Chicago Bears Sign New Kicker

The Chicago Bears have gotten off to a surprisingly fast start in 2022, going 2-1 with victories over San Francisco and Houston to be in a tie for first place in the NFC North, and this week, they head to New York to battle the Giants as both teams aspire to get themselves to 3-1 early in 2022. Unfortunately for Chicago, their starting kicker, Cario Santos won't be making the trip due to personal reasons, so the Bears went out and signed former Chargers kicker Michael Badgley to the team.

With Bears kicker Cairo Santos not traveling with the team to New York for personal reasons, Chicago signed former Chargers’ kicker Michael Badgley to their practice squad and elevated him to their active roster.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 1, 2022

Badgley went undrafted back in 2018, but has kicked for a few teams in the league, most notable the Chargers and Tennessee Titans, making 70 of a possible 87 field goals in his career, and for a one game replacement, it's certainly not a bad pickup for Chicago. 

Santos has been very good for the Bears since returning to the team in 2020, and before the 2021 season, he signed a three year extension with the team, so there's no chance he loses his job with this move at all. Unfortunately, personal reasons do come around, so the Bears have found a solid insurance policy, but heading into Week 5, Santos will be back as the kicker for the Chicago Bears.

Photo Credit: Robert Scheer/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK