Rams Sign Kai Forbath Away from Bears Practice Squad
Imagine that, someone actually wants a Chicago Bears kicker.
The Los Angeles Rams have signed Kai Forbath off of the Bears practice squad in what could be a signal they are really in dire straits when it comes to the kicking game.
It could also make for yet another Bears kicking debacle if circumstances play out in a particular way.
The Bears actually designated Forbath as a protected practice squad player last week after signing him Oct. 9, because there was outside interest in him.
The Rams decided in the offseason to let Greg Zuerlein leave in free agency for Dallas and instead have had Sam Sloman kicking. So far Sloman has missed three of his 18 extra-point kicks. He is 7-of-9 on field goals with one of the misses coming from 50 and beyond, but one miss was a 29-yarder in the opening game.
It's also caused the Rams displeasure that his kickoffs have been relatively short, averaging only 64.2 yards.
The Rams have to put Forbath on their 53-man roster and presumably he'll be the kicker facing the Bears on Monday night in Los Angeles.
The Bears, or course, have had their share of kicking troubles since letting go of Robbie Gould in 2016. The double-doink and Cody Parkey will never fade from the memory of Bears fans or coach Matt Nagy.
They seemed to have their problem solved when last year ended because of their growing confidence in Eddy Pineiro, but he hasn't been able to practice or play this year because of a groin issue. So the Bears brought in Cairo Santos for their practice squad and ultimately had to use him on opening day because of the injury to Pineiro.
Santos experienced a bit of a shaky start at 4-for-6, but has come on strong. He went 3-for-3 Sunday including a 55-yard field goal just before halftime, equalling the third-longest field goal in Bears history. He's gone 6 of 6 over the last three games and has made seven straight. His last miss was a 46-yarder early in the win over Atlanta.
"For me, just from him being a kicker in Kansas City when I was there for those years, I always had a lot of confidence in him," Bears coach Matt Nagy said of the former Chiefs kicker. "Every time he was there, never once did I ever think about the kick being made or the kick being missed.
"I'll be honest with you: I'm really in that mode right now with him. I know that. That 55-yarder, it didn't shock me that he hit it. The thing with Cairo is that he's very confident and he doesn't get (down). If he misses a kick, 'OK, I missed a kick. I'll get the next one.' And I appreciate that about him."
The Bears had signed Forbath for their practice squad after it became apparent Pineiro wouldn't be quickly over the groin injury.
This move, of course, sets up a potentially embarrassing situation for someone on Monday night. If Santos misses kicks and Forbath makes big kicks, the Bears look foolish for having Forbath on the practice squad all that time.
Forbath is now with his eighth team. He has been in the league since 2012 and has made 86.8% of his field goals.
Santos has been in the league since 2014 including his first 3 1/2 seasons with Kansas City. He has made 80.8% of his field goals.
When the Bears signed Forbath for the practice squad, special teams coordinator Chris Tabor referred to him as an emergency kicker.
"At that position, if someone would wake up in the morning with COVID, we've been in a lot of tight games and you don't have a guy that can go out and make a field goal. That's concerning," Tabor said. "Kai is a guy that's obviously been in this league a long time.
"He's really a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency, is what he is. That's where we're at with him, and that gives us security."
The glass has been broken, but not by the Bears.
As for Pineiro, last week Tabor said he didn't think it would be a season-ending injury. In 2018, Pineiro spent all of the season on injured reserve with a groin injury with the Raiders.
"I think he is still part of our plans, and I think he's progressing," Tabor said. "I get updated by the trainers on that. Looking forward to when he can come back."
Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven
