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Sports fans have to endure a lot. From months of wishful anticipation in the off-season leading up to a 1 in 16 chance of seeing your team in the Super Bowl, being a fan is stressful. Although fans of any team know what it’s like to be on edge during a two-minute drill or a last-minute “Hail Mary”, we know that some fans have it worse than others.
To determine which fans truly have it the worst, Lhasa OMS conducted a study to see which teams subjected their teams to the most stressful, late-game situations. They looked at each teams’ number of close games, games decided by 7 points or less, and yielded some interesting results. Keep reading to see what they found!
Close Games – Regular Season
Since 2014, an astonishing 58 percent of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers games have been decided by 7 points or less. Going back to when Josh McCown and Mike Glennon were fighting for the starting job, 46 of their total 80 games have been decided by one score or less. Add Jameis Winston’s turnover problems and you have a recipe for broken spirits all over the sunshine state.
On the contrary, fans of the NFL’s supervillain New England Patriots have only had to endure a 35 percent close game margin, good for the lowest rate in all of professional football. No surprise there. However, they haven’t won a single one of their regular-season games that go to overtime over a five year period. Not one.
Close Games – Playoffs
When it comes to the playoffs, the NFL’s unluckiest fan base is that of the Chicago Bears. Plagued by devastating losses in close games, the Bears have lost ALL of the playoff games they have been in over the past 5 seasons by one touchdown or less. This team has done a lot of damage to its fans, prompting responses like this tweet from Barstool Sports personality “Big Cat”.
On the contrary, the New England Patriots once again take the cake as the easiest team to cheer for in the NFL, winning 100 percent of their close playoff games over the past five seasons. There is some solace in knowing that they recently lost to the Tennessee Titans by a slim margin, so maybe the tide is turning in the NFL with the possible departures of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.
No matter who you cheer for, each season has its highs and lows. Remember to take in the victories, shake off the losses, and keep holding on to the hope that your team will bring home the Lombardi trophy in the years to come (hopefully sooner rather than later).
