Was Cody Parkey the primary target for the Chicago Bears last offseason? Based on the money they gave him, one would think so. However, special teams coordinator Chris Tabor revealed that things might’ve been different if he’d had his way. During an interview with Adam Jahns of The Athletic, he revealed that the 2018 NFL scouting combine was where he experienced the best prospect interview of his entire career. The subject involved? Florida standout kicker Eddy Pineiro.
Apparently Tabor was quite taken with him.
“It was one of the best interviews I ever had in my entire life,” said Tabor, who has coached in the NFL since 2008. “It really was.”
What made it so great? It was seeing the kicker’s wide smile as he told his story. It was gaining an understanding of his training and what motivates him.
As Tabor left the interview, he told himself, “I don’t know a lot about him yet, but man, am I pulling for that kid.”
“It’s a hard one to explain,” Tabor told The Athletic in an interview at Halas Hall. “But you know how you meet someone and you go (Tabor starts wagging and pointing a finger), ‘That guy.’ Or that girl. There’s something that you gravitate to. I guess it’s the ‘it’ factor. You know what I mean? He just had that. There wasn’t quirkiness to him. There was just a genuine good guy who is going for it, and I respect that.”
Unfortunately for Tabor, the team seemed intent on finding a less risky option for the position. Somebody with experience and proven credentials. Their solution ended up being Cody Parkey, who they signed to an expensive new deal. A month later they watched as Pineiro went undrafted and eventually signed with the Oakland Raiders. It looked like Tabor would have to watch his guy have success elsewhere.
Fate has a funny way of working out though.
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Eddy Pineiro injury and Parkey’s collapse led to trade
Several things needed to happen for Tabor to get his wish. Not only would Parkey have to somehow crash and burn in epic fashion. Pineiro would also need to be available. Neither seemed likely in August that year. Parkey seemed to be settling in fine to the job while Pineiro was on his way to securing the kicker position in Oakland. Then? Things started changing. The rookie suffered an injury that landed him on IR, paving the way for Daniel Carlson to come in and eventually cement the job for himself.
Not long after, Parkey began his steady implosion. He missed 10 kicks over the course of the 2018 regular season, which was bad enough. Then he saved the 11th for the final seconds of the playoff game against Philadelphia, costing the Bears a win. Then for good measure, he made a self-serving appearance on The Today Show to talk about his experiences after the loss. That proved the final straw. Parkey was cut.
Once again the Bears were forced to go hunting for a kicker. Tabor was content to sift through a massive pile of nine legs when minicamps opened in May. He thought he had his two best options in Elliott Fry of the defunct AAF and Chris Blewitt, a former kicker out of Pitt. That’s when Ryan Pace came to him with a revelation. The Raiders had made Pineiro available for trade. The coach didn’t hesitate.
The rest is history.
