Bears Top 26 of 2026: Cairo Santos Banging Out 60-Yard Field Goals Shows High Value

Kicker Cairo Santos lands at No. 14 on our list of the top 26 Chicago Bears for the 2026 season. He might be the long-awaited solution Chicago needs.

Chicago Bears placekicker Cairo Santos (8) celebrates with punter Tory Taylor (19) after kicking the extra point for a touchdown scored by wide receiver DJ Moore (not pictured) against the Los Angeles Rams during the first quarter of an NFC Divisional Round game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It has thankfully been a long time since the Chicago Bears had to truly worry about the kicker position thanks to Cairo Santos, who lands at No. 14 overall on our list of the top 26 Bears for the 2026 season.

It has been a bumpy road for the Bears to get to the point where the kicker position isn't a big issue.

Nobody will ever forget the dreaded double-doink by Cody Parkey during the 2018 playoffs that broke the heart of Bears fans and was a harsh reminder of just how important it is to have a good, reliable kicker.

Eddy Pineiro proved to be an upgrade over Parkey in 2019, but the run of bad luck for Bears kickers resumed in 2020, when Pineiro suffered a groin injury that kept him on injured reserve for the entire campaign.

Santos was signed to fill in for Pineiro and he took full advantage of the opportunity. Santos, who had bounced around in the years before his second stint in Chicago, drilled 93.8% of his field goals in 2020, which amounted to a new career-high for him.

In the years that followed, Santos has remained mostly reliable, posting field goal success rates of 83.3% or better and extra point success rates of 93.9% or better in every year but one.

One thing to keep an eye on with Santos is he has seen his field goal percentage dip in each of the past two seasons. He went from 92.1% in 2023 to 84% in 2024, and then he dropped yet again in 2025 with a success rate of 83.3%.

The Bears will hope that downward trend doesn't continue in 2026.

Cairo Santos working on his range

Chicago Bears kicker Cairo Santos. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

If there's one knock on Santos, it's the fact that he doesn't have elite range. That said, Santos is trying to expand his range this offseason and appears to be making progress.

At minicamp, Santos was spotted making field goals of 60 and 58 yards, and he did so despite having to battle a crosswind. Santos' career-high in the NFL is 55 yards.

Making a 60-yarder in the middle of the spring is much different than doing so in a game, but at least Santos is showing promise.

If Santos can successfully increase his range and prove to be at least somewhat reliable from beyond his career-high, that will make Santos a real weapon while also taking pressure off Chicago's offense.