Bears kicker Cairo Santos will not play against the Giants at MetLife Stadium because of a personal issue, the team announced Sunday morning. Veteran kicker Michael Badgley, who was signed to the practice squad and promoted to the 53-man roster Saturday, will replace Santos for Sunday’s game.
Badgley, 27, hit 18 of 21 field goals (85.7%) and 39-of-39 extra points (100%) joining the Colts midway through last season, following an injury to Rodrigo Blankenship.
Badgley grew up in Summit, N.J., which is about 30 minutes from MetLife Stadium. He kicked at the University of Miami and went undrafted in 2018. He has bounced among the Colts, Chargers, Titans and Jaguars since.
The Chargers picked him up in October 2018, and he lasted three seasons with them. He made 80% of his field goals and 95.3% of his extra points over 34 games.
Santos gave the Bears steadiness at one of their shakiest positions when he took the job in 2020. He set the franchise record that season by making 93.8% of his field goals.
In this three-season run with the Bears, he has made 60 of 66 field goals and 67 of 71 extra points (he also kicked briefly for them in 2017).
Santos made all five of his kicks — field goals from 47, 50 and 30 yards, plus two extra points — in the Bears’ 23-20 win over the Texans last week. He won the game on his 30-yarder as time expired.
Badgley will be the third replacement kicker in the NFL this season. The Colts signed Chase McLaughlin after waiving Blankenship following the season opener. McLaughlin, the former Illinois kicker, is 2-for-2 on field goals (43 and 51 yards) and 2-for-2 on PATs.
The Chiefs signed Matt Ammendola in Week 2 after Harrison Butker injured his ankle in the opener, but he was cut after missing a 34-yard field goal in the fourth quarter and a PAT in the Chiefs’ 20-17 loss to the Colts last week. The Chiefs signed Matthew Wright to replace Ammendola against the Buccaneers on Sunday.
Contributing: Jason Lieser
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