Rex Grossman's Chicago Homecoming

Ever since Rex Grossman was booted out of Chicago in 2009, you can be sure that he’s had nights when dreams of his triumphant return to Soldier Field danced in his head. 

I’ll bet his reoccurring favorite would be an NFC Championship game when Rex would ride in with the visiting team, toss five touchdown passes and be carried off the field by his jubilant teammates, as the Bears faithful watched in silence.

Rex’s homecoming didn’t quite turn out that way.  In Sunday’s narrow Redskins victory, Rex was neither the hero he dreamt of nor the goat that he feared.  It was worse, he was irrelevant.  Throughout the game, Rex quietly carried his clipboard and watched his former team and their new franchise quarterback give the game away.  No one booed him, no one cheered him and no one noticed him.

It had to be tough to be invisible in a stadium where you were once the man. It had to painful to watch the new man play at a level well below your worst day as a Bear. It had to be pitiful to watch and know that your career was going no where while his future was still bright.

As a Bear, Rex was always criticized for his interceptions and sacks.  These gaffes led to the pitch forks and torches that drove him from the city.

Four years later, Jay Cutler’s record-breaking interception and sack pace make Rex’s on-field performance seem tame by comparison.  Add the fact that Rex guided his team to the Super Bowl and you have to wonder if the Bears gave up on him too soon.

Late in the fourth quarter, Rex must have been muttering, “I can play better than this guy.”

Following Sunday’s upset, there were many happy faces in the Redskins’ locker room.  I think it’s safe to say that Rex Grossman wasn’t one of them.