What started as a good night for Cody Parkey took a drastic turn during the next-to-last play of the game.
With 10 seconds left, the Bears trusted Parkey, who kicked three field goals in the Bears’ 16-15 loss to the Eagles on Sunday, to win them the game with a 43-yard kick.
But that didn’t happen.
Parkey made the 43-yarder on his first try, but Eagles coach Doug Pederson had called a timeout before the snap. On his second attempt, he hit the left upright and the crossbar, and just like that, the Bears’ magical season ended, and fans were livid.
After the game, replays showed that Eagles defensive tackle Treyvon Hester actually got a hand on Parkey’s kick, which may have changed the trajectory of the ball.
Despite the revelation, Bears fans continued to harass Parkey on social media, sparking several of his teammates and other athletes to defend him.
Asked after the game what message he had for fans threatening Parkey, Bears left tackle Charles Leno Jr. said: “You’re not in our position. You don’t know how hard this s— is.”
Kyle Long took some of the blame for the loss and said he couldn’t “even imagine what he’s going through.”
“I missed a bunch of blocks today, and I’m sure some of them were unnoticed,” Long said. “When you’re in a position like that, I can’t imagine how tough that is. I just told him, ‘Dude, you had half our points today.’ I can’t even imagine what he’s going through.”
NBA star and Chicago native Dwyane Wade chimed in on Twitter and commended Parkey for not making excuses when he was questioned by the media after the game.
“Most of you have no idea how hard this is to do,” Wade wrote. “Cody Parkey, way to face the media like a true professional. I’m a fan!”
Here’s how other people reacted to Parkey’s missed kick and the way he handled himself after the game:
