Cairo Santos is kicking his way into Bears record books

Cairo Santos doesn’t know Dan Bailey well, but he certainly can sympathize with him.

Bailey, the Minnesota Vikings kicker, missed all four of his kicks last week, three field goals and an extra point. Not so long ago, Santos was in Bailey’s shoes. Last year as a member of the Tennessee Titans, Santos missed four field goal attempts in one game.

The Titans cut him the next day.

Bailey has had a rough go of it the last two games. Two weeks ago he missed two extra points and a field goal. Prior to that, he had been 26-for-27 on extra points through the first 12 weeks of the 2020 season.

Santos met Bailey briefly before a game when the Vikings visited Soldier Field last month.

“It hurts to see,” Santos said. “It’s hard to watch because I’ve been there.”

Life as an NFL kicker is never easy. Santos has seen both sides of the story. A year after his 0-for-4 day with the Titans, Santos has made 18 consecutive field goals for the Bears.

Santos wasn’t the kicker the Bears expected to have this season. The fact that he has made 18 consecutive field goals, 21 of 23 field goals overall and 27 of 28 extra points (his one miss was blocked) means he has a real shot to be the Bears’ kicker next season. Not so long ago, it looked like the job belonged to Eddy Pineiro. A groin injury set Pineiro out during training camp and he hasn’t kicked in a game since.

The Bears originally signed Santos as a backup plan because of the coronavirus. Many teams are stashing an emergency kicker on the practice squad. But when Pineiro went down with the injury, Santos took advantage of his opportunity.

Now, as the season nears an end, Santos might even find himself in the record books. No Bears kicker has ever made 90% of his field goals over a full season. At 21-for-23 right now, Santos has made 91.3%.

Robbie Gould made 83% or better in nine of his 11 seasons with the Bears. He holds the current team record of 89.7% (26-for-29) in 2013.

With 18 consecutive made field goals, Santos is also chasing Gould’s team record from 2006, when Gould made 26 consecutive field goals (Adam Vinatieri holds the NFL record with 44 consecutive made field goals). Santos would need three busy games if he were to catch Gould’s mark by the end of this season. But with this week’s game indoors at Minnesota and next week in warm-weather Jacksonville, the opportunity is ripe for that streak to continue.

Santos tries not to think about it.

“Having a hot streak, you definitely have more confidence,” Santos said. “You’re looser about how you approach the day. Ultimately, you have to humble yourself every single time you step on the field. There’s work that needs to be [done] to make sure your technique is synchronized. The snap and hold, those guys have done a fantastic job and they’ve been perfect for me.”

Bears special teams coordinator Chris Tabor said Santos is kicking “at a high level,” but nothing beyond this season is guaranteed for the 29-year-old Santos. He’s a seventh-year veteran who has done everything the Bears have asked of him in 2020. It seems like a no-brainer that the Bears should bring him back next season.

“It’s been a goal of mine to have stability,” Santos said. “Every year, I always feel I have to keep proving myself, being a better kicker every year. It’s been something I’ve been working towards. I’ve had some setbacks with injuries. Every time I get to be with a team, the ultimate goal is to keep playing my dream.”