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Carolina Panthers and the 15 Worst Playoff Teams In Sports History

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15 Worst Playoff Teams In Sports History

cam newton — The Carolina Panthers just won the NFC South division with a 7-8-1 record, proving that just because a team makes the playoffs, they're not necessarily a good team. The Panthers aren't the first team with a poor regular season record to make the playoffs, nor will they be the last. Where do they rank amongst the 15 worst playoff teams in sports history?

The Carolina Panthers just won the NFC South division with a 7-8-1 record, proving that just because a team makes the playoffs, they're not necessarily a good team. The Panthers aren't the first team with a poor regular season record to make the playoffs, nor will they be the last. Where do they rank amongst the 15 worst playoff teams in sports history?

15. 2008 San Diego Chargers

15. 2008 San Diego Chargers

Record: 8-8

The 2008 San Diego Chargers became the first team in NFL history to start the season 4-8 and go on to make the playoffs. The Chargers won their final four games of the season, headed into the playoffs as one of the league’s hottest teams, and upset Peyton Manning and the Colts in Indianapolis in the first round.

14. 2004 Minnesota Vikings

14. 2004 Minnesota Vikings

Record: 8-8

Quarterback Daunte Culpepper amassed MVP-like statistics, leading the NFL in passing yards and setting the NFL record with 5,123 total yards. The Vikings finished the season going 3-7 in their final 10 games and became the second team in NFL history to have a .500 record and win a playoff game, with a win over the Packers at Lambeau field.

13. 1973 New York Mets

13. 1973 New York Mets

Record: 82-79

Yogi Berra was the manager of the 1973 New York Mets - a team that won the National League East with a record just three games over .500. The Mets got hot in the playoffs and won the pennant before bowing out in the World Series to the Oakland A’s. Their .509 winning percentage remains the lowest of any pennant-winner in MLB history.

12. 2004 St. Louis Rams

12. 2004 St. Louis Rams

Record: 8-8

The 2004 St. Louis Rams featured an offense with weapons like Torry Holt, Marshall Faulk, and Isaac Bruce for quarterback Marc Bulger, yet managed to only win 8 games. They snuck into the playoffs as a wild-card team and defeated Seattle in the first round, before getting beaten badly by 30 points by the Atlanta Falcons.

11. 2013-14 Atlanta Hawks

11. 2013-14 Atlanta Hawks

Record: 38-44

In recent years, the Eastern Conference has become a joke compared to the West. The Hawks squeaked into the playoffs with a 38-44 record, while the No. 8 seed in the West, the Dallas Mavericks, went 49-33. Atlanta managed to take the struggling No. 1 seeded Indiana Pacers to seven games before being sent home for the summer.

10. 2011 Denver Broncos

10. 2011 Denver Broncos

Record: 8-8

Ah, it seems so much longer than just four years ago that Tim Tebow led the Broncos to the AFC West title and a playoff victory. Denver started the year 2-5, won six in a row with Tim Tebow at quarterback, and then lost their final three regular-season games.

9. 1985-86 Chicago Bulls

9. 1985-86 Chicago Bulls

Record: 30-52

Michael Jordan missed most of the season, but returned in time to help the Bulls clinch the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics swept Chicago in the first round of the playoffs. In just his second season, Jordan set the still-unbroken record for points in a playoff game with 63 in Game 2.

8. 2012-13 Milwaukee Bucks

8. 2012-13 Milwaukee Bucks

Record: 38-44

It's a pretty good indication a conference as a whole is terrible when a team six games under .500 make the playoffs, but that’s what has become of the NBA’s Eastern Conference. The Bucks edged their way into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed and were dismantled in the first round by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and the rest of the Miami Heat.

7. 2006 New York Giants

7. 2006 New York Giants

Record: 8-8

2006 was not a good year for the NFC. Most teams with a .500 record or worse that manage to make the playoffs are division winners, but that was not the case for the 2006 NFC East's third-place team, the New York Giants. Eli Manning and the Giants started 6-2, before losing six of their final eight regular-season games and bowing out in the first round.

6. 2003-04 Boston Celtics

6. 2003-04 Boston Celtics

Record: 36-46

Paul Pierce was just about the only consistent player on the 2003-04 Celtics squad. Mike James, Ricky Davis, Walter McCarty, and Mark Blount rounded out the starting five. The East’s No. 1 seed, the Indiana Pacers, awaited Boston in the playoffs and clobbered the Celtics in a four game sweep, winning each game by double digits.

5. 1967-68 Chicago Bulls

5. 1967-68 Chicago Bulls

Record: 29-53

The Western Conference at this point in time had only six teams, and the top four all qualified for the playoffs. Somehow, the SuperSonics and San Diego Rockets finished with a worse record than the Bulls, giving Chicago the No. 4 seed. It was the franchise’s second year of existence and the Bulls managed to beat Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, and the Los Angeles Lakers once in the playoffs before losing in five games.

4. 2014 Carolina Panthers

4. 2014 Carolina Panthers

Record: 7-8-1

The 2014 Carolina Panthers became the first team in the history of the NFC South to win back-to-back division titles. Sounds like a good season right? Well, the Panthers also became the first team since the Seahawks in 2010 to make the postseason with a sub-.500 record. Carolina takes on the Arizona Cardinals in the wild-card round of the playoffs on Saturday.

3. 1987-88 Toronto Maple Leafs

3. 1987-88 Toronto Maple Leafs

Record: 21-49-10(ties)

Like the NBA, the NHL has always been liberal in allowing teams to make its postseason. The 1987-88 Toronto Maple Leafs finished with the second-worst record in the entire league, but qualified for the playoffs because of how weak the Norris Division was. Toronto lost in six games to Detroit in the first round of the playoffs.

2. 2005 San Diego Padres

2. 2005 San Diego Padres

Record: 82-80

The NL West was so bad in 2005 that the San Diego Padres nearly became the first team in league history to make the playoffs with a record under .500. The second-place team, the Arizona Diamondbacks, finished five games behind San Diego. As most expected, the St. Louis Cardinals swept the Padres in the NLDS.

1. 2010 Seattle Seahawks

Wild Card Playoffs - New Orleans Saints v Seattle Seahawks

1. 2010 Seattle Seahawks

Record: 7-9

The NFC West now might be the strongest division in the NFL, but back in 2010, it was clearly the weakest. The Seattle Seahawks won their Week 17 game to finish 7-9, win the division, and host the 11-5 Saints in the playoffs. Behind the Marshawn Lynch “Earthquake Run,” Seattle upset the Saints 41-36.

Seth Lassen is a writer for RantSports. Like him on Facebook.

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