Theyve never won a Super Bowl, never been to a Super Bowl. WebCheck out the Page 2 essays on why the following teams may be the new Worst Franchise in Sports. But he moves people. I think there were better options when they picked the positions they did. The Skinny: They took defensive tackle Bryan Bresee in the first, which filled a major need. That's good news for the champion St. Louis Blues and several other franchises, as many of the most miserable franchises in the original rankings actually made playoff runs last season. MLB Worst Tampa Bay Rays (1462-1700) 46.2% San Diego Padres (3574-4167) 46.2% Colorado Rockies (1827-2074) 46.8% Seattle Mariners (3024-3422) 46.9% Philadelphia Phillies (9662-10945) 46.9% NBA Best San Antonio Spurs (2285-1420) 61.7% Los Angeles Lakers (3701-2487) 59.8% Boston Celtics (3629-2556) 58.7% Oklahoma If he's a star, this is a killer draft. Dell will be an immediate impact player as a return man. Its so much more fun than being one of those once-suffering Red Sox fans who dont know what to do with themselves now that the Red Sox are the Yankees. This converted safety will be a good special-teams player as he learns behind the 49ers' special linebacker group. It also means the Lions now have a frosty relationship with at least 50 percent of their franchise icons. New York Jets Detroit Lions Jacksonville Jaguars Pittsburgh Phonetically, the sound I made was nngyuuuh. But I was far too young to grasp how rare and special the Mets 1986 season was. The Skinny: First-round defensive tackle Calijah Kancey is a player who can really amp up their interior pass rush. That's over-thinking it. If he can get more consistent, this will be a good pick. Best Pick: Third-round receiver Jalin Hyatt will give them a speed threat on the outside. He was on my Better-Than team. The Skinny: The Rams didn't have a first-round pick shocking, right? And in all that time, the Jets only accomplishmentthe only time that the sporting world gazed upon the Jets with genuine wonderwas the Butt Fumble of 2012, the sublime pas de deux featuring Mark Sanchezs face smacking into teammate Brandon Moores derriere on national TV, on Thanksgiving Day, against the fucking Patriots, with such blunt force that Sanchez dropped the ball. section: | slug: priscos-2023-nfl-draft-grades-for-all-32-teams-eagles-cowboys-bengals-lions-get-as-4-tie-for-worst-mark | sport: football | route: article_single.us | He added a pass rusher in Myles Murphy, a fast corner in Turner and a smart safety in Jordan Battle. He is a power player who plays with violence. He left his Redskins in the able hands of Joe Gibbs and Bobby Beathard. Its too grim. The kicker made no sense. Their draft wasn't great, but it was solid. Kickers come and go. Its pretty meh. Its kind of our thing. Worst I don't like taking a back high, but Gibbs might be more than that. The great Dick Butkus' career was riddled with bad knees and worst contract disputes. Its not bracing for the worst, exactly. Detroit Lions. The other 75 percent, the No. This team is being overhauled and this is the kind of draft that gives a team some good, young bodies to help make it happen. The Mets will never have this problem. Bad trades. Sixth-round center Luke Wypler has starter qualities, especially in their offense. Worst Pick: I didn't like the pick of USC corner Mekhi Blackmon in the third round. I dont identify with that, and I think a lot of comedians probably feel the same way. The Wirtz family still won't show games on home TV (which, by the way, now comes in color, not black-and-white), apparently fearful of alienating a fan base that has by now deserted them. Seattle Worst Pick: I didn't love the pick of pass rusher YaYa Diaby in the third round. Would Ken Anderson be wearing a few Super Bowl rings right now? But there's not a ton to like about this draft. They ghosted. Well, we used to. The Worst Teams in Sports History - Ranker Anyone want to buy any naming rights for the ball park? Both seem dead in the water and Motown might be an American ghost town soon. There is a difference between being bad and being gifted at losing, and this distinction holds the key to understanding the true magic of the New York Mets. Turner from Michigan. .css-16c7pto-SnippetSignInLink{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;cursor:pointer;}Sign In, Copyright 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Read: Curt Flood belongs in the Hall of Fame. The Skinny: By getting Henley and third-round edge Tuli Tuipulotu, the Chargers addressed a defense that needed it. Winning cant cure this. 59): IOL O'Cyrus Torrence Round 3 (No. The Skinny: They feel like they got two long-term important positions solved here by taking Stroud with the second overall pick at quarterback and Anderson as their edge guy. Best Pick: Second-rounder O'Cyrus Torrence has first-round talent, which makes this a heck of a pick. We know who the best loser is. A Super Bowl appearance doesn't erase the curse of the Bidwells. The best