A playoff regular over the past three seasons, the Revolution came back to earth in 2016.
The club drafted a proven defender, acquired a perennial golden-boot contender and signed a menacing DP to replace Jermaine Jones. But by early fall, the team had dug itself into a hole that ultimately proved to deep to evade.
So, what went wrong? Our staff takes a closer look:
1. Inconsistent play from the back line
The Revs leaked goals in 2016. Much of the blame falls on an inconsistent back line, which fielded 12 different personnel groupings between March and August.