The Bears did their due diligence with special teamers during the Senior Bowl last week, where they met with some prospects that could be future Bears.
The Bears met with Georgia kicker Rodrigo Blankenship, Texas A&M punter Braden Mann and LSU long snapper Blake Ferguson at the Senior Bowl.
While Bears kicker Eddy Pineiro had a solid rookie season — where he connected on 23-of-28 field goals (82.1%) — it looks like the Bears are still looking at kickers.
And in terms of great college kickers, Blakenship is one of the best. He went 66-for-79 for 83.5% on field goals in his career, including 6-for-8 on kicks from 50 and longer. He also made all 174 extra points in college.
Bears punter Pat O’Donnell signed a two-year extension last March, which leaves him under contract through 2021. O’Donnell averaged 44.8 yards per punt, which ranked 26th in the NFL, including a long of 75 yards. O’Donnell also had 26 punts inside the 20-yard line, which ranked 16th in the league.
If the Bears were looking for a replacement for O’Donnell, Mann is a good prospect to watch. In his career with Texas A&M, Mann averaged 49.1 yards per punt, including a career-long of 82 yards.
Chicago has a decision to make at the long snapper position. Patrick Scales is a pending free agent, which means Ferguson could wind up being the most likely target of the three special teamers they met with last week.
