Chicago Bears kicker Eddy Pineiro said that the left hash wasn't the spot he wanted the football for the game-deciding kick against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Asked Eddy Pineiro directly if he wanted to be on the left hash for the final game-deciding kick Sunday. He said that was not his preferred spot.
(Pineiro immediately felt very bad for saying that out loud. But man …)
— Dan Wiederer (@danwiederer) October 29, 2019
Pineiro would have rather had the ball in the middle of the field, but he knows that he is a professional kicker and needs to adjust to whatever kick he is given.
Pineiro ended up just missing the game-winning kick that was on the left hash, but if it would have been in the middle of the field, that same kick would have gone right through the upright.
Bears coach Matt Nagy has gotten a lot of criticism for the way he handled the end of the game, but this might be what he deserves the most criticism for. Instead of trying to gain more yards and get a closer kick, Nagy decided to take a knee because he was concerned about fumbling the ball or losing yards.
It is understandable that Nagy didn't want to fumble, but a coach needs to know where their kicker wants to kick, and he should have been doing everything in his power to get the ball to the middle of the field. If you are putting all of your faith in your kicker, why not try to do everything in your power to make the kick as easy as possible for him?
It's another puzzling decision for the Bears that could end up costing them a playoff spot. If they miss the playoffs by one game, a lot will be pointing to this game as the turning point in the season.
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