Former Bears and 49ers kicker Robbie Gould announced his retirement from the NFL on Thursday, marking the end of one of the greatest kicking careers in league history.
But Gould almost never suited up for a single NFL game because of a hilarious misunderstanding.
Gould wasn’t selected in the 2005 NFL draft but spent time that year as an undrafted free agent with the Patriots and Ravens. After New England cut Gould in the preseason and Baltimore waived him three weeks after signing him, he figured his kicking days were over and started working construction in Pennsylvania.
But in Week 3 of that year, the Bears lost kicker Doug Brien to injury. Chicago general manager Jerry Angelo’s assistant tried to contact Gould at his construction job to offer him a tryout, but he hung up on them. Twice.
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“I thought it was one of my college buddies pranking me,” Gould recalled in his retirement announcement posted by The Players’ Tribune.
“I quietly mumble, ‘O.K., O.K., real funny, guys. But seriously, I have to get back to work.’ It wasn’t until the third time that I realized it wasn’t a joke, and to this day, I still have no idea how the Bears found me at that job.”
Gould tried out for the Bears the following morning, and the rest is history. He spent 11 seasons with Chicago, one with the Giants and six with the 49ers.
The 41-year-old ranks ninth all-time in NFL history in field goal percentage (86.4%). Gould also never missed a single postseason kick—he was 29 of 29 on field goals and 39 of 39 on extra points.
“At the end of the day, every organization I’ve played for has had a positive impact on my career, each one leaving its unique and significant mark on my journey,” Gould wrote. “And I could not be more thankful that’s how it played out for me.”