news they had: Aaron Rodgers is in the fold. He's inconsistent. Worst Pick: Their worst pick could end up being their best. A few teams made the most of having multiple picks on the first day, while others made some head-scratching decisions. Here's a look at the worst (and best!) Smallish receiver Demario Douglas is one of my Better-Than guys in this draft. Please put weight on him and make him a tackle. But Clint, unlike Hunt, was a wild one who loved his booze, pills, powders, cheerleaders, and Cowboys. That line will be happy he's around. Anthony Davis had 16 points and 14 rebounds while blocking five shots in a spectacular defensive performance, and DAngelo Russell scored a career playoff-high 31 points. In fact, the occasional bout of success is a key symptom of the pathology. Best Pick: I liked fifth-round guard Atonio Mafi more than I liked their fourth-round guard Sidy Sow. James scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting for the seventh-seeded Lakers, who emphatically clinched a playoff series in their own arena for the first time since 2012. Childhood over. Watching the Hawks organization now is sort of like seeing Mae West, sagging badly and caked with more mascara than Tammy Faye Bakker, oogling all the beefcake late in her life. Jones seems like he has more fun running a free wheeling circus rather then a football team so Cowboy fans ought to enjoy Jessica Simpson new reality TV show which will feature their starting quarterback in a starring role. But, well, you've got to give them something resembling hockey. Eventually all thats left of winning is the distance from it, and thats when it starts to turn sad and hollow. Third-round linebacker Drew Sanders has tools to become a quality starter. The franchises most electric player was a cornerback, and almost all of his electricity happened off camera. You could lock every fan of the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, and Colorado Rockies in a small storage locker, and they would kill one another for the Mets postseason history. The Hawks of Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Glenn Hall, Pierre Pilote, Keith Magnusson, Iron Mike, Eddie the Eagle, Denis Savard, Doug Wilson, Chris Chelios. In a shortened season because of an NBA lockout, Kemba Walker and the Bobcats finished 7-59, which included a 23 Worst Pick: I didn't like the decision to take running back Zach Charbonnet in the second round. Then right away in the top of the tenth, Red Sox outfielder Dave Hendu Henderson, whod crushed us that whole series, crushed the second pitch so hard off the facade above the left-field wall that it ricocheted 50 yards back into left-center. Torrence will be a brute if his knees hold up. Best Pick: I like fourth-round edge player Nick Herbig from Wisconsin. Best Pick: I love the pick of tight end Sam LaPorta in the second round. The Skinny: The Lions and general manager Brad Holmes did some really good things over the weekend. He will be in the rotation as a rookie. This wasn't a wow draft, yet with Patrick Mahomes they don't really need those anymore. And it's not like Ryland was automatic. Nice job. Like they were playing for their lives? If you take pleasure in the Browns misfortune, youre a jerk. This piece is adapted from Gordons book, So Many Ways to Lose: The Amazin True Story of the New York MetsThe Best Worst Team in Sports, the sight of Mookie Wilsons hard grounder sneaking through Bill Buckners legs, Casey Stengel in his inflatable Mets uniform doing his stand-up act, a home-run-robbing feat of epic athletic wonder, their best hitter struck out on three straight pitches. In 57 seasons to date, the Mets have reached the postseason nine times, theyve played in five World Series, and theyve won twice. I didnt have the wisdom to understand this at the time, but the World Seriesthe winning, the dominance, the champagne in the locker roomthat wasnt the Metsy part of the 86 story. The Jets are the Mets sapped of charmbright orange and blue turned carsick green. So many baseball fans I know have heartwarming stories about how they fell for their favorite teamsa family saga, an iconic moment to which they bore accidental witness. He will be a hit on the outside in their scheme, although some think he should play inside. He is also better pushing the pocket than people think. One playoff appearance in 10 years. We didnt want to go back to Memphis, to say the least, said Austin Reaves, who had 11 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. LeBron had some great words of wisdom he shared after the game. New coordinator Todd Monken and Lamar Jackson will come to love this kid. Even in his 80s, old Redskin billionaire owner Jack Kent Cooke liked his wild, wind shield riding, drug toting, brown eyed South American ladies and he loved his Redskins. The 49ers entered Day 1 with 11 total picks -- but zero in Rounds 1 or 2. And blue! Obviously, there are still a lot of cities that are clamoring for a sports crown of any kind, and many on this years list have been waiting a long time. What really clinched it, though, wasnt my ardor for their Day-Glo colors, or my sense that Id found my tribe. Best pick: I love third-round pick Siaki Ika from Baylor. 