To this point, fans haven’t really gotten a taste of the Chicago Bears kicker battle. Aside from the constant shuffling of certain players on and off the roster. All that’s been heard is the occasional story of guys dealing with grueling drills designed by head coach Matt Nagy and his staff to truly test their mental fortitude. Everything from narrowing the goalposts to having the entire field go completely silent.
Not until the start of training camp itself did things finally seem to take shape. Nagy himself laid it out. The plan was for each of the Bears kickers to alternate days. They would go through a series of kickers to see how well they did and then the other would do the same the next day. Not a bad idea. So who was up first? That was Elliott Fry. The former AAF standout was given a simple task. Hit a series of field goal starting from short and then moving further out.
It didn’t start well.
From 33 yards, Fry pushed his first attempt wide right. It would’ve been easy at that point for him to keep struggling. Instead, he buckled down and delivered a crisp stretch of nine-straight kicks without a single miss. This included a 60-yard line drive right down the pipe. Nagy was suitably impressed and said so after practice.
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Chicago Bears kicker battle could decisively shift early
If Fry was trying to send a message, he certainly did that. One can imagine Eddy Pineiro, his competition must be feeling some pressure now. Not only will he have to kick in front of all the fans tomorrow when the pads go on, but he’ll also have to do it knowing Fry was near-perfect during his session. This is undoubtedly what the Bears coaches wanted. They want to see how these guys respond to pressure. If Pineiro falters with something like this, then they’ll be left with a simple thought.
How can we trust him with the game on the line in the playoffs?
That is why Pineiro will be a major center of attention when practice begins. If he fails to deliver a good showing, Fry may have struck the decisive blow before camp can truly get going. No doubt the Bears would love for the position to resolve itself. This would certainly be one way it happens. Knowing how this team operates though, it’s possible both young men will get at least a couple of days to show their stuff properly.
