Giants defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux had a great time during Sunday's win over Indianapolis. Colts quarterback Nick Foles did not. Here, let me show you:
Kayvon Thibodeaux snow angles next to a dead Nick Foles is messed up but really funny pic.twitter.com/ZTYBzNq6os
— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) January 1, 2023
See, you can tell that Thibodeaux is having fun because after sacking Foles he makes snow angels on the field. A lot of snow angels. I am looking at the video again and counting one, two, three, four ... 10 snow angels! Thibodeaux was really getting after it, both in terms of causing bodily harm to Foles and celebrating his handiwork. Foles, meanwhile, was having a very bad time, which you can tell based on how his body contorts in agony, the result of a rib injury he suffered on the play.
This juxtaposition of experiences, happening so close to each other—Thibodeaux is bonking Foles with his right hand as he carries on—made for some queasy imagery. Colts center Ryan Kelly called Thibodeaux's display "horseshit."
After the game, Thibodeaux claimed that he had no idea what was going on next to him while he was making all those snow angels:
Kayvon Thibodeaux on Nick Foles: "I mean, after a sack, you celebrate. I think that, when I did realize he was hurt, we started getting up. When you’re doing the celebration, you’re not looking to see who’s doing what. I hope he gets well and I hope he’s alright, obviously."
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) January 2, 2023
I suppose it can be hard to tell exactly what's happening around you in a noisy football stadium, but Thibodeaux's explanation doesn't really get at why he was also doing the "go to sleep" gesture on the sideline while Foles was still on the field being attended to by trainers.
Kayvan Thibodeaux doing the “go to sleep” celebration while Nick Foles is getting checked for injury pic.twitter.com/8u28zGBj7n
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) January 1, 2023
This feels like something that could have easily been a multi-day controversy had it happened in October, but it's far too late in the season to spend any meaningful time debating whether Thibodeaux is a mean guy or an oblivious guy. Instead, let's spend whatever energy we have left to give to the NFL regular season on feeling some sympathy for poor Nick Foles. These last few weeks are a big deal for backup quarterbacks on bad teams around the league, who get thrust into action for various reasons and given a chance to audition for next season's contract. For a relative youngster like Raiders quarterback Jarrett Stidham, this can be a happy occasion, a chance to show that you've got something to offer by almost beating the Niners. But for a guy like Foles, a 33-year-old who led his team to a Super Bowl victory just six years ago, it's a reminder of how quickly things can come apart. One day you're holding the Lombardi Trophy after going on the greatest run a backup quarterback has ever had, and the next you're playing for Jeff Saturday and trying to figure out how many ribs you still have left while some guy celebrates on top of your battered body. Rough stuff.
