When the Bears drove up the field to set up a game-winning field goal attempt, Parkey was the man who was entrusted with the Bears' playoff fate. When Parkey hit a yard attempt off the uprights and saw it bounce off the goalpost and back onto the field, Parkey may as well have become the dirt beneath the feet of the average Chicagoan.
Parkey's miss that knocked the Bears out of the playoffs laid him low and made him an easy target of many things: Vitrol, derision, mockery, and the such. But he was hardly the first kicker to ever make a critical mistake in the playoffs: Once upon a time, one of the greatest players in the history of the Carolina Panthers made a critical mistake that helped lead to a bitter defeat on the NFL's biggest stage.
His name was John Kasay. His next step was to handle kickoff duties, and try to pin the New England Patriots back in their own territory to either force overtime or potentially make a play on defense. But then, the Panthers were flagged for a delay of game - Backing them up five yards, and setting up a miss by Kasay that kept the game going.
Fortunately, the Panthers would ultimately prevail. From there, Kasay would be perfect on the Panthers' way to potential glory. In the Super Bowl, Kasay successfully made a yard field goal at the end of the first half, and made both of his extra-point attempts. Kasay's second extra point came after wide receiver Ricky Proehl 's touchdown with left to play, and tied the game at all.
Hold off the New England Patriots, and the Panthers could force overtime: A scenario that boded extremely well for them. Kasay handled the ensuing kickoff from the Panthers' yard line. But his kickoff went out of bounds, incurring a penalty for illegal procedure. Instead of potentially pinning the Patriots back in their own territory, they were given the ball at their own yard line.
Which was more than enough for the Tom Brady-led offense to march into Panthers territory for a game-winning field goal. As an unfortunate result of Kasay's error, his legacy has been affected somewhat. Though Kasay is generally accepted as a Panthers franchise great, conversations of his career have come to include the "Yeah, but" concession as it pertains to his Super Bowl kickoff.
The Patriots also went, what, 45, 50, 60 yards? There are plenty of mementos from his four children. A stapler with his name laminated on it. Schedules upon schedules for various teenage athletics teams. But there are no game balls or plaques or framed jerseys in the office of the Charlotte Christian School athletic director. I think there are a few more evidences of that.
I loved kicking. It was a great experience. I think football is a great sport and it helps a lot of people. Those are the things that have always grated on me. The Panthers had made their first-ever Super Bowl in the season by going 11—5 and winning two playoff games on the road to face the Patriots in Houston.
The game had it all. Janet Jackson had a wardrobe malfunction. Two quarters of play saw no points, while the other two had them all.
With left in the game, the Panthers tied the score at 29 when Jake Delhomme found Ricky Proehl for a yard touchdown. Brady, with one Super Bowl to his name already two years after supplanting Drew Bledsoe as the starter, was not yet the Brady we know today. There was no guarantee that he could get the offense into field-goal range in a minute, and the game seemed likely to be the first Super Bowl to ever go to overtime. In that situation, a left-footed kicker can aim to that spot and kick it straight, or he can aim straight and put some left-to-right English on the ball.
Kasay combined the worst of both strategies. He knew it as soon as he kicked it. Five plays later, Vinatieri hit the game-winning yard field goal with nine seconds left. A lot of people come and ask me did he get paid off.
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