Ranking the worst losses in franchise history.

[Steve102]

Pats fans are hanging their heads, having been eliminated from "the tournament" by the hated New York Jets. There was plenty of talk around the watercooler today regarding whether or not this was the worst loss in Patriots history. Hardly. This is painful loss, but it's just the most recent. Here's the worst five losses in franchise history, as ranked by FVP.

The Voice of The Fan: FVP: Worst Losses In New England Patriots History

What did I miss? The '76 Oakland playoff loss, the '05 Denver loss? What about the Oilers playoff loss at home?

 

[PatsFanSince74]

#1 is undisputed. "18--1" is one of the worst moments for a fanbase in the history of all sports.

#2. I'm open to changing this when the dust settles, but I'd put Sunday at #2. This team "should" have gone to Dallas and given Brady his shot at matching Bradshaw and Montana with four rings and Belichick his shot at matching Noll with four Lombardis. Plus, it was the Jets.

#3 still belongs to the SB drubbing by Da Bears. That was a humiliation that still reverberates, despite the three shiny trophies that now sit in Foxboro and that are triple the total SB-era championships by Chicago.

#4 I'd give to the 2006 Indy loss because we had the game in hand and I have no doubt we'd have taken the Bears in the SB.

#5? I don't know. I don't have time now to think about it, but the Ravens loss last year doesn't seem to rise to the standard and so there must be a couple of other losses that hurt worse. Expectations were not as high for that team and I think that most of us fans realized that there were a lot of "issues" that that team had to address.

 

[RHbT76]

#5? I don't know. I don't have time now to think about it, but the Ravens loss last year doesn't seem to rise to the standard and so there must be a couple of other losses that hurt worse. Expectations were not as high for that team and I think that most of us fans realized that there were a lot of "issues" that that team had to address.

The '96 superbowl?

 

[Steve102]

#5? I don't know. I don't have time now to think about it, but the Ravens loss last year doesn't seem to rise to the standard and so there must be a couple of other losses that hurt worse. Expectations were not as high for that team and I think that most of us fans realized that there were a lot of "issues" that that team had to address.

To me, the manner of the loss put the Ravens on the list. They mailed it in. Its was bad. I have never walked away from my seats, either at Gillette or the old dump. I got upat some point (21-0??) and went for a walk. There was no pride, no swagger.

 

[RobertWeathers]

I'll give it a shot. I can't comment on 1976 as I was only 4 1/2 years old. By all accounts it was a bad loss and should be on this list.

#1. SB 42. No explanation needed.

#2. 2006 AFCCG. A beatable Bears team had won earlier that day. Had Indy on the ropes. A 4th SB was in the grasp. For me, as the years roll by and the playoff shortfalls mount, that loss is becoming much worse.

#3a. 2009 Div vs BAL. Pats were totally beat up, pushed around, kicked, punched. Embarrassed.

#3b. 2010 Div vs NYJ. Similar to 2006 & 2009. It was there for the taking. Home field. Facing teams that they had beaten during the regular season handily. But again, they were pushed more than they did the pushing. It doesn't get much worse when that happens in your old building.

#5a. SB XX. Embarrassing. It was great just to get there but that was awful.

#5b. Sb XXXI. Down 27-21 in the 4th qtr. Momentum on the Pats side. Then the roof caved in. That hurt.

 

[Sean Pa Patriot]

1 Super Bowl 42

2 Sundays game- 1 because its fresh, 2 because its the jets

3 indy 2006, - i didnt think it could get worse.. but it did.., but that game on sunday was bad

4 Denver 2005- we beat ourselves that day

5 Denver 86-we could have bet denver if we start grogan...

The baltimore game is not on this list since we were never competive in that game..

 

[letekro]

I don't see how SB XX can be on the list as no one thought they had any chance to win and the game was over early in the second quarter.

The Denver game in 2005, on the other hand, was absolutely horrible. The Pats were definitely the better team and the whole game turned on a bogus PI call against Asante that gave the Broncos 7 points (this was the worst PI call I can ever remember against the Patriots). Right after that Faulk fumbled the kickoff and the Broncos scored again. Then, of course, the Pats persevered only to have their hearts ripped out by Champ Bailey and the questionable non-touchback involving Ben Watson.

That Pats team was flawed but that was the year a mediocre Pittsburgh team beat a mediocre Seahawks team in the SB. If the Pats got out of Denver they had a very good chance to get to and win the SB and 3-peat. Even though the media hyped the 2010 team up, I thought that the 2005 team had just as good a chance to win it all.

 

[mosi]

#1 is undisputed. "18--1" is one of the worst moments for a fanbase in the history of all sports.

#2. I'm open to changing this when the dust settles, but I'd put Sunday at #2. This team "should" have gone to Dallas and given Brady his shot at matching Bradshaw and Montana with four rings and Belichick his shot at matching Noll with four Lombardis. Plus, it was the Jets.

#3 still belongs to the SB drubbing by Da Bears. That was a humiliation that still reverberates, despite the three shiny trophies that now sit in Foxboro and that are triple the total SB-era championships by Chicago.

#4 I'd give to the 2006 Indy loss because we had the game in hand and I have no doubt we'd have taken the Bears in the SB.

#5? I don't know. I don't have time now to think about it, but the Ravens loss last year doesn't seem to rise to the standard and so there must be a couple of other losses that hurt worse. Expectations were not as high for that team and I think that most of us fans realized that there were a lot of "issues" that that team had to address.

The 2007 season is #1 with a bullet. The Raiders game in 76 is next. That was terrible. My first Patriots playoff loss I remember. This game is next (2010 Jets game).

The 1985 Superbowl? I never thought we had a chance. The 1986 loss to Denver hurt, but also thought we would loose. The 2006 AFCCG hurt as well, as we were so close.

 

[Rusty Coupe]

'76 playoff loss to the Raiders: I was in 5th grade and knew the Pats got screwed by the refs, I was mad for days. That was the first good Patriots team, nobody rooted for the Pats then, it was all Dolphins, Steelers, Cowboys, and if you bought a football it probably had Joe Namath's name on it.

'06 AFCCG loss to Colts: Troy Brown just dropped, he just dropped it, the 3rd down pass that would have sen't them back to the SB.

'10 loss to JESTS: They simply played awful in a winnable game.

'78 loss to Oilers: Game was over by the end of the 1st quarter @#$%#$$# Chuck Fairbanks
The following year, his division-champion Patriots seemed poised to challenge for a Super Bowl berth, but just prior to the final regular season game, Sullivan suspended Fairbanks for again breaking a contract by agreeing to serve as head coach at the University of Colorado beginning in 1979. Fairbanks was reinstated for the team's first playoff game (and the franchise's first-ever playoff game at home), but the second-seeded Patriots lost 31-14 to the fifth-seed Houston Oilers.
Paul Zimmerman, Sports Illustrated's dean of professional football writers, has speculated that the animus surrounding Fairbanks departure from New England stemmed from the fact that, unlike the late-season departure of New York Jets coach Lou Holtz for Arkansas in 1976, "no one" felt Fairbanks "was a really nice guy."

'96 Loss to Packers in SB Despite the focus all day being on Parcells leaving and the beginning of the Favre media lovefest, thought the Pats had a chance until Howard made that return.

Edit: '07
After the Eagles and Ravens narrow escapes I didn't think this team was invinceable, the season had taken on a surreal quality that wen't beyond football, by the end I was just glad it was over.

 

[PittPatriot]

I'll give it a shot. I can't comment on 1976 as I was only 4 1/2 years old. By all accounts it was a bad loss and should be on this list.

#1. SB 42. No explanation needed.

#2. 2006 AFCCG. A beatable Bears team had won earlier that day. Had Indy on the ropes. A 4th SB was in the grasp. For me, as the years roll by and the playoff shortfalls mount, that loss is becoming much worse.

#3a. 2009 Div vs BAL. Pats were totally beat up, pushed around, kicked, punched. Embarrassed.

#3b. 2010 Div vs NYJ. Similar to 2006 & 2009. It was there for the taking. Home field. Facing teams that they had beaten during the regular season handily. But again, they were pushed more than they did the pushing. It doesn't get much worse when that happens in your old building.

#5a. SB XX. Embarrassing. It was great just to get there but that was awful.

#5b. Sb XXXI. Down 27-21 in the 4th qtr. Momentum on the Pats side. Then the roof caved in. That hurt.

I think this is best list (IMHO) so far...but I would take out SBXX as we had NO CHANCE from the start. Also, we were so happy to be there, Patriots Nation was quite complacent (I know this because I was in 5th grade).
We had a realistic shot in XXXI - the best team in the NFL that year was the Broncos, and the Jags did them in for us in the Divisional round.

The one game that sticks in my mind was the 1986 Divisional loss to the Broncos. It was a competitive game and a fluke bomb to Vance Johnson before the half did us in. It was also the beginning of the end for the Patriots at least for the next decade to follow...