2023 NFL draft winners and losers: Best picks, worst decisions It was a good start for Ossenfort. And Bob Pulford, doing a pretty fair impersonation of a Madame Tussaud waxwork taken out of the showroom to make room for a newer model, still out on display, overseeing another disasterous season. Thats really all it took. After Johnson walked away in 2016, at age 30, the Lions front office demanded that he return a $3.2 million roster bonus, which is sort of petty for a team owned by the Ford family. Mets fans have the capacity to believe in both outcomes with equal commitment. It was a play so Jetsy, it was downright Metsy. Which brings us to an important point of clarification regarding New York: The Knicks are not one of the worst franchises in sports. They also have a bunch of picks next year, including two in the first round. I just don't think he's sudden enough, and he has knee issues. Its incorrect to say our dear boys invent new ways, because invent implies volition. The mental state of your standard-issue Mets fan is to be simultaneously certain of humiliating defeat and pretty darn sure theres a miracle brewing. Benton was the first of two former Wisconsin Badgers defenders the Steelers selected in the draft. This is a draft that will be defined by Levis. The Skinny: I really like their draft. The Skinny: After Addison, I didn't love their draft. I will cherish the memories of my sweet, gorgeous, magical children drawing their first breaths until the day I draw my last. The Skinny: They traded up to land Broderick Jones in the first round, which will be an immediate help up front, and that was a must. But for the fans it will definitely get costlier. He's a bigger corner who can play safety. Yes, the Original Six Chicago Blackhawks. That's the way I see it with 12th overall pick Jamyr Gibbs. Worst Pick: I really liked their draft, so it's nitpicking when I say what I didn't like was them not picking an offensive lineman. In that infamous inaugural season of 1962, the Mets endured losing streaks of nine, 11, 13, and 17 games, and they capped off the seasonloss number 120by hitting into a rally-killing triple play. That works. Kiper, the longtime analyst, thinks the San Francisco 49ers had the "worst" draft in the NFL this year. The problem with the Browns case is Cleveland itself. Spears will be a nice change of pace back to Derrick Henry, but it seems like a luxury pick for the Titans. That's also why having 13 picks matters. So while the NFL and its billionaire boys club prepare to go the mattresses with tiny Delaware and its dreams of a state-sponsored sports betting, while the always hypocritical NFL rolls out lottery ticket games, let's look at the franchises that give their fans the worst bang for their buck. Keep an eye on fourth-round defensive tackle Cameron Young and seventh-round running back Kenny McIntosh. Arizona Cardinals | Atlanta Hawks Baltimore Orioles | Chicago Blackhawks | Read: Hockey has a gigantic-goalie problem. The Skinny: Duke Tobin, the Bengals' director of player personnel, knew that his defense had to be replenished for a chance to get to the Super Bowl. For me, a key factor was color schemes. Reed can run, but he wasn't one of my top-10 receivers. (It was always unwarranted.) From a different time, a bygone sensibility. Thats why the New York Mets are the best worst team in sports. Best Pick: It's their first pick, defensive tackle Jalen Carter. Plus, send us your thoughts and sob stories on these teams, and read what others have to say! They did have three third-round picks and used them at a variety of spots. What is the worst franchise in pro sports? - Cleveland 19 That's why I always go back and re-grade the draft and my own grades three years later. 2023 NFL draft: First-Round Winners and Question Marks No team in all of American sports is better than the Mets at being the worst. AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports, Los Angeles Lakers' Anthony Davis (3) celebrates his dunk as Memphis Grizzlies' Jaren Jackson Jr. (13) falls to the court during the second half in Game 6 of a first-round NBA basketball playoff series Friday, April 28, 2023, in Los Angeles. I was 10 years old, and it was after midnight, and Id already bleated so many times during the first nine and a half innings that I was under penalty of death if I woke up anyone else. The Mets discover ways to lose like the Titanic discovered an iceberg. He is a developmental guy in my book. To win at this level of losing, you need a big canvas. Not even Indiana Jones could unearth the actual number. He is a power player inside. In aggregate, the state of Minnesotas sports futility might surpass the Mets, but as stand-alone losers, theyre just too small-time. Worst Pick: I like Bijan Robinson