The Cardinals’ loss to the Eagles on Sunday ended with kicker Matt Ammendola missing a 43-yard field goal that would have tied the game. That resulted in a large throng of reporters congregating around Ammendola’s locker afterward, which didn’t sit well with teammate Justin Pugh.
Pugh stepped between Ammendola and the large media crowd and said it isn’t fair to blame Ammendola for the entire team falling short.
“It’s not on one fucking guy. Everyone’s waiting around on one fucking guy to come back here? This fucking ain’t right. It’s not right. It’s not on one fucking guy,” Pugh told reporters.
Pugh then said to Ammendola, “So just keep your fucking head up.”
Pugh is certainly correct that a lot more than one person deserves blame for the Cardinals’ loss to the Eagles. But it did come down to the final field goal, and it’s reasonable that reporters wanted to hear what Ammendola had to say afterward.
For his part, Ammendola said all he can do is go back to work. It’s not clear whether Ammendola will have a job to go back to, however. He’s only on the roster because the Cardinals’ regular kicker, Matt Prater, is currently dealing with a hip injury. It was Ammendola’s first game as a Cardinal, and possibly his last.