It was perhaps fitting that just a few days after the Seattle Mariners ended one of the longest playoff droughts in professional sports that the Seattle Sounders officially ended one of the longest playoff streaks in professional sports. They are both reminders that good and bad streaks all eventually end.
There will be plenty of places to unpack to pain that is associated with this Sounders failure, but now seems like a good time to reflect on just how impressive of a run that was.
The first thing to keep in mind is that when the Sounders first made the playoffs in 2009, it was seen as a bit of an anomaly.