#1 and #2 on your list are the worst losses I have felt in any sport at any level. Worse than Buckner (at least that's how I feel now).

 

[RobertWeathers]

I think this is best list (IMHO) so far...but I would take out SBXX as we had NO CHANCE from the start. Also, we were so happy to be there, Patriots Nation was quite complacent (I know this because I was in 5th grade).
We had a realistic shot in XXXI - the best team in the NFL that year was the Broncos, and the Jags did them in for us in the Divisional round.

The one game that sticks in my mind was the 1986 Divisional loss to the Broncos. It was a competitive game and a fluke bomb to Vance Johnson before the half did us in. It was also the beginning of the end for the Patriots at least for the next decade to follow...

#1 and #2 on your list are the worst losses I have felt in any sport at any level. Worse than Buckner (at least that's how I feel now).

I hear ya on the SB XX. There was no question that the Pats were gonna lose. But I have it in there because I was a 14 year old kid who didn't know any better. If you recall, the region was going crazy re: the 1985 Pats. That playoff run was magical and as a young sports fan- never experienced anything like it. So, while the mind said the Bears would roll, I believed that the Pats were going to pull it out. Heartbreaking. Kinda like being dumped the first time..

I was more tempered in my excitement for SB 31. But when Martin's TD made it 27-21, I was pumped. I thought they had a great shot to pull it out. Then promptly was punched in the stomach a couple of times by Desmond Howard and Reggie White.

I remember the 1986 game vs Denver. That was another "I didn't know any better" game. I thought that they were going back to the SB because they were there last year. Thats called Fan Entitlement I guess

We all have our own painful losses. Those are the ones that ripped me up more than the others.

But that 2006 one.......Thats my 1986 Game 6 until they win #4.

 

[Steve102]

I hear ya on the SB XX. There was no question that the Pats were gonna lose. But I have it in there because I was a 14 year old kid who didn't know any better. If you recall, the region was going crazy re: the 1985 Pats. That playoff run was magical and as a young sports fan- never experienced anything like it. So, while the mind said the Bears would roll, I believed that the Pats were going to pull it out. Heartbreaking. Kinda like being dumped the first time..

I was more tempered in my excitement for SB 31. But when Martin's TD made it 27-21, I was pumped. I thought they had a great shot to pull it out. Then promptly was punched in the stomach a couple of times by Desmond Howard and Reggie White.

I remember the 1986 game vs Denver. That was another "I didn't know any better" game. I thought that they were going back to the SB because they were there last year. Thats called Fan Entitlement I guess

We all have our own painful losses. Those are the ones that ripped me up more than the others.

But that 2006 one.......Thats my 1986 Game 6 until they win #4.

Unfortunatly, the big losses are piling up. The '06 would have been the biggest if not for the '07 loss. I don't see how there's a worse loss in any sport. The odds of running the table are slim, and to be the first... you'd be talked about 50 years from now.

 

[aluminum seats]

To me, the worst losses come down to one or two plays--the woulda/coulda/shoulda stuff.

This one? The Pats got beat. Sucks it's to the Jets, but there's WAY too much hand-wringing going on. Got guys in the media talking about how Jets fans will "always be able to point to this game" and that kind of crap. What, they won a playoff game? Seriously, big deal. Always sucks to lose, but the Pats losing always comes with these big national post mortems. All but one team loses every year.

So to me, this doesn't rate on any worst scale. Mine are:

2007 Super Bowl--one play from a title
2006 Championship game--same thing almost, as the Bears woulda been beat

After that? Probably the 2005 game against Denver. Didn't come down to one play, but the Pats were clearly the better team on the field that day.

 

[TBradyOwnsYou]

1. SB42, a couple miracles away from perfection and instant redemption from spygate! Loss to New effing York and effing ELI. Ugh.
(2. Losing Brady in the 1st quarter for the year? However, if that doesn't count as a loss...)
2. 2010 we're on absolute fire, breaking all sorts of records, everyone expects us to win the SB. After a week of trash talk the Jets come in to our house and dominate us. The effing New effing York effing JETS. One and done...
3. 2006 AFCCG, losing a big lead to MANNING... fml.

I think those have to be the top 3 (or 4) because those were the times our expectations were the highest to win it all and we lost it to the worst possible people.

 

[jdwad246]

1) SB42 - No explanation required.

2) 2006 AFC Championship - Team ran out of gas with Super Bowl in sight.

