Over 24 hours have passed since the Chicago Bears stunned the Denver Broncos, and Eddy Pineiro is still the talk of the town.
Teammates flocked to social media to share their support for him and he’s earned the nickname “Eddy Dinero” for his clutch moment.
For the first time since the 2015 season, everyone finally seems to feel comfortable with the Bears kicking game. One former coach believes a miss would have spelled absolute disaster for the young kicker.
John Fox is now an analyst for ESPN, and he shared his thoughts to co-worker and NFL insider Adam Schefter on how Pineiro’s fourth field goal attempt in the NFL would define his Bears career one way or the other.
“I’m watching [Bears vs. Broncos] with John Fox later in the day,” Schefter told ESPN Radio on Monday. “He goes ‘Do you realize how massive this kick is for this one individual and the team?’ He said this before the kick, ‘If this guy misses this kick, he probably can’t kick in Chicago again. If he makes it, he’s a hero with confidence and momentum.’ So that’s all that’s riding on this one kick at the end of the game.”
Of coursen Pineiro is the hero for Bears fans everywhere, had he missed, Bears fans might have turned on him in an instant. Up to that point, Pineiro was a perfect 3-for-3 on the year with two makes, including a 52-yarder, earlier in the game.
The start of the season was riding on that kick, and Pineiro’s Bears career may have been as well.
