Scott Parker made nine changes to the side that produced that brilliant comeback away at Crystal Palace in the Premier League in midweek and the weakened Clarets team ultimately came back to bite them.
Jacob Bruun Larsen, Ashley Barnes and Loum Tchaouna all missed gilt-edged chances to put the game beyond Mansfield on the day but their lack of game-time showed with rustiness in front of goal.
Parker's side finished with an expected goals tally of 3.82, their highest of the 2025-26 campaign by some distance - yet they were only able to find the net once.
Had any of the chances fallen to the likes of Jaidon Anthony or Zian Flemming, you would have fancied that they would have taken them.
It begs the question why exactly Parker made so many changes to a side that don't play again for seven days.
A League One opponent arguably provided the perfect opportunity to build momentum and claim two successive wins for just the third time this season.
After such a morale-boosting victory against Palace, the Clarets have been brought back down to Earth with a large bump.
With no cup competitions left to take part in and survival chances looking increasingly slim, it looks like it may well be another season to forget.