In the NFL, the teams that make their way deep into the playoffs are often teams that have gotten excellent luck. Of course, there are teams that make their own luck — like the Kansas City Chiefs — by overcoming injuries and tough losses in order to win a Super Bowl.
But many teams do not recover from a disaster scenario coming to life. The Pittsburgh Steelers, for example, saw their offensive skill players fall to injuries, which seemed to be their demise on the season. Sometimes, that disaster isn’t even a product of luck. It’s poor coaching, decision-making or player performance (or all the above).