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Preserving the Status Quo

Health and success achieved with his new contract, Bears kicker Cairo Santos simply wants to go right on making field goals like last year

Cairo Santos refuses to overthink the situation.

Now that the Bears kicker has the long-term stability he sought for so long after starting his career on solid footing, he simply wants to go with the flow and continue his Soldier Field success in a place where kickers rarely find it.

"So, just kind of react to everything I felt last year and try to do more of the same," Santos said.

The Bears gave Santos a three-year deal for $9 million after his record-setting season kicking field goals solved a problem area they had since Robbie Gould was cut in 2016.

His 30-of-32 effort on field goals set a team record (.938) for percentage made and included 15 of 16 at tricky Soldier Field, where his only miss was a 50-yarder in the fourth quarter of Week 2 against the New York Giants as the Bears tried to hang on to what had been a 17-0 lead in a 17-13 win.

"It's not overanalyze every little thing that you did. Part of my success last year was just to respect the place," Santos said. "As I was getting the streak and many kicks under my belt, every day that I stepped at Halas Hall or Soldier Field, I had to respect what Chicago is to be a kicker, and how hard that place is. That helped me just settle in, like as far as like too much confidence and I don't think I won't miss because I'm kicking well.

"So it was more of a feeling thing, of like, step in that place and take every day as a challenge to thrive and win the day."

Santos sees it as possible to repeat if he can retain the health he had after several years of problems with groin injuries, largely because the who operation is back in place. He has punter Pat O'Donnell, long snapper Patrick Scales and the Bears retained their special teams coordinator Chris Tabor.

"I think, yes, I'll keep doing the same things as I did, my same routine that I had with coach Tabes and O'Donnell and Scales and not change too much," Santos said. "So just kind of react to everything I felt last year and try to do more of the same."

Health is a key for a kicker, as Santos found out when he had groin issues between 2017 and 2019 and bounced between the Chiefs, Bears, Rams, Buccaneers and Titans

"I mean there were parts of my, of those years that I was still playing that I just didn't feel like I was popping the ball the way I used to," Santos said. "To me it was more clear now, the season I had last year, that I got back to myself if not even stronger is a reassurance that really those years that I was playing in Tampa, bouncing around, I was not as strong as I was this past year and as strong as I wanted to be.

"So it was tough battling and doubting if I was going to be able to get there just because the body was not responding to how I wanted it to, because of I think so many scar tissues and all. So at times I wondered if (I) should ever recover from these types of injuries, multiple injuries in the groin."

There is every reason to think Santos can continue at this rate. He made 89 of 105 (.847) in 3-plus Chiefs seasons and then started having the groin issues. With the Bears, Rams, Buccaneers and Titans between 2017 and 2019 he went just 19 of 29.

However, the real disaster for him came in Tennessee because he was 4 of 9 there and was cut after missing four kicks in one game. With the Bears, Buccaneers and Rams in that time period he was 15-of-20 despite the injury issues.

Then he landed back in Chicago as Eddy Pineiro suffered through groin issues of his own and finished the season making 28 straight to set another Bears record. 

Pineiro's status for this year still is to be resolved as he entered free agency after groin issues of his own and a season on injured reserve and was a restricted free agent, but the Bears did not tender him an offer so he is unrestricted at the moment.

The stability of a contract went, instead, to Santos.

"Always felt within my family and my agent, always talked about Chicago as an unfinished chapter back in 2017 for me just because I saw the people that were in that organization from the top to bottom and the care that they took for me when I had the injury and surgery and I just wanted to get back in any way," Santos said.

Santos kicked only twice before his groin injury proved too much the first time with the Bears in 2017 under coach John Fox. After surgery and bouncing around, he returned.

"Unfortunately I wasn't part of the team anymore until this year," he said. "What I put on the field, it's with those people in mind. It's a forum for me to say thank you for everything they did. Working with Tabor and Pat O'Donnell, Pat Scales, I think I would take that over anything in this league.

"They were a group of guys that, coming in as late in the process as I came in last year, in the middle of training camp with two weeks left before the first game, and to settle in, so synchronized with those guys was a key to the success."

To Santos, it's a process and operation worth repeating.

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