ESPN sideline reporter Laura Rutledge was extremely happy for Chicago Bears quarterback Case Keenum on Monday evening.
Keenum, a veteran, third-string quarterback for the Bears, helped lead Chicago to a “Monday Night Football” win over the Philadelphia Eagles. Keenum was playing in place of an injured Caleb Williams and Tyson Bagent.
The 38-year-old NFL veteran threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns in the 27-7 win over the Eagles.
“Playing well anytime in your career feels good,” Keenum said postgame. “To do it on ‘Monday Night Football’ after you thought you weren’t ever going to play again multiple times. Golly, this is special. It’s really special. And I don’t know if I’ll be able to put it into words tonight, but I’m going to enjoy it tonight, that’s for sure.”
Few people, if any, were happier to see it than Laura Rutledge, who caught up with Keenum both before kickoff and after the game.
Following the game, as Rutledge interviewed Keenum on the field, she couldn’t stop smiling.
Some might argue that sideline reporters should not show any bias, or rooting interests, but Rutledge was simply a fan of the moment on Monday evening.
One NFL fan wrote: “This is pure joy from both of you I loved it.”
Rutledge defends smiling big on ‘Monday Night Football’
Rutledge made it clear that she was a fan of what happened.
“I love football. I love when good things happen to great people. I love when the unexpected happens. I love celebrating faith, humanity and family. This was an unforgettable night,” she said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Bears coach Ben Johnson was happy, too. He could see this coming based on how Keenum was acting before the game.
“It was the night before the game. We always do our quarterback meeting,” Johnson said postgame. “He ran the show, and the coaching staff kind of took a back seat. There were no reminders from us. He was just going through the list of every single play that was on the plan, and what he was going to do, and gave us his favorites. And that was really — I thought that right there is a good indicator of what it’s going to look like on game day.”
