Chicago Bears: Would Robbie Gould availability end kicking competition?

The Chicago Bears keep looking at any kicker who is available, trying out a handful already. Is all this moot if Robbie Gould is available again?

For the past three seasons, the Chicago Bears have been on a never-ending pursuit of a kicker to replace all-time great Robbie Gould. They tried Connor Barth, Roberto Aguayo, Cairo Santos, Mike Nugent and Cody Parkey. None of those players stuck.

Now, general manager Ryan Pace is trying even harder to find Gould’s replacement. He has two kickers already signed in Chris Blewitt (worst name for a kicker) and Redford Jones. Also, they brought in a few kickers from the Alliance of American Football for tryouts. In addition to that, there are reports that the Bears are interested in former Philadelphia Eagles kicker Caleb Sturgis to add to the mix.

Pace feels if there is an intense competition in camp and preseason games, the best will come out of the players and that will give them momentum going into the 2019 season. That has helped other kickers like Justin Tucker of the Baltimore Ravens. Tucker is now one of the top kickers in the league.

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What happens, however, if the guy they’re trying to replace becomes available again?

Chicago Bears fans hoped that their team could have a reunion with Gould. He was set to become a free agent this year so the opportunity was there. That was, though, until the San Francisco 49ers slapped the franchise tag on him. That made him the highest paid kicker with a one-year, $5.01 million deal (all guaranteed).

Even with the franchise tag, the Niners and Gould could still negotiate a long-term deal. They have until July 15 to get a deal done. Both sides haven’t been able to come close to a contract so far. If Gould doesn’t come to a deal, would the Niners rescind the tag? And if that happens, does Pace throw the kicking competition out the window and just go after Gould?

Gould could be playing hardball in order to become a free agent. He’s talked about wanting to have another opportunity to play in a Bears uniform again so this could be his plan.

I appreciate all the talk about competition breeding better play among the kickers, but I also feel that Gould is better than any of the kickers already signed or on the Bears’ radar. Yes, he wasn’t the same Gould at the end of his tenure in Chicago but he admitted it was the kick in the pants he needed to get back. Since leaving Chicago, he hit on 82 of his 85 field goal attempts (96.5 percent). That is amazing.

I wouldn’t expect those numbers, but if he is the old Gould hitting 85 percent of his kicks and hitting game-winners in the process the Bears and their fans will be very happy. Who would’ve thought the kicking situation would be the biggest storyline for the team this offseason?