NFL 25 Dream Teams that ended up being failures

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New Washington Redskin cornerback Deion Sanders (C) (Photo by MARIO TAMA / AFP) /

NFL 25 Dream Teams that ended up being failures: 25. 2000 Washington Football Team

The Washington Football team came into the 2000 season with all the hype. They were coming off a season where they won the NFC East, and they added Deion Sanders to sure up the cornerback position. They also signed veterans Bruce Smith and Mark Carrier to put together a dominant defense. On top of all that, they had the second-overall pick in the NFL Draft after the disastrous Ricky Williams trade. And they had the third-overall pick after a trade with the 49ers. They took superstar linebacker LaVar Arrington and starting tackle Chris Samuels. This looked like Washington could have a legitimate Super Bowl contender.

Things fell apart in spectacular fashion. Washington lost two of its first three games, but then they won five in a row. It looked like the team just needed to shake off some cobwebs. At 6-2, Washington was becoming one of the league favorites to win the Super Bowl.

This team had everything. They had veteran leaders up and down the lineup. They had young stars like Arrington and Champ Bailey. Stephen Davis was becoming one of the best running backs in the game. Then, the wheels came off.

Washington lost two devastating games in a row despite driving to win. In one, Aeneas Williams turned a sure rushing touchdown by Davis into a 103-yard fumble return for touchdown leading to a loss to the lowly Cardinals. At one point, Jeff George was forced to take over for Brad Johnson under center, and the offense just never got going. The close losses piled up, and soon that 6-2 start turned into a 7-6 record. Washington decided to fire head coach Norv Turner after he couldn’t score more than 7 points against the New York Giants (they needed 10 to win).

After the season, things got crazier. Sanders abruptly retired despite having six more seasons on his contract. Washington wouldn’t make the playoffs again until the 2005 season. It was one of the true “dream teams” that was an utter disappointment.

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