Watch: Chris Boswell recovers his own kickoff
Steel City Underground will pick an exceptional play of the game as a highlight each week of the Steelers 2021 regular season. Stay tuned as we hand-select the very best from the Black and Gold!
On Monday Night Football, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Chicago Bears kept things interesting. It wasn’t necessarily the result Steelers Nation wanted from the guys in black and gold, winning by just two points in a game many felt the Steelers should have closed the door on early in the night at Heinz Field.
One play, however, stood out in a unique way that should have put plenty of smiles on the faces of Pittsburgh fans worldwide.
The Bears cut the Steelers’ lead to 20-13 with 14:17 remaining in the final quarter of the game when Justin Fields was able to hit Darnell Mooney and Jimmy Graham deep before Mooney scrambled into the end zone on a wildcat-snapped 11-yard run (David Montgomery handled the snap). The Steelers were able to respond quickly thanks to a 30-yard pass interference flag thrown against the Bears on a play from Ben Roethlisberger to Diontae Johnson. Kicker Chris Boswell successfully belted the 54-yard field goal that gave the Steelers a 23-13 lead with 11:54 left in regulation time.
On the ensuing kickoff, James Pierre was able to strip the ball from Bears returner Jakeem Grant. The ball, officially a forced fumble, rolled right to Boswell. The kicker, on his knees, protected the ball and took a hit to essentially recover his own kickoff.
“I can’t say enough about Boz and his level of consistency and his desire to deliver for us in those weighty moments and circumstances,” Mike Tomlin said of Boswell. “I think that’s the thing that probably stands out about him more than anything else. He’s a guy that runs to those moments as opposed to away from those moments. We just have a great deal of confidence in him. He’s earned that with how he performs.”
“I took a pretty good shot and got folded in half, but I just saw the ball, grabbed it, and the next thing I know I’m at the bottom of a pile.” – Chris Boswell via SI.com
The play made the NFL record books. Verified by Michael Bertsch of the Pittsburgh Steelers PR department, Boswell became the first player in NFL history to make two 50-plus yard field goals, hit the game-winning field goal, and recover a fumble in a single game. Although Boswell is not the only NFL kicker to have recovered a fumble, the play was a unique highlight that should be placed into the annals of Steelers history.
