That was Buckner is '86, already mentioned.
I forgot to mention before…
Game 6 of the 1986 World Series was ALREADY TIED when the ball went through Buckner’s legs. People tend to conveniently forget this and put all of the blame on Buckner. A wild pitch moments earlier had allowed the tying run to come home.
How about the Michigan basketball player who got the ball as the clock was running down in the final? He passed up a shot to take a timeout Michigan didn’t have, thus ending the game and costing his team a possible NCAA championship.
[Dis]Honorable Mention should go to two Pittsburgh Steeler wideouts for premature celebration.
Nearly thirty years ago on Monday Night Football, a Steeler WR snagged a long bomb and was headed for the endzone all along. He thought the five yard line was the goal line and spiked the ball. It bounced through the endzone for a touchback.
This year, a wide open Plaxico Burress caught a pass and fell to the turf. When he got up he spiked the ball in celebration. Problem was, he hadn’t been downed by contact and the refs hadn’t blown the play dead. Opponents recover the ball.
I don’t recall the outcomes of either game.
Oops. That should read, “headed for the endzone all ALONE.”
Here in Chicago, we have soooooooo many choices. Hiring Dick Jauron? Drafting Cade McNown? Anything the Cubs/Bulls/Hawks have done of late? The mind boggles.
Buckner’s error wasn’t a stupid play; he just made an error in a critical situation. As a matter of fact, the Mets lost a game earlier in the same series when the ball went between Tim Teufel’s legs.
Though Snodgrass’s muff is famous, he made a great catch later on, and it wouldn’t have made any difference if the catcher had caught an easy pop fly later in the inning.
It’s the same for Ernie Lombardi’s famous “dash for home” (Lombardi – one of slowest runners in baseball history – tried to race after Eddie Collins, one of the fastest, as Collins broke for home). But the error actually belongs to the first baseman or pitcher, neither of whom backed him up on the play. Lombardi had no one to throw the ball to.
As far as dumb plays, you have to include Marv Throneberry forgetting to touch first and second base on his way to a triple.
A few years ago, that dope Barry Switzer had the Dallas Cowboys go for it on 4th and 1 against the Philadelphia Eagles . . . in the first half of the game in their own territory in a game that was close in score (as a matter of fact, I dont think anyone even scored yet).
The play failed, the Eagles got pissed at what was an obvious show of disrespect by the Boyz, and the Birds won the game. This is seen by many Eagles fans as the beginning of the end of the hated Cowboys 2nd era of glory.
About 10 or more years ago in a Colombian soccer game, as the opposing team was approaching scoring position, the goaltender fell to the gorund, claiming he was hit by a firecracker thrown by a fan. His ruse was uncovered, and he was banned for life by FIFA.
About 4 games ago Washington Redskins coach Norv Turner sent placekicker Edddie Murray to kick a 45 year old field goal to beat the Dalllas Cowboys. What Turner did not realize is that Murray’s range is below 45 yards. Murray didnt even reach the goalposts, Washington lost, and Daniel Snyder fired Turner the next day.
I will apologise in advance for how vague this post is, but I don’t remember all the details.
There was a football game (soccer to all you Americans) in the far east, I think between two club side in Korea. Both sides were scoring goals in their own nets because the did not want to win and thus have to play their next game at another club side, notorious for violence and intimidation. Both teams were attacking their own goals, with the opposition trying to tackle them. if a shot came in the keeper would dive the wrong way, or fall to the ground in a pathetic dive.
I don’t think it was very high scoring in the end, and both teams were banned. It finished something like 4-3.
Not exactly a bad play, but pretty stupid. That must have been one hell of an odd game to watch.
Anyone else remember the Detroit Lions and Pittsburg Steelers game a couple of Thanksgivings ago? Jerome Bettis called “heads” very clearly. The coin was flipped and came up heads, and the ref said that Bettis said “Tails” and the Lions got the kick for OT. The next Pittsburg game, Bettis brought a sign with him to the coin toss.
And did everyone forget about Leon Lett in the Super Bowl against the Bills? Had a fumble recovery for a touchdown, but started celebrating on the 10 yd line on his way to the zone, and Don Beebe caught him from behind?
Does 4 Super Bowl losses in a row count as a gaffe?
Oh I have another one, also on Thanksgiving, also by Leon Lett. 18 seconds left, Miami was kicking a field goal to win in Dallas, which had a snowstorm that day. The kick was blocked and scooted forward on the snow towards the Dallas end zone. While a bunch of Cowboys bunched around the ball to kill time off the clock, Leon Lett kicked it, which allowed Miami to get possesion. Miami reovered the ball at the goal line and slid into the end zone; the referee ruled that the ball was to be spotted at the 1 yard line with three seconds left. Miami kicked a field goal and won the game.
I agree. It wasn’t Pisarcik’s idea, though. Again, he COULD have audibled and chosen to take a knee (and he had teammates telling him to do exactly that). But having been criticized for not following the game plan earlier in the year, I can at least partly understand his position.
2sense–you raise a good point that Yepremian didn’t cost his team the championship. If “impact” of a play is a factor in “stupidest play of all time”, then Yepremian’s definitely shouldn’t be the worst.
CrunchyFrog–I agree with you re Merkle. Interestingly, baseball players routinely violate at least one rule nowadays–nowhere in the rules (I think) does it say that a catcher can block home plate, particularly if he doesn’t yet have the ball.
lurkernomore–Mark Eichhorn did the same thing that Cone did in his rookie year (I was listening to the game). Fortunately for Eichhorn, he didn’t do it in the postseason, so not as many people remember it.
