Blake Brockermeyer isn’t a name a lot of Chicago Bears fans will remember off the top of their heads. He was a former 1st round pick of the Carolina Panthers in 1995. After four seasons with them, he signed with the Bears as a free agent in 1999. There he played for three years, helping them win the division in 2001 with one of the best rushing attacks in the league.
Aside from having a reputation as a tough, strong guard up front he also apparently had another. He hated kickers. Longtime Bears long snapper Patrick Mannelly caught up with Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune and relived one of his favorite stories. This centering around a game in San Diego back in 1999.
The Bears had a chance to win the game in overtime. It was tied 20-20 but the offense had driven into range for a 36-yard field goal. The problem was they didn’t have the most reliable kicker in Chris Boniol. He’d already missed two of his previous three kicks in the past two games. One of them a three-point loss to the Vikings.
Then he missed another during the game against the Chargers. That did not sit well with Brockermeyer.
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Blake Brockermeyer bet teammates $100 Boniol would miss
Let’s just say the Bears guard had little patience for the feelings of others when they weren’t doing their job. Mannelly explained what happened next as the team lined up to attempt the kick.
Said Mannelly: “Blake turns to Big Cat and goes, ‘Bet you a hundred bucks our kicker misses it.’ And I’m thinking, Blake just bet against our own kicker.
“He said it loud enough that I guarantee you Boniol heard him. The entire Chargers line is shouting at us, ‘Are you kidding me?’ ”
Mannelly laughed.
“Cat just said, ‘I’ll take that bet!’ ”
Boniol nailed the kick. Bears win.
“Blake wasn’t joking,” Mannelly said. “He was just one of those guys. He was so aggravated by kickers missing kicks. The offense would work to get us in position to score and a kicker would miss. Or they couldn’t make five in a row in practice. I just remember getting ready for that snap and thinking, ‘He just bet a hundred bucks that our own kicker is going to miss.’ ”
It’s not hard to understand his frustration. Bears kickers missed 15 field goals in 1999. Keep in mind that 1999 team lost five games by four points or less. One game they lost 6-3 to Tampa Bay with Boniol whiffing one of his two field goal attempts. Such things can wear the idea of being a good teammate down until you finally snap. Brockermeyer did.
Boniol was gone the next year, replaced by Paul Edinger.