as a player. Game over. In order for the Bengals to be the Mets, Cincinnati would have to be New York. Worst Pick: I didn't like the pick of Darnell Washington in the third round. Center Juice Struggs was over-drafted in the second round in my book. In this story: Houston Texans Seattle Seahawks New England Patriots Indianapolis Colts New York Giants Arizona Cardinals Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Los Angeles Chargers Washington Commanders Winning belongs to the gods. Worst pick (C): CB Alex Austin, Oregon State (Round 7, Pick 252) Good size at CB but not lengthy. He is a speedy corner who was on my Better-Than team because he really impressed on tape. The Los Angeles Lakers completed their first-round upset of the Memphis Grizzlies with a 125-85 victory in Game 6. First-round corner Christian Gonzalez will be a star. He is a talented player, but he weighs 185 pounds. But that 86 team was also the beginning of my true education as a Mets fan, and the first lesson I learned was that 1986 was the anomalythe one and only time in Mets history when the Mets were the juggernaut. The Los Angeles Clipperseww. The rest of the draft was just OK, and they didn't take an offensive lineman with their first three picks, waiting until the seventh round when they took tackle Ryan Hayes. I liked fifth-round safety Antonio Johnson and sixth-round corner Christopher Braswell in addition to Abdullah. By the time I fell for baseball, I was seeing my father only a few times a month, which was sad for my childhood but a godsend for my baseball future because it liberated me to choose my own destiny. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact The Skinny: I didn't like them trading down and passing on Jalen Carter in the first round. Help Mad Al find his mojo. The Bidwell's would bring down any franchise in any sport in any country. They had two World Series winners, and what did they do to both? Mike Ditka, the player, once said that Halas threw nickels around like manhole covers. What is daily life, after all, but a series of tiny defeats? Buffalo Bills Round 1 (No. The Lakers won all three of their home games in the series, and the final victory was a scary demonstration of their capabilities when James and Davis are both healthy alongside their full supporting cast. Other NHL franchises are poorly run. He can run and hit and knows how to find the football. Worst Pick: First-round pass rusher Felix Anudike-Uzomah fills a need, but his tape wasn't as impressive as I expected. The Los Angles Lions? Failed coaches and free agent flops come and go quicker in DC then corrupt lobbyists these days and under Danny it doesn't seem like it going to get better. The Worst NFL Team to Play for Is - WSJ Second-round corner Joey Porter Jr. was a nice pick as well, playing for the same team as his father. Stroud has to prove to be their franchise quarterback, which they think he can be. My first three seasons as a fan just so happened to coincide with the Mets first run of three consecutive 90-win seasons. But I didn't love the second-round pick (TE Brenton Strange) or Bigsby that much. One out of two isn't bad, I guess. Arizona Cardinals. Broke them up IMMEDIATELY. John Madden phone home? ESPN Sixth-round running back Deuce Vaughn isn't big, but he can play. How naive I was. That might not synch up with other graders, but those are my teams that did really well over three days of drafting. Lakers obliterate Grizzlies 125-85, advance to 2nd round And they played well in the 1970s. Itd been 13 years since their last trip to the World Series, in 1973, when they lost to the dynastic Oakland Athletics in seven games, but I knew there were plenty of fan bases thatd been waiting far longer, including some thatd been waiting forever. He was so far off camera that he was invisible. I didn't love this draft. The 86-year-old Nicholson watched his beloved team for the first time since October 2021, returning to his usual seats alongside his son. Will he ever be anything more than a backup? The 2018 Sports Misery Index: Worst Franchises to Root For In 3. Some teams seemed doom. Ive still never met a Clippers fan over the age of 35. Sure they signed Jay Cutler but its a shameful stain on the teams old name that all its passing records are held by Sid Luckman who retired 60 years ago before passing rules were liberalized. That makes them competitive in the AFC North. That may, as the man said, have gone beyond the point of being sad. He's coming off a torn ACL and there were better options. says one who has watched this once-proud franchise fall into disrepair, the tragic victim of neglect and poor planning. Maybe the Dolphins won't abandon the run as quickly as they did last season. Worst Whether cursed by the ghost of Bobby Layne, just destined to be team ruled by pettiness due to some rogue DNA rolling around the owners brain, or just plain incompetence and bad luck some teams always seem to be on the losing end. He isn't twitchy, but he has the