Bears Hit with ‘Illegal Towel’ Penalty for Wiping Down Rain-Soaked Field Before FG Attempt

Soldier Field was so sloppy from rain Sunday that rookie punter Trenton Gill brought out a towel to wipe down a spot on the field before a field goal attempt. But the refs were not amused.

Ahead of halftime, as the Bears set for a 47-yard field goal attempt, rain continued to plague the game. The entire Chicago area suffered from rain all day, Sunday, without much of a break.

Gill may have hoped to clean a spot for the kick, but the refs cited Gill for illegal use of a towel on the field.

shown: a 15-yard penalty for illegal towel use. go Bears pic.twitter.com/gIcaHqEIKP

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) September 11, 2022

Here was the call:

The Bears really got a unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for wiping down the field with a towel Ὀ
pic.twitter.com/diIK3om4ng

— PFF (@PFF) September 11, 2022

The odd penalty, though, comes along with years of complaints about the grass at Chicago’s Soldier Field.

While the rain this weekend was unusual for its duration and stubbornness — SB Nation noted that players were slipping and sliding, and camera lenses were blurry all day — players have complained about the field for years.

The situation probably disappointed stadium officials who thought they had a big solution for the turf problem.

Last week, Soldier Field grounds keepers were thrilled to announce that they had installed a new Bermuda sod that was going to put an end to all the complaints.

That all went down the tubes Sunday under an ocean of cold Chicago rain.

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