The best story in sports this side of the Patriots' run at perfection has ended prematurely, much like the life of the man who inspired it.

Carolina Panthers coach John Fox once said, after a close loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that kept the Panthers out of the playoffs, that he was disappointed for his players, not in them. Joe Gibbs no doubt felt the same way after seeing his team's four game winning streak come to an end in the unfriendly confines of Qwest Field. In the 2007 NFC Wild Card round, Seattle's 12th Man would cheer the Seahawks to victory while the Redskins' 12th man, the late Sean Taylor, watched his team lose by three touchdowns.

In many ways it's an appropriate and fitting end to the Redskins' improbable playoff run that they'd lose by 21 points (35-14) - Taylor's jersey number - a week after defeating the Dallas Cowboys by 21 points (27-6) in week 17 en route to their playoff berth.

The team from Dallas wasn't merely playing the Cowboys to Washington's Indians, but also a roadblock in the Redskins' playoff ambitions. As such they had to be beaten — definitively. By the time the smoke cleared, Redskins players were running to the sidelines exclaiming that they'd beaten the rival Cowboys by 21 points - surely a positive omen that their playoff run was anointed to be something special.

ESPN.com quotes Redskins linebacker London Fletcher: "I can't believe it's over with for us. It just seemed our story was going to be written all the way to the Super Bowl for us."

But on this day, the Seattle Seahawks pass rush proved too severe for the depleted right side of the 'Skins' offensive line. Todd Collins fluctuated wildly between having no time to throw and taking too long to throw. By the end of the game this translated to two pick-6s and three sacks.

And when Washington's blitzes didn't make it to Seattle QB Matt Hasselbeck, cornerback Shawn Springs was left on an island with receiver D.J. Hackett, to the tune of six catches for 101 yards and a touchdown.

Beating the hated Cowboys by 21 points is a testament of the galvanizing, motivational force that Sean Taylor was and still is for his former teammates, who wear shirts bearing his image, patches bearing his number, and throw "shout-outs" his way whenever they can, as when Santana Moss held up his pointer, middle, and pinky fingers after a touchdown, their 2-1 alignment spelling out the number of his fallen teammate.

But losing by 21 points to the Seahawks is a testament to the extent to which Sean Taylor's talents can never truly be replaced, not by Reed Doughty or anyone on the Redskins roster. Losing a 24-year-old man is tragic no matter how you look at it. But Taylor was also one of the top safeties in all of football. When he came into the NFL from the University of Miami, pundits predicted that Taylor would revolutionize the safety position the way Ray Lewis has the middle linebacker position.