ability to get 6-7 sacks a season. At least they waited to take the punter in the sixth. Best Pick: It would be easy to say it's Bryce Young, but I am going to go with second-round receiver Jonathan Mingo. The Bears owners have a history of cheapness and it all began with the Papa Bear George Halas. Worst Pick: I didn't like edge Isaiah Foskey as much as some scouts. They have positioned their roster for now and the future if third-round quarterback Hendon Hooker is good. There was a pinch of bad luck there, but Washingtons demise was mostly self-inflicted. After the Timberwolves lost to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, the team reached the top of a list no one wants to be on: They are the worst franchise in American pro Once the Chicago Cubs won the World Series in 2016, their first title since 1908, they became what theyve always been: the luxury-class franchise on the upscale side of a world-class city. The Mets are losers, just like nearly everybody else in life, Jimmy Breslin wrote in Cant Anybody Here Play This Game?, the canonical sportswriters early comic snapshot of the Mets inaugural 1962 season. These are the zombie Knicks. A new survey of NFL players found the Washington Commanders had the worst workplace conditions. Morants injured right hand appeared to hamper his shot, and he seemed unwilling to drive the paint with his usual fearlessness while Davis loomed in the middle. Check back with me in four years. Worst Pick: I didn't love third-round receiver Tre Tucker. The sight of Ray Knight rounding third base with the winning run of Game 6 in the 1986 World Series against the Boston Red Soxcompleting a two-run, two-out, two-strike comeback in the bottom of the tenth inningwas the greatest moment of my life, and I have two kids. Kennard got a stinger in Game 5. Sad Franchise Fact - Last World Series Title - 1979 1. It only seems that way. These He is a perfect fit for that the Steelers want in their rush players. The Chargers have run-defense issues and adding help in the front seven was a top priority. 1. Joe Tippman, the second-round center-guard, is a good player who could push for time as a rookie as they upgrade their line. He was a reach. The Clippers have escaped purgatory. Theirs is an iconic franchise that has been held captive and waterboarded for decades by the worst owner in sports. And the illnesses, and the accidents. team's But unlike Jerry Jones, Clint hired Tom Landry, Gil Brandt, and Tex Schramm to run the football end of things while he funded the fun times until his bubble burst. I learned about men from baseball. Third-round defensive tackle Byron Young is a rising player who plays hard all the time. Best Pick: I went with fourth-round corner Jakorian Bennett. Los Angeles opens its next series on the road Tuesday against the winner of Sundays Game 7 between Sacramento and defending champion Golden State. The Skinny: They lost their first-round pick because they violated the league's policy on integrity of the game when they tampered with Tom Brady. No matter how good things get, we will always revert to our Metsy ways. He is needed in that secondary. The team lacks direction and talent and its Super Bowl less streak will continue well into the twenty teens and beyond. The 19 News sports team wants to know what is the worst franchise in professional sports? The Skinny: It's obvious by their draft what Smith's top priority is for this team. They need more help up front, so that's the only flaw of this draft. Youd have to be special. Worst Pick: I didn't love the choice of third-round corner Garrett Williams. Seventh-round receiver Trey Palmer can fly. Just remember, we have to wait three years for this draft. If he can get his weight down and there were stories of him being close to 400 at his pro day he can be a quality starter. ESPN's Mel Kiper Reveals Which NFL Team Had 'Worst' Draft If Anderson is Von Miller, this could be an all-time drat. Keep an eye on fifth-round pick SirVocea Dennis, a linebacker from Pittsburgh. Even their uniforms, bluish-gray and grayish-blue, are colorless. Best Pick: I love third-round linebacker Daiyan Henley, who is a fast, speedy linebacker. The top 25 most miserable fan bases in professional sports - ESPN He is a running back who is more of an air back, but I still think he went too high. Its the rooting-for-the-underdog mentality. Nice job. Houston Texans 1. That could end up being a problem. What direction would the Bengals have taken if they had hired assistant coach Bill Walsh all those years ago? Theyre wrong, but I suppose they deserve a fair hearing. Besides, for as long as Id been watching baseball, the Mets had been good. The Lakers took a 20-point lead in the first half and went up by 36 in the third quarter before coasting to victory in front of superfan Jack Nicholson and a sellout crowd. We are the phoenix that rises from the ashes, only to light ourselves on fire and go right back to ashes again. Until then, we can't give it an 'A'.