Chicago Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was seen teasing fans just moments before his team gave up a last-second Hail Mary touchdown, leading to a 18-15 loss against the Washington Commanders on Sunday.
Videos shared on social media showed Stevenson pointing to the stands and raising his arms while the play was starting. He was slow to react and missed the opportunity to stop Zach Ertz from tipping the ball, which allowed Noah Brown to catch it in the end zone.
Later, Stevenson shared an apology on social media, saying, “To Chicago and teammates my apologies for lack of awareness and focus …. The game ain’t over until zeros hit the clock. Can’t take anything for granted. Notes taken, improvement will happen.”
The Bears, returning from a bye week, had their three-game winning streak come to an end.
“It comes down to that last play, and we’ve practiced that play a hundred times since we’ve been here,” said Bears coach Matt Eberflus. “I’ll have to look at what the execution was on that, but we have a body on a body, boxing guys out like basketball at the very end.
We have one guy at the rim that knocks the ball down. We’ve got a tip guy that goes behind the pile. I’ve got to look at it and detail it out and make sure we’re better next time.”
The Bears had just taken the lead with 25 seconds left after Roschon Johnson scored a 1-yard touchdown.
“When you lose a game like that, that’s a tough one to swallow,” Eberflus said. “I was excited about how they battled back to have a chance to win that game. It’s important to look at that, too.”
In the game, Stevenson recorded seven tackles and defended one pass but had difficulty in coverage as the Bears allowed Jayden Daniels to throw for 326 yards.
