That Time A Chicago Bears Executive S**t His Pants
The Chicago Bears are the home of one of the coolest stories in the NFL. Most fans won’t know the name Jeff King. That’s understandable. Until recently, the man was a forgotten former player. A 5th round pick in 2006, King spent seven seasons in the NFL between the Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers. After a decent career as a mostly backup option, he retired in 2014. The man wasn’t sure what to do next. Then he reached out through a friend to former Bears GM Ryan Pace about a scouting internship in Chicago.
Eight years later, King is now the co-director of player personnel in the organization. That is a meteoric rise in the scouting community and a testament to how much respect he garners from his peers. He is primarily in charge of pro scouting and free agency, meaning he had a big hand in the Bears’ acquisitions of D.J. Moore, Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards, and Nate Davis over the past couple of weeks. Those who know him believe a GM job is in his future. However, they won’t let him get a big head about anything.
Not when they freely share stories like this with Adam Jahns of The Athletic.
The “accident” happened on second-and-1 for the Panthers from the Saints’ 38 in the first quarter. Officially, it was recorded as a 27-yard completion from David Carr to King.
It’s also Brandon Beane’s favorite play involving King. Beane, now the general manager of the Bills, can’t get through his account of it without laughing.
“He (crapped) his pants on the field,” Beane said “And we were wearing all whites that day.”
Jake Delhomme, the former Panthers quarterback, provided a more specific account.
“David Carr threw a pass a little high and Jeff went up to get it,” Delhomme said. “I don’t remember (the) safety to be honest, but he hit him pretty good directly in the stomach. And let’s just say there might have been an accident.”
Geep Chryst, a longtime NFL assistant coach and the Panthers’ tight ends coach at the time, won’t confirm or deny the story. But he’ll tell you that King didn’t want to leave the game before halftime and that the Saints safeties approached him differently.
“No one wanted to touch him,” Chyrst said, laughing.
The Chicago Bears feel fortunate to have King.
One advantage he brings to the table is the perspective of a player. He spent several years in the league. He knows how they think, and what their priorities are. This way, when the time comes to talk to them, the Bears will know the right things to say. King also brings the added benefit of several connections around the league. His relationship with Brandon Beane in Buffalo enabled the Bears to pull off the trade last season that ultimately landed them left tackle Braxton Jones. It’s the little things like that he can do.
The future appears bright for him, and the Chicago Bears seem poised to take advantage of his growing experience and confidence. King is only 40 years old. That is young in the scouting business. He’s learned from some of the best in the business. It may not be too long before he’s running his own team. One can imagine he might have a promotion in the near future, with assistant GM Ian Cunningham expected to land a GM position somewhere soon.