. The Lakers went on to win the game and the championship, their first of three straight titles. The Blazers, meanwhile, haven’t advanced past the first round of the NBA playoffs since.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
2004 New York Ya... No team in MLB history had ever blown a 3-0 series lead, and considering the history of these two teams, nobody had any reason to think the Red Sox would be the first. A year after losing to the Yankees in devastating fashion, the Red Sox were down 3-0 in the '04 ALCS. Game 4 went into the ninth inning with the Yankees up 4-3 and the greatest closer in MLB history on the mound. But Mariano Rivera uncharacteristically walked Kevin Millar, and Dave Roberts came in to pinch-run for Millar. A stolen base and a Bill Mueller single later, the game was tied at 4. The Red Sox won in 12 innings, then won Game 5 in the 14th. In Game 6, the Yankees and their fans began to panic. Down 4-2 in the eighth, A-Rod slapped the ball out of pitcher Bronson Arroyo’s hands. It was a desperation move, the umps called A-Rod out, and the fans began throwing things on the field. Cops in riot gear needed to restore order. It was obvious that both fans and players were coming unglued. The Red Sox won Game 6, cruised to an easy Game 7 win, then won the World Series to end an 86-year drought. The Yankees, the proudest pro sports team in America, suffered the humiliation of being the first baseball team to ever blow a 3-0 lead in a postseason series.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
2000 Miami Dolph... The Jets and Dolphins entered their Monday Night Football matchup tied with 5-1 records. But it was evident early the Dolphins were the superior team. They raced out to a 23-7 halftime lead, then scored a TD in the third to make it 30-7 heading into the fourth quarter. But a Dolphins’ defense that had not given up 16 points in a game thus far that season gave up an incredible 30 points in the fourth quarter, and the two teams went into overtime. In OT, the Jets’ John Hall nailed a 40-yard field goal to give the Jets an improbable 40-37 win.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
1980 Soviet Hock... Much is made of what a scrappy group of overachievers the U.S. team was in 1980. That’s true. But there are two sides to every coin, and the collapse of the Soviets was nothing short of epic. After all, they had won 21 straight Olympic contests, they had defeated a team of NHL All-Stars 6-0 in 1979, and crushed this same U.S. team in a 1980 exhibition game, 10-3. But after the US scored a goal with one second left in the first period to tie the score at 2, the Soviet coach replaced goalie Vladislav Tretiak. Tretiak was considered by many to be the best goalie in the world, and the move raised the spirits of the U.S. team, which saw that it was getting under the Soviets’ skin. Nonetheless, the Soviets took a 3-2 lead into the third period. But the U.S. scored a power-play goal to tie it, then Mike Eruzione hit a slapshot to give the U.S. the lead. The Soviets panicked, and started to play wildly. After several tense minutes, the U.S. pulled off the shocker. The Soviet newspaper, “Pravda,” made no mention of the game the next day.—Johnny Goodtimes (AP Photo/Douglas Ball)

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Comcast.
Falls From Grace Click here to see 15 athletes who once were on top of the mountain only to come crashing down.