CHICAGO — Against all odds, Nick Foles just keeps on delivering in the clutch.
Playing
against one of the NFL’s fiercest defenses on the road, Foles led the
game-winning touchdown drive to help the Eagles upend the Bears 16-15 at
Solider Field. True to form, the Westlake alum was calm and collected
in even the most pressure-packed moments, as he fired a side-arm pass to
Golden Tate on fourth-and-goal to put the defending Super Bowl
champions in the lead.
But the NFC wild-card matchup had plenty more drama in store for both fan bases in the final minute.
After
a solid kick return by Tarik Cohen, Mitchell Trubisky fired a pass to
Allen Robinson down the right sideline to put Chicago in field-goal
territory at the Eagles’ 33-yard line. Following a timeout, Trubisky
whipped an 8-yard toss to Robinson to make it an even shorter kick.
What happened next was an unforgettable moment in NFL postseason lore.
In
what has been dubbed the “double-doink,” placekicker Cody Parkey saw
his opportunity to become a beloved Chicago hero push wide before
striking the left upright and caroming off the crossbar and back into
the field of play. The faces of Trubisky and Bears head coach Matt Nagy
said everything — their jaws simply dropped in stunned silence as
Philadelphia went wild.
Upon
further review, slow-motion replay shows that Eagles defensive lineman
Treyvon Hester got a hand on the kick, which may have altered its
trajectory. However, Parkey’s struggles this season have been well
documented, and the final boot could have been headed for infamy
regardless of Hester’s efforts.
It was a frenetic finish to a game that began as a battle of the two defenses.
The
Bears headed into halftime with a slim 6-3 lead following a dubious
decision by the referees on a pass to Anthony Miller. The receiver
clearly made the catch and then fumbled, but there was no clear recovery
by either team. It was ruled an incompletion, and Chicago saw a chance
at a touchdown wiped away.
Foles
directed a seven-play, 83-yard scoring drive on Philly’s first
possession of the second half that was capped by his 10-yard TD toss to
rookie tight end Dallas Goedert.
The
Bears opened the fourth quarter with their third field goal to pull
within one at 10-9, and following a three-and-out by the Eagles,
Trubisky led his team to a go-ahead score, which came on a 22-yard pass
to Robinson.
Down
15-10, Foles got the ball back and led yet another improbable march
toward the end zone. The reigning Super Bowl MVP found Alshon Jeffery,
Goedert, Nelson Agholor and Zach Ertz before hitting Tate for a TD that
kept the Eagles’ season alive.
Trubisky
showed some mental toughness of his own down the stretch and was more
than serviceable in his first career playoff start, as he threw for 303
yards and no interceptions.
In
the end, though, Foles’ magic was enough to catapult Philadelphia into a
divisional round matchup with the Saints this Sunday in New Orleans.
One former Chaparral standout — either Foles or Drew Brees — will guide
his team into the NFC Championship.
