Ex-Bear Patrick Mannelly calls out special teams coordinator for a blocked field goal

Many Bears fans know Patrick Mannelly, an all-time long snapping legend who played his entire career with the Bears(1998-2014). He was so good that he created his own award, with his namesake, given to the best long snapper in college football. Since his retirement, he has still kept in touch with the Bears by becoming a regular contributor/analyst for 104.3 The Score in Chicago.

Following Chicago’s demoralizing 9-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, he appeared on the “Rahimi and Grote” show on The Score to dissect the botched field goal operation that may have cost the Bears a chance to tie the game.

With the Bears trailing 6-3 and 6:21 remaining, Cairo Santos lined up for a routine 23-yard chip shot. Instead, Vikings cornerback Isaiah Rodgers came screaming off the left edge, untouched, and dove to block the kick. Chicago didn’t score again.

Mannelly, who built his career on the precise choreography of the long snap operation, was methodical in his breakdown.

Details matter. Yes, high snap. But what’s the snap count, and was the ball snapped on the right count? Why isn’t everyone moving together? 87 missed his guy, but why? If the snap count wasn’t simple, why not? It’s a short field goal. Line up, keep it simple and make the kick. pic.twitter.com/IrJvCy6OM9

— Patrick Mannelly (@PatrickMannelly) September 21, 2026

What made it worse? The Bears’ first field goal attempt nearly got blocked too. In his postgame interview, Johnson said, “The operation was not clean. The snap was not good,” Johnson said. “The first field goal was a warning shot as far as I’m concerned.”

A familiar nightmare for Richard Hightower

For Richard Hightower, the Bears’ Special Teams coordinator, the déjà vu is impossible to ignore. In November 2024, the Bears had a field goal blocked against Green Bay in a gut-punch 20-19 loss. Then, another one was blocked the very next week against the Minnesota Vikings in an overtime loss.

And Mannelly made sure to bring up what happened two years ago when he called out Hightower during the interview.

“There’s some history with field goal issues on this team and they’ve got to fix this problem.”@PatrickMannelly weighs in on the Bears’ blocked FG against the Vikings. pic.twitter.com/j59bzgEtqK

— 104.3 The Score (@thescorechicago) September 22, 2026

While Mannelly was careful to frame this as a systemic breakdown, not an individual one, his critique was precise. When the greatest long snapper in franchise history publicly questions the Special Teams unit, that’s not background noise. That’s an alarm.

On Tuesday, long snapper Beau Gardner paid the price as he was released, and the Bears brought back ex-Bear long snapper Scott Daly. It’s an ultimate irony as Gardner won the Mannelly Award last season.

Meanwhile, rookie tight end Sam Roush, who missed a blocked assignment that led to the blocked field goal, could face similar wrath from Johnson. If he does not improve quickly, he could find himself being inactive moving forward.

By making a change at long snapper, Ben Johnson made it loud and clear: He will not allow a struggling rookie to lose a game over botched snaps. And just like he was almost two years ago, Hightower finds himself in the spotlight again for the wrong reason.

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