Mason Crosby, Packers win missed FG-fest on fourth try after Evan McPherson’s premature celebration

It took four tries, but Mason Crosby finally managed to help the Packers earn a win over the Bengals.

Green Bay beat Cincinnati 25-22 in an overtime contest that neither team seemed to want to win. Five of the final seven drives of the game ended with missed field goals. Three of them belonged to Crosby while two belonged to Cincinnati’s Evan McPherson.

But in the end, Crosby finally managed to convert on a 49-yard field goal to end his streak of three consecutive misses and salvage a win in one of the worst performances of his career.

Here’s a look at the late-game drama in the missed field-goal fest that was the Packers-Bengals game.

Mason Crosby misses three straight field goals

Crosby hadn’t missed a field goal since 2019 before Sunday’s game against the Bengals. The long-time Packers kicker had made 29 straight attempts, and his last miss came in Week 17 of the 2019 season against the Lions.

But in the fourth quarter of the Packers’ win, Crosby saw that streak come to an end. He hooked a 36-yard field goal, pulling it to the left. That sent him on a mini-spiral, as he missed his next two field goals following that. Each of those potential game-winning attempts also sailed to the left, including his first attempt during overtime.

This game had the makings of the worst day of Crosby’s career. It marked just the second time during his career that he had missed three or more field goals. The other came against the Lions in 2018. He missed four field goals and an extra point in a 31-23 loss.

Crosby would have directly impacted a potential Packers loss on Sunday. He did squander three go-ahead and two game-winning opportunities, after all. But luckily for him, the Bengals’ kicker had trouble of his own in Week 5.

Evan McPherson’s game-winning misses, premature celebration

McPherson was playing in just his fifth NFL game on Sunday, but he had already been involved in heroics throughout his NFL career. He made three walk-off field goals in his first four games with the Bengals and had opportunities for another go-ahead field goal and one potential game-winner.

The first miss came with 26 seconds left in the game. McPherson attempted a 57-yard kick that would have won the game. However, it hit the center of the right upright and bounced harmlessly to the ground.

In overtime, McPherson had a shot at a 49-yard game-winner. It came very close to going through, but it just grazed the flag and went wide left.

McPherson, however, didn’t realize the kick was off-target. So, he was celebrating it as if it was a game-winning make.

The rookie was quickly brought back down to earth after his teammates informed him that it had sailed just wide.

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Mason Crosby earns redemption

McPherson’s miss gave the Packers a second chance to mount a game-winning drive. They moved the ball downfield and into field goal range, but they came grinding to a halt at the Cincinnati 32.

The Packers originally lined up to go for it on fourth-and-1 instead of kicking a 49-yard field goal. However, Matt LaFleur took a timeout, reconsidered and sent Crosby back onto the field.

Crosby didn’t miss this time. He split the uprights, won the game for the Packers and avoided tying a career-high in missed field goals.

After the game, Crosby discussed how he felt at the end of the game.

“I just wanted so badly to come through there,” Crosby said to reporters. “It’s what I do. I had a couple go bad there and I was really happy to hit that last one.”

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