Cairo Santos is a reliable kicker awaiting big moments. The Bears have extended his window to produce a few of them.

Santos could get at least four more seasons to put his legacy up alongside the best kickers in Chicago during the Super Bowl era, Brett Butler and Robbie Gould. He has agreed to a four-year, $16-million extension, answering one of the simplest questions that General Manager Ryan Poles would have faced in free agency. The extension was first reported by the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs.

The 32-year-old Santos is in the final season of the three-year, $9-million deal he earned by stabilizing the chaotic situation that Poles’ predecessor, Ryan Pace, and head coach John Fox created by releasing Gould after a training-camp competition with Connor Barth in 2016.

Santos has hit 91 percent of field goals in his 67 games with the Bears (105-116), including a pair of 55-yarders. He’s 6-for-6 from 50-plus yards this season, seemingly becoming more reliable as he heads toward his mid-30s. He’s kicked in only one playoff game in his four seasons in Chicago — a 21-9 Wild Card loss to New Orleans after the 2020 season.

 

Matt Nagy once let Santos try a 65-yarder at the end of a 29-27 loss in Pittsburgh. It fell short. He has made 30-yarders at the end of the game to beat Houston in 2022 and Minnesota this season but hasn’t had his fair share of chances to be a hero.

Santos had converted 40 consecutive field goals before Nagy sent him out for the 65-yard in Pittsburgh. It was the third longest streak in NFL history. He currently has made 10 consecutive from 50-plus yards, the league’s longest active streak.

The Bears have gone 22-42 in the last four seasons. They hope to become serious contenders again next season, giving Santos a chance to become a bigger weapon.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that $9.5 million of the $16 million total is guaranteed.