In the first half of the season, Paul Edinger was arguably the Bears’ most valuable player. He beat Oakland with a 48-yard field goal on the final play and made 16-of-17 overall, his only miss coming on a block.
But in the last two weeks, Edinger has missed and been forced to watch as the opponent’s kicker became the hero. Jason Hanson kicked four field goals in the Lions’ 12-10 victory last week, and Jeff Wilkins kicked three Sunday, including a 31-yard game-winner.
“He’s in a slump, and that’s very uncharacteristic of him,” Bears coach Dick Jauron said of Edinger, who made one kick against the Lions but had one attempt go wide left and another blocked.
On Sunday, Edinger was wide left on a 34-yard attempt in the first half. It would have given the Bears a 17-3 lead.
“Every year I missed a few in a row,” Edinger said. “I’ve missed four [this season], and it’s the best year I’ve been having, that’s all I can say.”
The miss was Edinger’s only field-goal attempt of the game. Jauron elected not to have Edinger try a 58-yard field goal to win the game, a decision with which Edinger had no argument.
