Ben Johnson’s continued confidence and subtle push allowed a key player to redeem himself in a big way but he’s not fully in the clear yet
A big game for Cairo Santos.
Dating back to last season, a lot of people, including myself, have soured on Cairo Santos and his ability to be the starting kicker for the Chicago Bears and don’t have confidence in him coming through in big moments. And that belief was warranted.
Santos missed some critical kicks during the 2024 season and had some massive kicks blocked. On numerous occasions, his lack of distance burned the team from putting points on the board as well.
Those same issues continued into 2025, despite having a strong moment in the preseason that ended a potential kicker battle. Flashforward to Week 1 of the regular season, Santos missed a 50-yard field goal and his leg strength cost the team valuable field position by not sending a kickoff into the back of the end zone for a touchback.
Yet, the Bears still had faith in Santos to do his job, but made sure to add a backup plan, just in case. Which led Chicago to adding Jake Moody to the practice squad days after being released by the San Francisco 49ers. Not long after, head coach Ben Johnson made sure to express his confidence in Santos despite adding some pressure to his starting position.
“Jake’s a talented player and we’ll see where he’s at, but we have a lot of confidence in Cario,” Johnson said last week. “We have a lot of confidence in Cairo.”
Cairo Santos came through in a big way for the Bears in Week 4 win
That confidence paid off for the Bears in Week 4 against the Las Vegas Raiders. Chicago’s offense sputtered throughout much of the game after being tormented by defensive end Maxx Crosby and failed to fully capitalize on short field situations.
In the meantime, Santos stayed ready. The veteran kicker nailed four field goals on Sunday from 46, 43, 52, and 51-yards including one extra point. In a game decided by one-point, Santos managed to put 13 points on the board for Chicago, earning a game ball after the win.
It was a big moment for Santos to redeem himself in the eyes of the Bears fanbase, but it goes the same way with the rest of the team, it was one game. Not only that, but it was an indoor game at Allegiant Stadium with ideal kicking conditions and a split crowd.
However, there was one situation were Santos’ limitations were considered. Early in the second quarter, quarterback Caleb Williams was sacked on 3rd-and-16, leading to a fourth down from the Raiders’ 40-yard-line. It would have been a 57-yard field goal, on the same day we saw a kicker nail one from 65-yards in an outdoor stadium. Yet, the Bears opted to punt the ball away despite being down 7-3 in that situation.
All that to say, I’ll give Santos his flowers for his Week 4 performance. The Bears do not win that game without him. But, his limitations will still be something to monitor going forward.
Chicago Bears News
Bears ability to come away with a ‘huge character win’ in Week 4 answers another question about Ben Johnson’s new culture
Sometimes it’s not going to be perfect.
