Heroes come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes they take the form of a bizarrely large humanoid from outer space with the ability to fly at the speed of sound; other times they take the form of a Chicago Bears cornerback.
In the midst of a truly wild NFL Sunday, where virtually every play had incredible, breathtaking moments, no one shined brighter than Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson on the final play of the Bears’ 18-15 loss to the Commanders. Stevenson made himself the key player of the week by having an absolute lapse in concentration, which played a huge role in a last-second Hail Mary winning the game as time expired.
Anyone who follows football knows that cornerbacks, and indeed all defensive backs, have a… bit sometimes bombastic. It is a position that requires an enormous amount of confidence and the ability to take criticism in order to play. Like offensive linemen, most people only really remember cornerbacks when they get beat because the consequences are always dire for their teammates. As the Commanders lined up for one final charge to the end zone, Stevenson put his bravado on full display as he ran away against the Commanders fans.
It is also easy to understand why Stevenson felt a moment of triumph just before the play. Hail Marys are rarely completed, hence the name, so there was reason to believe the Bears would be able to defend the final play attempt – an attempt made easier by Stevenson as he was still trading barbs with the crowd. as it broke down. The ball was snapped, the Bears defensive line was occupied, the Commanders receivers were running towards the end zone and Stevenson was still in the corner of the end zone with his back turned to the entire play. If there hadn’t been a handful of Bears fans at the field pointing out that the game had started, he might still be going back and forth with Commanders fans.
Stevenson didn’t turn around until the Commanders’ receivers were just 20 yards from the end zone and the ball was about to be thrown. Stevenson realized his incredulous mistake and had to do his utmost to sprint from the corner of the defense towards the mosh pit that formed near the goal line. Since he was So too late to actually start, you know, playing football, he was the last person to arrive at the ball’s landing spot – which was actually right near the goal line. His last-ditch effort to avoid looking like a complete fool during the game involved him jumping towards the ball from a full sprint and deflecting the ball towards the perfect angle so it floats back into the air and lands in the hands of Commanders wide receiver Noah Brown.
If he had just paid attention to what was going on, he would have been in a position to be in front of the ball instead of coming in from an angle. That would have given him a much easier chance to just smack the ball down, but the delayed heroic antics made for an ending so uproarious that HBO comedy writers would wish it was their own brainchild. Inattention to sheer destruction in the space of about 20 seconds made Stevenson a legend within minutes of the game’s end.
Stevenson posted an apology to Bears fans after the game, saying he better move forward apologized to teammates on Monday. It’s honestly hard to believe something like this could happen to him again. It was just so stupid. It simply cannot happen again.
But it happened once. A play so astonishing that it immediately becomes one of the greatest football bloopers of all time. A unique moment of ripe incompetence that cannot be repeated should be celebrated. It’s one of those plays that is so unbelievably awful that it actually reinforces people’s love for the game. Comedies and tragedies can share many of the same thematic concepts and that was completely encapsulated by a Bears cornerback who found himself completely in space on the final play of the game.
Hopefully Stevenson can recover from his immortal mistake and move on. Fortunately, the Bears are still at 4-3 and are still in a good position to make a playoff push. He is a valuable member of one of the best defenses in the league and he will use this incident to become a better player.
But for now we have to laugh. And we did that. And that’s us. And we will.
