Chicago Bears fans had every right to be wary of the kicking situation ahead of the 2025 NFL season. Veteran kicker Cairo Santos was coming off a 2024 performance where he struggled to consistently make long kicks, and it didn't take long for him to validate the fan base's concerns.
After Chicago opted to stay with Santos and try to improve his leg strength in the offseason, the 33-year-old proved the doubters right with a frustrating outing against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday. Santos ended the 27-24 loss to the NFC North rivals with two critical mistakes, which have Bears fans calling for his job.
Bears K Cairo Santos Already on Hot Seat After Week 1 Blunders
After watching Santos make his only field goal of over 50 yards in the preseason, Bears fans were hoping that would be a good omen for this season. However, he immediately reverted to his old ways against the Vikings.
In one of the most critical moments of the game on Monday night, Santos missed a 50-yard field goal (h/t @ChiBearsMuse). On top of his missed attempt, the aging kicker also failed to kick the ball out of the back of the end zone right before the two-minute warning.
Although Santos showed on multiple occasions last year that he can kick the ball out of the back of the end zone, not doing it in that moment irked Bears fans. Having a kicker who can do what is needed in the most important moments is crucial to the success of a team.
Bears Must Consider 2 Cairo Santos Replacements
With that in mind, the Bears must consider trying out kickers this week. Currently, the veteran kicker available with the best leg is Eddy Piñeiro, who was a part of the Bears' 2019 team.
That season, Piñeiro made 23/28 field goals (82.1%). Even though he was only 3-of-7 on 40-49 yard field goals, he was perfect on his two attempts from beyond 50 yards. Since leaving Chicago, the 29-year-old has been better from distance. In four seasons split between the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers, he is 2 9-of-34 (85.3%) on 40-49 yard field goals and 9-of-12 (75.0%) when it comes to attempts from 50 yards or further.
If the Bears are interested in a younger kicker, Ben Sauls is available. Sauls attended the University of Pittsburgh from 2020 to 2024, and was 7-of-9 (77.8%) on 40-49 yard field goals and 6-of-7 (85.7%) on 50-plus-yard tries.
After going undrafted this year, the 24-year-old signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, going 1-of-2 from 40-49, as well as nailing his only attempt from beyond 50 yards.
It's obvious that both Pinerio and Sauls seemingly have more leg power than Santos. If the Bears want to avoid more kicking-related headaches, they must bring in the duo for a tryout sooner rather than later.