Bears' Stevenson on DPI against Addison: 'It's not my fault he's 135 pounds'

This is the same guy who mocked the Skol chant in the Bears' blowout loss to the Vikings.

Nov 10, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA;Chicago Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson (29) practices before the game against the New England Patriots at Soldier Field. / Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson is like a comic book villain who keeps getting vanquished by the superhero and coming back for more.

Stevenson's 2024 season will be remembered for one of the worst gaffes in recent NFL history. His all-time boneheaded play during the Commanders' Hail Mary in Week 8 sparked Chicago's eight-game losing streak. In their latest loss, he mocked the Vikings' Skol chant while down 10-0 in what ended up as a Minnesota blowout. Later in that game, he was beaten deep by Jordan Addison and called for a pass interference penalty that set up the Vikings touchdown that basically sealed the game.

And he wasn't done. While discussing Monday night's loss with Bears media, Stevenson took issue with the DPI call, blaming Addison's lack of size for the flag.

"It's hard doing this job, playing DB in the league," he said. "It's an offensive league, so you kinda don't get the calls. Ball was in the air, I played it back. I thought once the ball was in the air, I look back, it becomes a 50/50, a little shove is allowed. But it's not my fault he's 135 pounds and he fell."

The issue is that when you watch the replay, it's pretty obvious that it was more than "a little shove." Stevenson fully extended his left arm and pushed Addison over, and the refs are going to call that every time. The flag negated what would've been his second interception of the game and led to a Cam Akers touchdown that made it 27-6. By the way, Addison is listed at 175 pounds.

Imagine thinking this isn't pass interference pic.twitter.com/UVljVoIBDW

— nascarplaybook (@countryfade) December 17, 2024

Stevenson's a solid cornerback. He has 6 interceptions and 27 passes defended since being drafted in the second round in 2023 (his pick against the Vikings actually cost his team seven yards of field position since it happened on fourth down, but it's hard to blame him for that). He has some potential in the years to come and has obviously done extremely well for himself to even make the NFL, let alone earn a starting job.

But he's also on a Bears team riding an eight-game losing streak that began with a play that'll be attached to his career for a while, so he may want to start choosing humility and accountability at some point.

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