The term “goat” has taken on different connotations over the years. Recently, it’s transformed into an acronym for “Greatest Of All Time,” but traditionally, it’s been a shortening of the word “scapegoat” to reference someone receiving blame.
In Peter King’s Football Morning in America column for NBC, he lists his “Goats of the Week,” referring to the negative definition. This week, Kyle Fuller earned the infamous recognition.
Kyle Fuller, cornerback, Chicago. As the Packers stared down a 23-17 deficit with 2:39 left Sunday night, Aaron Rodgers had first-and-10 from his 25. He had Davante Adams on a short incut, but Adams stumbled … and the pass went right into the chest of Fuller. This was not a particularly difficult ball to catch — not a bullet, but a touch pass. And Fuller, who dropped six picks last season (per Cris Collinsworth), dropped this one. Fuller will never have an easier pick in his life. Had he caught it, the Bears could have — minimum — tried a game-clinching field goal somewhere near the two-minute warning. What a drop.
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According to Pro Football Focus, Fuller was targeted a team-high eight times in the game, allowing four catches for 68 yards and a touchdowns. Packers quarterbacks had a 118.8 passer rating when targeting him.
Aside from allowing a perfectly thrown touchdown to Geronimo Allison, Fuller wasn’t all that bad in coverage, and the dropped interception will be tough to live down.
He wasn’t the only reason the Bears lost, though. Cornerbacks drop interceptions all the time, and it was a team failure to collapse that catastrophically in Green Bay.