Three Veteran Free Agent Kicker Options for Bears After Robbie Gould Stays With 49ers

As the Bears have had what appears to be a disastrous kicking competition after cutting Savannah Guthrie’s Most Honorable Player Cody Parkey this offseason, a lot of hope amongst the fanbase hinged on the possibility of landing former Bear Robbie Gould, who was in a standoff with the 49ers. But today, Gould signed a new deal with San Francisco, and that idea is dead.

As far as what comes next, they’ve got kickers Elliott Fry and Eddy Pineiro (come again?) in camp. There are any number of relatively anonymous kickers they could bring in, and that may well be the direction they go because if that doesn’t work it’s easier to make an in-season shift. If they opt to go with a veteran, these five are still available in free agency.

Matt Bryant

Bryant is probably the biggest name out there right now. He’s a 17-year veteran who’s played for a number of teams including the Giants, Bucs, and Falcons. Last season, he made over 95% of his field goals, but that’s partly a function of the fact that he only attempted five field goals over 50 yards. Also, the Falcons play in a dome. This is the guy Bears sports talk radio callers will be clamoring for.

Kai Forbath

Forbath is just 31-years-old. He had a cup of coffee with the Jaguars last season, but was out of the league for most of the year. He made 84% of his field goals in the 2017 season for the Vikings.

Mike Nugent

Nugent has bounced around the last couple years after a decade with the Bengals; in the last two seasons he has suited up for the Bears, Cowboys, and Raiders. In his four games with the Bears in 2017, he made all four of his field goals but missed two out of nine extra point attempts.