LAKE FOREST, Ill. (670 The Score) -- In electing to have the Bears take a knee and set up kicker Eddy Pineiro for a game-winning 41-yard field-goal attempt Sunday instead of working to improve their field position, coach Matt Nagy explained that his concerns were the potential of losing yards or committing a penalty.
What Nagy didn't take into consideration were the needs of Pineiro, whose 41-yard kick as time expired veered wide left in the Bears' 17-16 loss to the Chargers.
Nagy directed quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to take a knee on first down with 43 seconds remaining to set up Pineiro from the left hash mark. That kicking location came after Pineiro went onto Soldier Field during an earlier timeout and recognized a right-to-left wind in the north end zone, which presented a crosswind to the trajectory.
Pineiro was asked whether he preferred the left hash mark for that particular kick.
"No, I didn't," Pineiro said. "But it is what it is."
The 24-year-old Pineiro indicated a center spot would've been preferable but declined to discuss other factors any further.
During the first quarter, Pineiro missed a 33-yard field-goal attempt off the right upright in the same north end zone. He hit three field goals in the second quarter, making them from distances of 22, 25 and 19 yards, respectively.
Nagy had "ultimate faith" in Pineiro, Nagy said while also revealing his fear of a fumble, a loss of yardage or a penalty. Nagy stated there was "zero thought" to calling for a run or pass play in that situation despite the opportunity to get Pineiro closer.
On Monday afternoon, Nagy said he would take a knee "again a thousand times," though he backtracked his previous statements about Trubisky and the offense making a potential miscue.
"It's not about concern about anything can go wrong," Nagy said. "That's not what this is. It's not about trust. It's about playing smart. It's a 40-yard field goal. Think about that. That takes nothing away from Pineiro. We love Eddy. We got all the faith in the world in him. We know he's going to bounce back. Ask anybody on the team. It's the NFL. It happens. How do you respond to it? Right? How do you respond to it?
"I'm very, very comfortable knowing what I did. I'm very, very comfortable knowing if I'm in that exact situation again, at that same yard line, I'm going to do the same thing. You got me?"
The Bears named Pineiro their kicker in early September after an exhaustive search for the position. They held a number of tryouts during the offseason to find a replacement for Cody Parkey, who was released in March after a turbulent 2018 season in Chicago.
Pineiro is 12-for-15 on field-goal attempts this season. That includes a game-winning 53-yard field goal as time expired in Denver on Sept. 15.
Being new to kicking with the Bears, Pineiro has traveled to Soldier Field each week of a home game to practice in the challenging elements of Chicago's stadium.
"I'm a professional kicker," Pineiro said. "I've got to adjust to it. That's what I get paid to do, and I've just got to make kicks."
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago's sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.
