The Chicago Bears kicker situation remains unsolved to this point. Cody Parkey is gone, having been cut a few weeks ago. In his place, the team has added Redford Jones and Chris Blewitt, neither of whom has ever participated in an NFL game. Jones had a decent career at Tulsa while Blewitt was uneven most of his time at Pitt. Both feel like nothing more than bodies for competition.
Meanwhile, somebody like Stephen Gostkowski, a four-time Pro Bowler and three-time Super Bowl champion, is available. He seems like such an obvious solution for the Bears. He has kicked in bad weather his entire career. He has kicked in big games his entire career. It seems like such an obvious move. Yet nothing continues to happen.
Are the Bears even interested or do they plan to go a different direction? The answer isn’t all that complicated as Kevin Seifert of ESPN explained.
“The Bears have two rookie kickers on their roster after a series of tryouts that led to the release of veteran Cody Parkey. But after the impact of poor kicking on its 2018 season, the Bears need to fortify the competition with a veteran. The kicking market typically extends into training camp, all the way into Labor Day after final cuts.”
Chicago Bears kicker situation does not require instant action
Here’s the thing. Kickers are important. The Bears found that out the hard way against Philadelphia in January. However, they’ve never been high on the to-do list for NFL teams every year. The rest of the roster must be taken care of before handling that part. This is why guys like Gostkowski remain without a team even with free agency a week old.
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Odds are good options will still be available even after the NFL draft at the end of April. So GM Ryan Pace can afford to bide his time and focus on other areas of need on the roster. This is why the Bears have secured key talents like Cordarrelle Patterson and Ha Ha Clinton-Dix. It isn’t because they aren’t aware of the still glaring need at kicker. It’s because they know the market won’t suddenly run dry if they wait a little longer.