3) 2010 Divisional - So much momentum squashed by the Jets

4) SB31 - One of my favorite teams hung with the vaunted Pack and put themselves in position to have a chance only to have it slammed shut... buzz kill.

5) 4th and 2 - In my opinion the worst regular season loss. Colts had our number and we were shutting them down only to see it evaporate.

I did not see the 76 playoff as I was three, and the '09 playoff loss to the Ravens did not hit me hard, as I did not have much hope for that team in the playoffs.

In reality, only the top 2 have left a mark on me, the rest are just tough losses.

 

[40yrpatsfan]

1. '07-08 SB loss to Giants. So much was at stake, and the unbearable events of the last few minutes forever etched in my soul. Throw in the Spygate emotions on top of all that.

2. '76 loss to Raiders. Really the most bitter loss in some ways, because the Pats had never won anything, had come from nowhere to be the best team in football, were playing a truly dirty team, had the late lead, only to have it ripped away by bad officiating.

3. '06-07 loss to Colts. One of those rare games where we both lost it ourselves AND had the refs take it from us. Double-whammy. Definite SB winning season snatched away, would have meant 4 in 6 years. Losing this one made #1 even worse.

4. '78 loss to Oilers. Pats were stacked by then, a phenomenally talented team across the board. Crushing loss, all due to a squabble between owner and coach (Fairbanks was as good as BB). Couldn't blame refs for this one. Team fell apart after that.

5. Probably '05-06 to Denver, with the Assante PI call and the Champ Bailey 102 yard int return where Watson caused a touchback but the refs missed that too.

These recent losses to Baltimore and NY are not close in heartbreak to the games above, because we didn't deserve to win either of these games and were outplayed throughout. Disappointing that we didn't have the team we thought we had, but obvious that we didn't deserve to win. The truly crushing losses are when you have the game or the better team, and forces conspire to take it from you (usually the officials but sometimes just luck).

 

[ATippett56]

1. Super Bowl 42 vs the New York Giants
2. 2006 AFC Championship Game vs the Indianapolis Colts
3. 2010 AFC Divisional Playoffs vs the New York Jets
4. 2009 AFC Wildcard Playoffs vs the Baltimore Ravens
5. 2005 AFC Divisional Playoffs vs the Denver Broncos

 

[mgteich]

We need to understand that most poster focus on the past 6 years. Alomst everyone's top 3 are from the past 6 years. I suspect that this is lack of persepective, a poor memory or simply youth focusing on the present.

Sure the last SB loss is always the worst. So, it is #1.

But how can the 1986 SB Bowl not be one of the worst losses in franchise history? It wasn't bad because we expected it? It was aweful nonetheless!

How can the 1976 loss to the raiders not be in the top 3?

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from wiki

The 1976 AFC Divisional Playoffs. This would become the infamous "Ben Dreith Game" as officiating became a major controversy with numerous questionable penalties. Bill Lenkaitis had not been flagged for holding all season yet was flagged three times in this game. No penalty was called when George Atkinson of the Raiders hammered Russ Francis in the facemask and broke his nose; Steve Zabel popped Francis' nose back into place. There was also a running controversy over mugging of Francis by the Raiders' Phil Villapiano and even controversy over a Sam Cunningham run late in the fourth quarter where he went out of bounds; John Hannah claimed the sideline official moved the first down marker just before Cunningham went out of bounds, denying him a first down.[3] In the final minute of the fourth quarter Raymond Hamilton of the Patriots was flagged for roughing the passer against Ken Stabler of the Raiders on a 3rd-and-18 play, even though replays showed no roughing; Dreith said the call was made because Hamilton had hit Stabler's helmet, but replays showed Stabler ducking away from Hamilton. Despite Patriot protests (Hamilton was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for his protests) the call stood, and at the Patriot 1-yard line Stabler ran in the game-winning touchdown with ten seconds left in a 24-21 Raiders win. Patriot protests over Dreith's call were such that Dreith was not assigned to work any games involving the Patriots until 1987.

 

[ATippett56]

But how can the 1986 SB Bowl not be one of the worst losses in franchise history? It wasn't bad because we expected it? It was aweful nonetheless!

The 1985 Chicago Bears were voted the second best team in NFL history according to the acclaimed series "America's Game".

America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Meanwhile, the 2010 New England Patriots were expected to beat the New York Jets at home. A team with home field advantage throughout the playoffs with the best record in the NFL at 14-2 and winners of eight straight to finish the regular season.

 

[BadMoFo]

The Jets loss has to rank at least third. Anyone saying otherwise is just trying to downplay it.