Chicago Bears fans have always had mixed feelings about kicker Cairo Santos and how he plays.
Santos had a rough start to the 2025 season, with many calling for his job and almost seeing Jake Moody take it. After Santos returned from his injury, though, he became nearly automatic and played a big role in helping the Bears make the playoffs.
Entering training camp this year, there weren't really any questions or concerns regarding Santos being the kicker. After two preseason games, though, there might have to be a conversation about him.
Cairo Santos isn't giving Bears fans 100% confidence in him during the preseason
Early in the second quarter of the Bears' 34-10 blowout win over the Cleveland Browns, Santos was called on to kick a 50-yard field goal, but he would miss it. He made two of his three field goals in the contest.
In the latest 27-9 preseason loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, Santos was kept busy, hitting his first three field goals of the game. In the fourth quarter, he was asked to make a 53-yard field goal, but once again he missed again, and it went wide right.
Overall, for the first two preseason games, Santos has made 5-of-7 field goals. It's not a bad stat line, but it raises concerns that he is struggling to hit field goals from 50 yards or farther, especially when Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker just made a 69-yarder in a preseason game.
This isn't necessarily a call for Santos to be replaced, as he is still a solid kicker. He has made over 88% of his field goals in his six seasons with the Bears.
The problem is that Santos is clearly regressing, as misses are becoming more and more a part of his game. He had made 90% or more of his fields in three of his first four seasons in Chicago. In the last two years, he hit 84% in 2024 and 83.3% last year, the two lowest of his Bears career.
We probably need to have a conversation about bringing in a kicker to compete and push Santos for the starting job. Moody was just released, and he made a game-winning field goal for the Bears last season against the Washington Commanders, so it makes sense to give him a call.
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Santos has had a great training camp, but the preseason games have been a bit more lackluster. At some point, if he continues this trend, Bears head coach Ben Johnson won't have a choice but to look into kickers to bring in.
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