Don Deal: A prospective player is signed by the Bears…

Don Deal: A prospective player is signed by the Bears…

Kicker Cairo Santos was signed by the Bears on Saturday to a four-year contract extension that will last through the 2027 campaign.

 

Cairo’s four-year extension is fantastic, according to general manager Ryan Poles. “His dependability and regularity will enable us to keep improving. We appreciate Paul Sheehy at ProStar Sports for his assistance in completing the extension.”

Santos, 32, has converted 90.5% of his field goals (105 of 116) to make him the most accurate kicker in Bears history. He has completed 27 of 29 attempts this season for a completion percentage of 93.1%, including 6 of 6 from 50 yards and beyond.

 

After hitting 12 of 14 field goals and 5 of 5 extra points in four games, including 3 of 3 field goals from at least 50 yards, Santos was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November.

With :10 left in the game, the 10-year NFL veteran made his fourth field goal of the month, a 30-yarder that gave the Bears a 12-10 victory over the Vikings in Minnesota. He hit a 55-yard field goal earlier in the game, matching a career-long distance.

 

Two of Santos’ three player of the month crowns came while he was a member of the Bears. After making nine out of ten field goals in four games and leading the Bears to three straight wins to put them in position to secure a wild card slot in the playoffs, he was honored in December 2020.

By completing his final 27 field goal attempts in the 2020 regular season, Santos surpassed Bears legend Robbie Gould’s record of 26 consecutive games set in 2005–06. In 2021, Santos continued his winning streak with 13 straight touchdowns, four short of the NFL record and the third-longest stretch in league history.

 

Santos was a standout player in his first four NFL seasons with the Chiefs from 2014 to 2017, making 84.8% of his field goal attempts (89 of 105). However, Kansas City placed him on injured reserve and later terminated him when he aggravated a groin injury during a Week 3 victory in 2017.

After the season, Santos signed a contract with the Bears. He played in two games and converted one of his two field goals before re-injuring his groin and being placed on injured reserve. Before returning to the Bears in 2020, he kicked for the Rams, Buccaneers, and Titans in 2018.

 

Santos, who was elevated from the practice squad to the main roster prior to the season opening due to Eddy Piñeiro’s groin injury, ended up setting a Bears single-season record by making 93.8% of his field goal attempts (30 of 32).