It won’t make Bears fans feel any better . . . or Cody Parkey for that matter. But the NFL officially changed Parkey’s 43-yard, game-winning attempt to a blocked field goal.
No one mentioned Parkey’s kick being blocked until postgame interviews when Eagles defensive lineman Treyvon Hester revealed he tipped the ball. It began a social media debate about whether Hester really touched the ball, with a “Zapruder film” type of frame-by-frame video of the kick.
The NFL, though, has made the change on its Game Statistics & Information System site. In the play by play from the game, it now lists the play as:
4-2-PHI 25 (:10) (Field Goal formation) C.Parkey 43 yard field goal is BLOCKED (T.Hester), Center-P.Scales, Holder-P.O’Donnell.
So it’s official: Hester blocked Parkey’s kick. Now, everyone can debate whether Hester’s tip was the reason Hester missed the kick, but the NFL apparently saw enough that it thinks Hester was the reason for Parkey’s miss.