Bear Digest

Angry Eagles and Bears fans hammer NFL Moment of the Year

Analysis: The Hail Mary was named top 2024 play to the frustration of Bears fans on social media, and also to Eagles fans who had an idea of their own for the season's top play.
Gene Chamberlain|
Bears bumbling led to an easy catch for the win by Noah Brown off the Hail Mary and it's the NFL's play of the year.
Bears bumbling led to an easy catch for the win by Noah Brown off the Hail Mary and it's the NFL's play of the year. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

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Chicago Bears

There might not be many times Bears and Eagles fans agree on something.

However, on Thursday night there were a lot of fans from both teams on social media saying the same thing—although it was for different reasons.

At NFL Honors, Jayden Daniels' Hail Mary touchdown pass against the Bears was named NFL Moment of the Year. 

It's difficult to argue against how impactful the Hail Mary was.

Tyrique Stevenson failed to pay attention and then ran back into the middle of the fray out of control to knock the ball back to the player he was supposed to cover. Matt Eberflus didn't prevent the play by guarding the sidelines a play earlier, then didn't use his timeout to set up the defense before he failed to send extra pass rush help to hurry the throw or snuff it out entirely.

It was a moment made by failures or gaffes and Daniels' throw really was not much of a factor.

About any NFL QB can throw the ball up for grabs from 55 yards away unchallenged and have it come down short of the goal line. It takes a really stupid maneuver on the part of the defense to make the play work. And Daniels got it from the Bears.

Bears fans were angry at Stevenson afterward, players didn't like the lack of accountability from coaches and the Eberflus regime went straight down into the drain by losing 10 straight. He was fired during the process.

The win in miracle fashion did propel the Commanders forward and they rode the momentum to the NFC Championship Game.

The Bears could have been 5-2. Instead, at 4-3 they pouted and lost to the Cardinals and lowly Patriots, then had the blocked field goal loss to Green Bay, an overtime loss after a miracle comeback against Minnesota, and finally Eberflus' finale when he failed to call timeout as Caleb Williams threw long incomplete after the Bears had been in field goal range to tie it against Detroit on thanksgiving.

Eagles fans all flocked onto social media arguing the backward or blind leap over a tackler by running back Saquon Barkley was a much better play. It came against Jacksonville in a game when the Eagles won and he rushed for 205 yards. Barkley's play led Philadelphia back to the Super Bowl.

It's difficult to argue with the Philly fans on that one.

No one has ever seen a play like the one made by Barkley, but Hail Mary passes get completed once or twice a year in the NFL. Not all are at the end of a game as some are at halftime. Some get completed but don't wind up in the end zone.

They don't always lead to the team that is victimized going into the tank, but they are common and when successful usually are more the result of the defense failing than anything the offense does.

It was certainly the case in this one and not a moment in the same class with Barkley's blind leap.

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Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.