Bears Kicker May Not Be Fully to Blame for Epic Miss

Doink-doink. Bears kicker Cody Parkey missed a 43-yard field goal in the final seconds Sunday night when the ball hit the goalpost, then the crossbar, and bounced out. That allowed the Eagles to win the playoff game, 16-15, and earned Parkey goat status—especially since he had hit the goalpost five previous times this year, including four times on the first game of the year, notes the Washington Post. But Parkey perhaps shouldn't be shouldering all of the blame—it now looks like the Eagles' Treyvon Hester tipped the ball near the line of scrimmage. As CBS News reports, it's hard to see in this real-time video. Instead, look at this slowed down video.

"The Eagles are still alive thanks to the left hand of Treyvon Hester, who tipped Cody Parkey’s final kick," tweets reporter Bo Wulf of the Athletic, along with an image of Hester's hand. Immediately after the game, Parkey himself didn't appear to realize the ball had been tipped, or at least he wasn't using it as an excuse. "That’s one of the worst feelings in the world to let my team down," he said, per USA Today. "I feel terrible." The kick, meanwhile, has somewhat overshadowed the remarkable story of Eagles QB Nick Foles, who is repeating his off-the-bench magic of last year's Super Bowl season. The Ringer has more on that. (More NFL stories.)