Chicago Bears superfan Candace Parker grieves over NFL franchise fumbling Patrick Mahomes in the 2017 draft 

Candace Parker is a diehard Chicago Bears fan. She has said a few times in the past that she will continue to support the team despite its struggles. Still, she could not believe how the franchise missed a golden opportunity to turn itself around in 2017.

On Tuesday, the WNBA legend wrote on Instagram:

“How did the Bears watch this and not draft @patrickmahomes.”

Candace Parker is still in disbelief after the Chicago Bears passed on Patrick Mahomes in the 2017 NFL draft. [photo: @candaceparker/IG]

The clip showed Patrick Mahomes throwing an 80-yard pass downfield during his pro day with Texas Tech in 2017. Multiple scouts, including a party from the Bears, were in attendance for the workout.

In the 2017 NFL draft, the Chicago Bears moved one step up to get Mitchell Trubisky, the North Carolina star. The Bears traded the No. 3 pick, the No. 67 pick, a fourth-rounder and a third-round pick in 2018. Trubisky was subsequently the first quarterback off the board.

Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs, who had the No. 27 pick, jumped to the No. 10 spot to grab Mahomes. To get the former Texas Tech play caller, the Chiefs sent their No. 27 pick, a third-round selection and a 2018 first-rounder to bring Mahomes to Arrowhead Stadium.

Candace Parker and every football fan know well how the Bears let a franchise-changing quarterback slip through their hands. Trubisky started 12 games and finished with a 4-8 record in his rookie season. Mahomes, who sat behind Alex Smith to learn and develop, played one game and won.

Later on, Trubisky led the Bears to two Wild Card games (2018, 2020) and lost both. Mahomes, meanwhile, turned the Chiefs into a dynasty, leading the team to five Super Bowls. The No. 10 overall pick in the 2017 draft is now a three-time Super Bowl MVP winner (2019, 2022 and 2023).

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Candace Parker helped deliver a championship to Chicago

Candace Parker was born in St. Louis, Missouri, but moved to Chicago with her family when she was two years old. Although she played 13 seasons with the LA Sparks, she remained a loyal fan of the Windy City. In 2021, she returned home to play for the Chicago Sky in the WNBA.

With the two-time MVP guiding the team, the Sky pulled off upsets in the last two rounds of the 2017 playoffs. In the semifinals, they sent home then-MVP Jonquel Jones and the top-seeded Connecticut Sun. The reward was a date in the championship game against the trio of Brittney Griner, Skylar Diggins-Smith and the legendary Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury.

The inexperienced Chicago Sky leaned even more on Candace Parker against their veteran opponents. Kahleah Copper won the 2021 WNBA Finals MVP, but Parker played a key role in Chicago’s 3-1 dismantling of the Mercury.

The Chicago Bears have won the Super Bowl (1985) just once since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970. Candace Parker, in her first season with the Sky, helped deliver a championship in Chicago.