The most important battle in the Chicago Bears’ training camp is at kicker. We take a look at who is leading so far.
The Chicago Bears have a great kicking competition taking place at 2019 training camp. With fan-favorite Robbie Gould locked up in San Francisco, it looks more and more like either Eddy Pineiro or Elliott Fry will be the kicker when the regular season begins.
As the fans in Chicago are well aware, having a good kicker is something every team really needs. A magical season that realistically could have been a super season went down the drain in the first round when a double-doink resulted in a loss. Everyone involved with the team wants to make sure this problem is eradicated and not be a thorn at the side of the Bears this season.
After all the kickers that worked out and came in but weren’t signed, the Bears narrowed the competition down to two players, Pineiro and Fry. Ironically, with many of the kickers with NFL experience who came in, the final two have zero NFL experience.
Pineiro’s rookie season last year ended before it began. He spent the season on injured reserve. Fry did kick for the now-defunct Alliance of American Football but hasn’t kicked in the NFL.
The Bears hope they find a diamond in the rough like they did when they picked up Gould. That is the life of a kicker. One day they’re working in construction (like Gould was) and the next they become the Bears’ all-time leader in points.
While hitting on another Gould is great, most people will be happy with just a consistent kicker. Hit the makeable kicks and a number of the difficult kicks and play well under pressure. If one of these guys can do that, we’d all be pretty happy.
Pineiro said it best after Saturday’s (Aug. 3) practice:
Bears Kicker Eddie Pineiro: “Just gotta make kicks. That’s what Chicago wants.”
— Mark Grote (@markgrotesports) August 4, 2019
So how is the competition going so far? The kicking battle began on the right foot with both kickers only missing one kick and both making kicks of 60 yards or more. With each kicker performing on one day and getting the next day off, both of them are doing well.
Through Sunday (Aug. 4), here are the stats for the two kickers:
- Pineiro: 33 of 37, 89.2 percent
- Fry: 34 of 40, 85 percent
So Pineiro is ahead by an eyelash so far. Of course, we need to see how they do during a game. We’ll see what they can do then once the preseason games start this week. Some say they won’t have the same pressure as they would during a regular-season game, but they will have pressure.
They’re kicking for their careers. They know that every made kick puts them closer to the regular-season roster and every missed kick places them closer to the unemployment line. That’s a lot of pressure on them.
If Pineiro can continue to hit field goals at the same rate, he’ll definitely have a leg up. He has a more powerful leg than Fry, but consistency is a problem for him. While Fry hasn’t made the longer kicks, his accuracy is his strong suit. With Pineiro having a better percentage and making longer kicks he has the lead — for now.
While Pineiro appears to be in the lead, the competition is far from over. As I mentioned, let’s see what happens once the games begin. If Pineiro continues his success onto the field, it’ll be tough for Fry to come back and win. Hopefully, this competition keeps bringing out the best in each player and the winner continues to do well during the regular season.