Bears' Santos redeems 'annoying' miss with game-sealing FG vs. Pats

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  Courtney CroninOct 23, 2026, 02:55 AM ET

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  Courtney Cronin joined ESPN in 2017, originally covering the Minnesota Vikings before switching to the Chicago Bears in 2022. Courtney is a frequent panelist on Around the Horn and host of Best Week Ever and GameNight on ESPN Radio. She also co-hosts The Chicago Bears Podcast on ESPN 1000. She previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News as a multimedia sports journalist.

CHICAGO -- Bears kicker Cairo Santos walked away from Chicago's 30-24 win over the New England Patriots on Thursday night a hero after booting a career-long 58-yard field goal to seal the victory. But it was the miss he had one drive prior that dampened his demeanor postgame.

"The misses annoy me," Santos said.

On the Bears' first drive of the fourth quarter, Santos' 53-yard attempt hit the right upright and prevented Chicago from taking a two-score lead to cap off a 13-play drive that spanned 6 minutes, 56 seconds.

He got redemption on the Bears' next possession and essentially iced the game by extending Chicago's lead to nine. Santos struggled to express much joy postgame, focusing more on the opportunity he squandered versus the one that led Chicago to its fifth win of the season.

"I'm having a hard time celebrating these moments and I shouldn't act this way, but I just feel like I'm hitting the ball way too good to have these misses happen," Santos said. "Even though they're from 50-plus, I've been making them all the time."

The 34-year-old kicker went 3-for-4 on field goals and made all three of his extra points against the Patriots. Santos gave the Bears their first points when he made a 43-yard field goal on the game's opening drive and added a 31-yarder in the second quarter.

Despite Santos' miss, coach Ben Johnson didn't lose confidence in his kicker. On the following drive in the fourth quarter, the Bears' offense stalled when Caleb Williams took a 10-yard sack on third down at the Patriots' 30-yard line.

Santos said that Johnson had initially planned to send the punt team out on fourth down but changed course during an injury timeout for Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore, who got hurt while sacking Williams.

"I was talking to [special teams coordinator Richard Hightower] HT that I felt good about the line," Santos said. "And then Ben asked, 'Does he want it?' And I heard it and I told HT, 'I want it.' And then Ben said he wants it. I'm thankful that Ben trusts me on that."

Given the situation, Johnson had no qualms about giving Santos another shot.

"One, we felt good about being inside that line, and two, we asked him, he said, 'Absolutely, I need redemption because I missed one earlier,'" Johnson said. "He came through for us in a big way."

Santos was mobbed by teammates in celebration after his 58-yard attempt cleared the uprights in the south end zone. He is now 11-for-15 on field goal tries this season, including 3-for-5 from 50-plus yards.

Patriots coach Mike Vrabel, who coached Santos in Tennessee in 2019, was not surprised that his former kicker came through in a critical situation.

"I think the last field goal Cairo missed was when he kicked for the Titans, so I don't think he has missed one since then," Vrabel said. "He missed one earlier in the game, but we always joke about it. I'm really proud of what he's done. I didn't want him to make it tonight, but a former guy that we coached and Caleb is going to make some plays."

Santos' previous career long went 55 yards. Had he missed his fourth attempt on Thursday, the Patriots would have just under two minutes to reach the end zone while trailing by only six.

Instead, Santos connected on the third-longest field goal in Soldier Field history.

"He's consistent, and that's all you can ask for as a man," Williams said. "As a human, it's the hardest thing to do. And so that's who he is. And then from there, he has confidence in himself. He knows that we have confidence in him. He knows his quarterback has confidence in him. I think that only builds his confidence in himself, his routine, his everything. He's been doing it for a while. So, excited for him. Excited to be able to hit that for us as a team. It was big for us."

Santos entered Week 7 having missed two field goals in back-to-back games. He attempted a 56-yarder in Atlanta last Sunday that went wide left and missed a 43-yarder in Green Bay that also sailed left of the uprights.

"It's just been annoying to leave one play I feel like every game," Santos said. "And then I feel like I'm really performing well during the week, pregame warmups, kicking the ball really well. But just been so annoying to just leave that one play every game for my team, but have a chance to have their back at the end with a career long. That was awesome."