There’s been plenty to love about the Chicago Bears’ 5-1 start this season. And one of the pleasant surprises has been at kicker, a position that’s snakebitten the Bears in years past.
Bears kicker Cairo Santos has been dubbed the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week following his impressive Week 6 performance against the Carolina Panthers — a 23-16 victory for Chicago.
Santos was perfect in field goals, connecting on all three from distances of 31, 55 and 31 yards, all of which helped the Bears maintain a lead throughout the game.
But it was his 55-yarder — a career long — that was his biggest kick of the day. He drilled it right down the middle with :02 left in the first half to extend Chicago’s lead 13-6 heading into halftime.
Not a bad way to start the day.
Congrats, @cairosantos19! 🐻⬇️ pic.twitter.com/vhfY6iJAIO
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 21, 2020
The Bears signed Santos back on Aug. 25, and he’s started for them in each of the first six games this season. He’s connected on 10-of-12 field goals (83.3 percent) this season, and he’s made his last seven field goals in a row.
With Eddy Pineiro on injured reserve with a groin injury, it’s hard to believe the Bears will shy away from Santos following his impressive performance, especially over these last couple of games.
You never like to see a player lose a job to injury. But Santos has more than earned the starting role at this point.
