The Bears and Eagles apparently liked the way the first half played out in Sunday afternoon’s first game because they’re doing a pretty good rendition of the Chargers-Ravens game.
Neither of the AFC teams scored a touchdown in the first half of their game and the NFC Wild Card game has played out the same way. Cody Parkey’s second field goal of the game pushed the Bears to a 6-3 lead as the whistle blew on the second quarter.
It looked like the Bears might have wound up with a pretty good shot at getting into the end zone when Mitchell Trubisky hit wide receiver Anthony Miller deep over the middle, but Eagles defensive back Cre’von LeBlanc ripped the ball free for what was ruled an incompletion. A longer look at the replay appeared to show that Miller caught the ball and fumbled it, but officials let the call stand because there was no clear recovery of the football.
That ruling left Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, NBC rules analyst (and former NFL referee) Terry McAuley and just about everyone else watching the game scratching their heads, but the rulebook says it is the correct ruling for such a turn of events.
Trubisky took a brief trip to the medical tent in the second quarter after limping off the field following a run, but didn’t miss any snaps. He’s 13-of-23 for 105 yards and hasn’t turned the ball over, although Eagles defensive back Tre Sullivan dropped an interception in the end zone just before Parkey’s second field goal.
Nick Foles has turned the ball over twice on interceptions by linebacker Roquan Smith and safety Adrian Amos. The Amos pick came in the end zone and missing points on that drive looms large as we head toward the second half of a tight one at Soldier Field.