Cairo Santos Reportedly Turned Down More Money To Stay In Chicago

GM Ryan Poles has established a reputation for wanting to acquire and keep homegrown talent. He started that process by extending Cole Kmet earlier this year, rewarding the tight end with a well-deserved pay raise. Many expected Jaylon Johnson to be next on the agenda. It made sense. He's having his best season and is arguably the Bears' most valuable player on defense. However, Poles hatched a small surprise this past week when he secured kicker Cairo Santos to a new four-year extension instead.

Many fans didn't realize he was in the last year of his current contract and slated to be a free agent. That felt like a dangerous gamble, considering Santos is having one of the best seasons of his career, going 29-of-31 on field goals and 27-of-29 on extra points. His consistent accuracy over the past two years has been nothing short of stellar, and the Bears made sure to reward the 32-year-old with a $1 million pay raise. However, Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune came across some interesting information.

Apparently, the kicker's agent told him he was turning down a chance at more money.

Santos said Sheehy said he might be able to do better in free agency. One caveat? A lot of the teams with kicker issues might not be the ones to spend at the position. Plus, there are a couple of decent prospects in the draft.

“I trust Paul,” Santos said. “He knows me as a person, kind of what my motives are. It’s not, ‘This is my number and this is where I rank.’ We want to have a partnership with the team. The team feels like it’s a great value that I add to the team so there was no ego in that. It’s a lot of money. That’s kind of the conversation we’ve had since Wednesday.

“We’ve gotten to this point and Paul said, ‘It’s your decision what you want to do. Your numbers are very good. There could be more.’ I didn’t feel like I needed it. It’s a deal that made me really happy and hopefully the team felt the same. I am thankful. Year 10 and I’ve got four more years.”

Cairo Santos values stability over a few extra dollars.

He's been around for a long time. Since 2014, Santos has made just over $12.6 million. That isn't a lot compared to other positions in the league, but it's a decent amount for a kicker. However, it came at a price. Santos spent the first six years of his career with six different teams. Bouncing around like that can wear on the mind. Chicago was likely his last serious opportunity to stick on a roster. It worked out well, earning him a three-year contract in 2021. That success has remained consistent since. Chicago has learned the hard way that when you have a reliable kicker, you don't let him go.

It is nice to hear from Cairo Santos that money wasn't his primary motivation. He loves Chicago and has built a home here. Clearly, he's learned to master the quirky nature of kicking at Soldier Field. That is more than most other kickers can say. People never thought the Bears would be able to bring back what Robbie Gould provided for so many years. Thankfully, they were wrong. Santos has been every bit as good. Here is hoping the team starts putting him in more high-stakes situations soon.