No one ever wants to be labeled a bust, but one thing that might be even worse is someone who is hyped as a superstar athlete but fails to live up to the pressure. You see, busts are expected every once in awhile, with circumstances affecting their careers. But when an athlete has some success but doesn’t achieve what everyone thought they would, becoming nothing more than a B-level guy, that’s when it hurts. And these 15 athletes know exactly what that feels like, as they’re the athletes who were hyped up and couldn’t handle the pressure.
Photo via YouTube
15. David Beckham
Don’t get me wrong, former soccer player David Beckham was an absolute superstar when it came to marketing and iconic appeal, but on the soccer field, he didn’t achieve all he could. Incapable to lead his English national team to any World Cup glory, Becks is a legion, but he never won a whole lot until he moved to Major League Soccer.
Photo via YouTube
14. Gregg Jefferies
Baseball people love to hype up prospects about as much as websites do before each NFL draft. So when the New York Mets selected Gregg Jefferies in the first-round of the 1985 MLB draft, many thought he would be the next big thing. A three-time minor-league MVP, Jefferies did have a long MLB career and made two All-Star Games, but he fell well short of what many believed he would become.
Photo via YouTube
13. Freddy Adu
One could make a serious case that soccer player Freddy Adu is actually the most disappointing player on this entire list. Looked at as a savior and influencer of U.S. soccer back in 2004 at the age of 14, Adu never became the next Pele that people wanted him to be. Signed to a professional contract that same year, Freddy only suited up for Team USA a few times, and has bounced around with various club teams.
Photo via YouTube
12. Danica Patrick
Danica Patrick might look amazing, but she doesn’t necessarily drive all that amazing. Burning it up with her style and sexiness in photos, Danica hasn’t burnt up the racing scene as many experts wanted her to. While she has accomplished great feats and showed that women can race with the men, she still has never won a race, making her career more of a disappointment than she would want to admit.
Photo via YouTube
11. Tim Tebow
While Tim Tebow enjoyed one of the best college football careers ever, winning a Heisman Trophy and two national titles for the Florida Gators, when it came to the NFL, he flopped. A surprising first-round pick by the Denver Broncos, Tebow could never develop into a true passer, bouncing around to a few different teams before finding himself as an analyst on ESPN these days.
Photo via YouTube
10. Darryl Strawberry
A former No. 1 overall pick, outfielder Darryl Strawberry came into the majors with a bang in 1983, winning the NL Rookie of the Year and making eight-straight All-Star Games from 1984-’91. However, after his last All-Star appearance, Strawberry could never stay on the field, never playing more than 101 games again in his career, which came in his second to last season at the age of 36. For a guy with such promise, he disappeared almost as fast as he emerged.
Photo via YouTube
9. Sebastian Telfair
Following in the footsteps of former prep phenom LeBron James by scoring a cover of Sports Illustrated while still in high school, the stories of Sebastian Telfair’s game were well-documented. As confident as they come, Telfair skipped college and went straight to the NBA, where he was never able to put it together for a variety of reasons and playing for eight teams in nine seasons, including a trip to China to play in their pro hoops league.
Photo via YouTube
8. Ickey Woods
He didn’t come into the NFL with a lot of acclaim, but after showing that he had some game by rushing for over 1,000 yards and 15 touchdowns in his rookie season, former running back Ickey Woods was thought to be a star in the making. However, injuries and inconsistency halted his career after that, going on to rush for just 459 yards and 12 total touchdowns in the next four years in the league before hanging it up for good.
Photo via YouTube
7. Drew Henson
A two-sport star who played for the Michigan Wolverines in college, Drew Henson was the All-American boy who could, seemingly, do it all. Playing for the New York Yankees after signing a big deal with them out of college, Henson thought he would try his hand at football, playing for the Dallas Cowboys, too. It’s too bad he couldn’t put things together in either sport, though, even as athletically talented as he was.
Photo via YouTube
6. Ryan Leaf
After seeing the career that Peyton Manning has had, it’s still shocking to me that the Indianapolis Colts had to question if Ryan Leaf should have been their guy back in 1998 instead. Thankfully, the team took the right guy, because Leaf became one of the biggest disappointments in sports history, arguing with teammates, coaches and media members in his short career. After winning the Rose Bowl with Washington State the season he came into the league, many believed he was a franchise quarterback without question—never happened, though.
Photo via YouTube
5. Alex Rodriguez
This one might be really harsh, but seeing as how Alex Rodriguez’s entire MLB career has been tarnished now that he has been linked to PEDs for so long, the slugger has to be added here. Once considered the most talented player in the game, everything he has ever accomplished comes with an asterisk, making his accomplishments both questionable and irrelevant.
Photo via YouTube
4. Sergio Garcia
Prior to the new breed of pro golfers that have had success on the PGA Tour in recent years, there was Sergio Garcia—a Spaniard who was supposed to push Tiger Woods in major tournaments and challenge his reign as the best in the sport. Sergio has a few wins on tour, but none of them have come in the biggest tournaments, making any rivalry that was supposed to happen with Woods never even getting off of the ground.
Photo via Flickr/jmcmenemie
3. Anna Kournikova
There was a moment in time when Anna Kournikova was thought to be the next women’s tennis player to take over the ATP Tour. In fact, if you asked a few people now, they may still think that she competes. Unfortunately, Anna gave up on her athletic career to focus on modeling after never managing to win a singles title during her short career, making her a major disappointment.
Photo via YouTube
2. Reggie Bush
Expected to be the next Gale Sayers, when the New Orleans Saints took former USC Trojans star Reggie Bush No. 2 overall in 2006, they thought he was getting a surefire superstar. And while Bush has had a few solid years, he has yet to ever make a Pro Bowl and become the dominating, multi-purpose player that had many thinking he was a once-in-a-decade type of guy.
Photo via YouTube
1. Darko Milicic
OK, so Darko Milicic is probably the biggest bust on this entire list, never becoming the player that scouts or coaches thought he would when he was selected ahead of players like Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade in the 2003 NBA draft. Out of basketball and trying to pursue a career in MMA, Darko had a few opportunities in the Association and could never do anything with them.
Photo via YouTube