OrcaChow–the player on the Michigan team was Chris Webber. Great player, but he may never live that down.
With respect to the first one, I thought a San Diego Charger did something similar. He didn’t exactly spike the ball on the five, but he was getting ready to spike the ball, and as he changed hands, he lost his grip on the ball. Touchback.
As to the Burress game, the Steelers ended up winning it.
Some time later, Dallas was playing Detroit in a Monday Night game. Detroit lined up to kick a game tying or winning field goal. It was blocked. As the ball bounced around the field, one of the announcers yelled “Don’t touch it, Leon!” 
One more. I didn’t see this one, but read about it. Tim Worley of the Steelers once tried to stiff arm a defender while running the football. He fumbled.
Perhaps he shouldn’t have tried to stiff arm the defender with the hand with which he was holding the ball.
:rolleyes:
“Well I know he touched third base 'cause he’s standing on it.”
RickQ, the game you’re perhaps thinking of occured between Barbados and Grenada. More details can be found here:
http://www.snopes2.com/spoons/fracture/football.htm
For my own contribution, my memory of the event is extremely hazy (sorry), but I remember watching an American football game in the last 10 years in which a player had the ball and was running to the end zone with no one near him. He began dancing and strutting the last 10 yards to show everyone just what a big stud he was, and ended up spending so much time hotdogging that one of the defenders was able to catch up and grab the ball from him.
Does anyone know who this moron was?
And yeah,Buckner was my first thought when I read the subject line.
–sublight.
I believe that was the same play referred to by nowalls99:
This play was actually my first thoguht when I read the thread title, but I couldn’t think of enough details and I didn’t want to post something like:
“Hey, anyone remember a game, either the SuperBowl or playoffs, or maybe a Thanksgiving game, but I do remember it wasn’t a regular Sunday game, where this guy was running to the end zone and started celebrating on the 10?”
Anyway, nowalls posted the exact play I was thinking of.
Whoops. You’re right, Crunchy, that was most likely the play I was thinking of. Strange, I read nowalls99’s post up to the part about the coin toss, I have no idea why I skipped over the rest.
Anyway, to add another stupid play, here’s one that actually required a group effort, although it wasn’t so stupid as just plain embarrassing. It took place in the J-League (Japanese Soccer) 3 years ago. A forward took a shot on net that was wide. One of the defenders got in the way and deflected the shot toward his own net, but still not quite close enough. The goalie, however, thinking the shot was going in, made a leaping dive for the ball but instead managed to smack it off the goalpost into his own goal. To add insult to injury (or injury to insult, as the case may be), he then went headfirst into goalpost, knocking himself out cold. Truly a wonder to behold.
–sublight.
Not too many commentators think very highly of Jim Mora’s call to kick a 49 yard field goal in yesterday’s OT loss of the Colts to ther Dolphions.
Of course, if the kick made it, Jim Mora would be praised for making a gutsy call!
Lett’s play was certainly idiotic, but his team was blowing the bills out so badly that his gaffe was easily forgiven.
Aside about Garo:
IMO, Yepremian’s ill-fated passing attempt does merit mention though he ultimately didn’t cause his team to lose. With his gaffe he put the game in jeopardy. Instead of making it 17-0 he put the 'Skins right back in the game. Hell, just the sheer artistry of his quarterbacking ineptitude warrants mention. He looked like a baby walrus trying to play beach volleyball. His play epitomized what Alex Karras hated about those “I want to keeck a touchdown!” furriners.
One more reason not to celebrate:
There was also one hotdogging wide receiver (IIRC, on the Dolphins in the Eighties) who celebrated his TDs by doing a flying pirhouette. On one, he landed wrong, tore his knee up and missed the rest of the season.
This wasn’t a play, but it was dumb and funny. Forgive the vagueness.
A player for the Phillies, I believe, slid head first into second. He must have forgotten where he was, or the dirt in his pants must have been of the red-hot burning variety, because he jumped up and pulled his pants down to his ankles.
It took a couple of seconds of the crowd making cat-calls before the player realized he was in a stadium full of people. He quickly pulled up his pants. There was a nice camara shot of him looking sheepish while his face turned bright red.
Another dumb non-play: Being attacked by the taupe-rolling machine.
Vinnie, I think Mora made the right call; it just didn’t pan out.
He had a choice of 3rd and 7, and try for the first, or 4th and 1, and go for the FG. VanderJagt had been tremendously accurate all season, including from 50+ yards, and the wind was at his back. He’d made one from 50 earlier that game.
Unfortunately for Mora, the Colts, and their fans, VanderJagt completely muffed the kick. But in Mora’s place, I’d make the same call. VanderJagt had been doing it for them all year, and if they take the 3rd and 7, there’s no guarantee that they even get into FG range; the Dolphins defense is one of the best defenses in the NFL, and were playing like it yesterday.
As a lifelong ‘Skins fan (sucks, right now ;)), I remember that game well. I suppose it theoretically put the Redskins right back in the game, but quite honestly, the Dolphins’ D that year was pretty damned good, and had been totally shutting down the Redskins’ one-dimensional offense (thank you, George Allen :() for some time before that fluke TD. The Redskins didn’t remotely threaten to score after that play, either.
They would have had to score a TD to tie, and get a second score to win. There was no way in hell the Redskins were going to score twice against that defense, that day, from that point on.