This one is going to make the offseason even longer.
That will not be an easy game to get over or soon forget. That is up there with the worst gut punches Bears fans have absorbed in recent years.
Since 2000, the biggest ones I can think of are Rex Grossman’s pick six to Kelvin Hayden in Super Bowl XLI, but there was still over 11 minutes to play and the Bears were down 12.
In the 2010 NFC Championship game, Jay Cutler got hurt and Caleb Hanie gave fans a slight glimmer of hope before throwing a pick six to B.J. Raji.
Then there was the fourth and eighth against the Packers in Week 17 with the division on the line in 2013.
But none of those were the last second, chance-to-win moments that Parkey’s doink was Sunday.
At once, it all felt possible, impossible and somehow, expected.
There were some silver linings though; much of this team will return next year, players such as Trubisky should only get better and this team wasn’t supposed to be in the playoffs yet.
However, there is still a lot of disappointment. Losing at home, at the last second, sucks.
Stock up
Mitchell Trubisky, QB - Did he start off rocky? Yes. Did he have two ‘near’ interceptions? Yes. However, in his first career playoff start, in a season with few “go win it, kid” moments, Trubisky stepped up and showed poise and that the moment isn’t too big for him. His touchdown drive to give the Bears to lead early in the fourth, hitting Taylor Gabriel for 19, then Josh Bellamy for 34 and on the very next play, Allen Robinson II with a beauty of a drop in the bucket throw for a 22-yard TD.
Then he got the ball with 48 seconds and one time out and managed to move the offense 33 yards and in position for the win. There’s a lot to like in those closing moments.
Allen Robinson, WR - Robinson has been solid all year but he really showed out Sunday. On a day when the Eagles took away the Bears’ weapon in Tarik Cohen, Robinson stepped up big time to the tune of a Bears playoff record 10 catches for 143 yards and a touchdown.
Leonard Floyd, OLB - Look, this spot could’ve gone to either Floyd or Hicks and while Hicks was the best defender on the field all night, I’m giving to the nod to Floyd. One, because we all know (and expect) the greatness of Hicks on a consistent basis. And two, because Floyd had more disruptive plays; the only sack of Nick Foles, a PD, one TFL and two QBHs.
Stock down
Kyle Fuller, CB - Fuller did not have his best night, continuously getting beat by his former teammate Alshon Jeffery (6 catches, 82 yards). That’s not to say that Fuller is trash, I think he just struggled on the night as a whole.
Adrian Amos, S - Should this be Amos’ final game in a Bears uniform, it shows why it is all right for him to go. Yes, he had an interception but he missed a couple key tackles, had a bad penalty called on him and wasn’t able to communicate that the defense was a man short on defense.
*Cody Parkey, K - We all knew who it would be. Yes, it is officially a block. Yes, we can debate forever if it was going to go in or not without the block. The fact is, Parkey didn’t execute when he needed to. He’s a good person and I wish him well, but let’s face it, he can’t come back to the Bears.
Who did I miss?
*It goes without saying, personal shots and anything remotely close to threats at Parkey or his family will not be tolerated.
from Windy City Gridiron - All Posts http://bit.ly/2ACR9xi
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